Two players that help keep the opponent off the scoreboard have been named the first UH Hilo Pepsi Athletes of the Week for 2019-20.

Women's soccer defender Jodi Lillie and volleyball middle blocker Ashton Jessee both had standout first weekends as their teams kicked off the Vulcan season.

Jodi Lillie, a sophomore from Mililani, Hawai`i, helped the Vulcan defense give up just one standard goal over two double-overtime matches in northern California. UH Hilo lost on a penalty kick at Cal State Monterey Bay with 30 seconds left in the second overtime (2-1) on Saturday, and Lillie's defense didn't allow a score of any kind in 110 minutes of play against Cal State East Bay (0-0 tie). Named to the PacWest All-Preseason Team by the league's coaches, Lillie was a First Team All-PacWest pick last year as a freshman.

Ashton Jessee helped the Vulcan volleyball squad get off to a 3-1 start at the Hawai`i Challenge on Oahu. The 6-foot-3 Anchorage native had a total of 17 block assists in the fourth matches, the top mark in that category in the PacWest. She also had a total of 28 kills, a .377 attack percentage and eight service aces. The junior had ten kills in a four-set win over West Virginia State, hitting .529 in the process, with nine block assists and four aces. 

The Vulcan soccer squad continues life on the road in Idaho this week, taking on Northwest Nazarene (Thursday) and Central Washington (Saturday). The volleyball team will be in Pomona, Calif. at the D2 West Region Showcase.