OAKLAND, Calif.--UH Hilo overcame a slow offensive start to roll past Academy of Art on Wednesday night in straight sets, 25-21, 25-15, 25-17 at Tobin Gymnasium..

With the win, the Vulcans are now 2-for-2 on their northern California trip, improving to 6-2 overall and 3-1 in Pacific West Conference play. The Urban Knights are now 4-9 on the season and 1-4 in PacWest play.

The Vulcans hit a robust .370 in the match with only seven attack errors. Bria Beale had 12 kills and a .360 attack percentage to lead the Vulcans, with Alexandria Parisian right behind her with ten kills and a .450 hitting percentage.

The Vulcans had only nine team kills in the first set and Academy of Art had 16, eight of them by Isaura Santos. But the Vulcans had only one attack error and let Urban Knight errors add up on the scoreboard. The visitors had four blocks on defense and four kills by Parisian to pull away late in the set.

After that, the Vulcans got into an offensive groove. They hammered down 19 kills in the second set and hit .552 during the 25-15 win. In the third set they led from start to finish before settling for the 25-17 final.

Beale had four block assists and nine digs to go with her 12 kills. Parisian also had nine digs and two service aces, while Samara Cruz was effective off the bench with seven kills and nine digs. Sydney Gott had four block assists and Kendall Kott had 31 assists from her setter's position. 

Santos finished with 12 kills to led the Urban Knights, who played the match at Holy Names University. The Vulcans continue their trip with a Friday match at Fresno Pacific and a Saturday bout at Holy Names.

  Read Full Article