HILO, Hawai'i – Hawai'i Hilo Women's Volleyball closed the season with a fourth-place finish in the Pacific West Conference as it celebrated seven departing seniors after a defeat to No. 7 Chaminade in four sets (20-25, 17-25, 25-21, 16-25) Saturday night at the Vulcan Gymnasium.

The Vulcans finished the season at 16-14 overall and 11-9 in PacWest play, landing at No. 4 in the final conference standings. Hawai'i Hilo was voted sixth in the coaches preseason poll.

"This team played well together," Vulcans sixth-year head coach Chris Leonard said. "There's a handful of matches this year that I'd love to get back, but I think it shows how competitive the PacWest was this year. Outside of the top two, any given night if you play well, you can win. If you don't, you could end up on the wrong side of the scoreboard."

The Silverswords (27-4 overall, 20-0 PacWest) completed an undefeated PacWest season and were named PacWest Champion earlier this week after defeating HPU on Thursday.

Following the match, Hawai'i Hilo honored its seven departing seniors: Raelee Samio, Taylor Tullo, Kamryn Childs, Madelyn Blandford, Chloe Culanding, Samara Cruz and Tani Hoke.

"It's been a heck of a ride," Leonard said. "We say goodbye to some players who have made a significant mark in our program and in the record books. The fifth-year seniors were the COVID players who came in and played an abbreviated season during tough circumstances. This group has been resilient and I can't say enough about their character not just as volleyball players, but also as young women.

"We have the best fan base in the entire PacWest so I want to say a huge mahalo," Leonard continued. "We played in front of a packed house tonight and it's a fun environment to play in, for sure. I'm thankful for the fans here at home and when we're on the road. Also just a huge thank you to the Vulcan Booster Club, who have been really gratuitous and supportive."

Leonard closes his sixth year as head coach, compiling an overall record of 86-69 while moving into No. 2 all-time for career wins in the program ranks earlier in the season.

"It's peak recruiting time. We've had a couple signees who we'll announce shortly," Leonard said. "But we have a bunch of players returning with a really strong young core who I think will be motivated to get stronger and get better at their skill set heading into next year. Despite losing a bunch of players, we have a good bunch who are chomping at the bit to get their shot."

OTHER NOTES

• Samara Cruz departs with her name all over the program record books: No. 7 kills (1,042), No. 6 aces (117) and No. 7 digs (1,022).
• Tani Hoke became the Vulcans all-time digs leader last season and leaves with a final count of 2,022. The O'ahu native also finishes ranked No. 3 with 130 service aces.
• Kamryn Childs departs ranked No. 8 with 109 career aces.
• Junior setter Emerson Reinke ends the season ranked No. 4 all-time with 2,324 career assists.
• Freshman Isabella Freeman finishes the regular season as the PacWest Conference leader in total blocks for both overall matches (112) and conference-only contests (83). She's also ranked No. 4 in the entire West Region, which includes the Great Northwest Athletic Conference and California Collegiate Athletic Association.

PACWEST HAWAI'I CHALLENGE: With the fall season wrapped up, both Hawai'i Hilo and Chaminade share the lead with a score of nine each. HPU is close behind with seven points. More information and breakdown of scoring of the in-state competition between Hawai'i's three Division II schools is available at HiloAthletics.com/PWCHawaii.