HILO, Hawai'i – It was thrilling final day of the De Luz Chevrolet Hawai'i Fall Volleyball Challenge at the Vulcan Gymnasium as the Hawai'i Hilo Women's Volleyball team opened with a sweep of Saint Martin's before falling in a tough five-setter to Western Oregon in Saturday's nightcap.
After a day off from competition, the Vulcans came in hot with a 3-0 sweep of Saint Martin's by scores of 25-16, 25-23 and 25-21. It was the only sweep of the 12-match three-day event. Taylor Tullo hit .409 with nine kills and zero hitting errors.
For the nightcap against Western Oregon, it was a dogfight that once again went the distance for what is now the Vulcans' fourth five-set match of the season. Set scores were 25-22, 27-29, 22-25, 25-22, 10-15.
Samara Cruz led with 20 kills (.239), matching her career-high mark for the third time. Chase Koepke (12 kills, .529), Kamryn Childs (nine kills, .353) and Raelee Samio (eight kills) added to the Vulcans offensive production upfront as freshman Isabella Freeman totaled five kills and seven blocks — the highest since Koepke's mark of seven against HPU in September of last season.
"It's tough to be on the wrong end of a fun match like that, but this weekend had a lot of really good back-and-forth battles with all of the teams," Hawai'i Hilo head coach Chris Leonard said. "This was a great environment. We told our players late in the fourth or fifth set: 'The match is tight, the gym is rocking and we're having fun. Enjoy this. This is why we play.'"
It was a rambunctious crowd packed inside the Vulcan Gymnasium with many fans from the local community showing up in support of WOU head coach Kaiao Nahale-a, a Hilo native and Kamehameha Schools Hawai'i graduate. The Wolves also have three rostered players from Hawai'i — two of them from East Hawai'i.
"Coach Ecko and I had an opportunity to coach him when he was a club player in high school. This volleyball community is a family but we're fierce competitors on the court," Leonard said. "As much as I don't like to lose, give credit to Western Oregon."
UP NEXT
Hawai'i Hilo moved to 4-2 overall (0-0 Pacific West Conference) with Saint Martin's at 1-2 and Western Oregon at 4-0.
The Vulcans will take their first real road trip for a four-match slate in the Bay Area of California as part of the Route 92 Classic, co-hosted by Cal State East Bay and San Francisco State. Hawai'i Hilo will play Cal State East Bay (Sept. 12), San Francisco State (Sept. 13), Lubbock Christian (Sept. 13) and Colorado State Pueblo (Sept. 14).
Next home game is set for Thursday, Sept. 19 in the PacWest Conference opener against Academy of Art.
DE LUZ CHEVROLET HAWAI'I FALL VOLLEYBALL CHALLENGE
Hawai'i Hilo co-hosted this year's De Luz Chevrolet Hawai'i Fall Volleyball Challenge. Other teams who made their way to the Big Island include Bemidji State, Cal Poly Humboldt, HPU, Saint Martin's and Western Oregon. The three-day event ran Sept. 5-7 at the Vulcan Gymnasium. More information available at HiloAthletics.com/VBchallenge.
