HILO, Hawai'i – Book the airfare tickets, but not for the Vulcans. Hawai'i Hilo Women's Soccer became the first team to clinch a spot in the Pacific West Conference Championships with a 3-1 victory over Jessup on Wednesday afternoon in PacWest play at the Vulcan Soccer Field.
Hawai'i Hilo (5-0-3) will not have to travel far to start postseason play when it hosts the PacWest Championships postseason tournament Nov. 5-7 at the on-campus Vulcan Soccer Field. UHH claimed one of four spots for the postseason tournament with help from Point Loma (5-0-2) defeating Vanguard (5-3-0) earlier on Wednesday. At worst, the Vulcans could finish tied with the Lions at No. 4, but Hawai'i Hilo would still get the nod via head-to-head tiebreaker (3-2 road victory on Sept. 28).
The Vulcans have qualified for the PacWest Championships in each of the three seasons since the tournament's inception in 2024 and will look to claim the program's third conference title after going back to back in 2021 and 2022.
Sydney Harpster (9'), Diana Garcia (16') (Game-Winner) and Brooke Peiler (18') scored in a span of nine minutes to put the Vulcans ahead by a healthy margin early on in the penultimate contest of the regular season. Hawai'i Hilo logged game action for 27 total players — three of them made their first appearances of the season.
Jessup waited until the final seconds of the contest to erase the shutout with a goal in the 90th minute.
GAME NOTES
- Total Shots: Hawai'i Hilo 18, Jessup 8
- Total Shots-On-Goal: Hawai'i Hilo 10, Jessup 2
- Ella Smith got the assist on the Vulcans opening score to bring her PacWest play total to three, ranking tied for No. 1 with four other players in the conference.
- UHH extended its unbeaten streak to 12 matches (8-0-4) since Sept. 4.
- Hawai'i Hilo: 8-2-4 Overall (5-0-3 PacWest)
- Nickname: Vulcans
- Conference Preseason Poll: No. 3
- Current Conference Standing: No. 1
- United Soccer Coaches West Regional Poll #8: No. 10
- NPI Rank (Oct. 18): No. 71 (No. 11 West Region)
- Jessup: 1-10-2 Overall (1-5-0 PacWest)
- Nickname: Warriors
- Rocklin, California
- Conference Preseason Poll: No. 10
- Current Conference Standing: No. T7
- NPI Rank (Oct. 18): No. 222 (No. 28 West Region)
UP NEXT
- Monday, Oct. 26 (12:30 PM) vs Dominican (Vulcan Soccer Field)
VULCAN CHALLENGE
Hawai'i Hilo Athletics has launched its annual Vulcan Challenge, a month-long fundraising campaign running from Sept. 21 through Oct. 23 to support scholarships, travel, training and other essential resources for the Vulcans' 12 NCAA Division II teams. To support, visit HiloAthletics.com/VC.
PACWEST CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS
The top four teams in the PacWest standings qualify for the PacWest Championships, which Hawai'i Hilo will host Nov. 5-7 at the Vulcan Soccer Field. Eliminated from Contention: Chaminade (2-5-0), Dominican (1-5-0), HPU (0-5-1), Jessup (1-5-0), Westmont (1-5-0).
Hawai'i Hilo posted an 8-3-6 record last fall and reached the semifinal round of the PacWest Championships. The Vulcans were voted No. 3 in the PacWest Preseason Coaches Poll.
AMONG THE BEST IN THE WEST
In the latest United Soccer Coaches NCAA Division II Women's Soccer West Regional Poll #8 released this past Tuesday, Hawai'i Hilo came in at No. 10 for its first appearance of the season.
NCAA POWER INDEX (NPI)
NCAA Division II has implemented the NCAA Power Index (NPI) as the official, objective metric for determining NCAA Championships postseason tournament berths. Outside of conference champions receiving Automatic Bids (AQs), all remaining at-large spots are awarded based on final NPI rankings, which evaluate winning percentage, strength of schedule and match location.
In the second round of the ratings, Hawai'i Hilo came in at No. 71 nationally and No. 11 in the West Region. NCAA Selection Show will be Nov. 9 with the opening rounds of the NCAA Women's Soccer Championships set for Nov. 13-15. Four at-large berths will be awarded alongside the AQs for the three champions from the conferences comprising the West Region — PacWest, California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) and Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC).
