FRESNO, California – Hawai'i Hilo Women's Volleyball split the final day of the Fresno Pacific Sunbird Classic on Saturday sweeping UC Merced in three sets (25-13, 25-16, 25-16) before falling to No. 11 Fresno Pacific in four (25-19, 17-25, 21-25, 18-25) at the Special Events Center.
Chase Koepke (12 kills) and Logan Blutreich (nine kills) each hit .500 in the sweep of UC Merced. The Vulcans posted a .348 team hitting percentage against .061 from the Bobcats.
Alohi Garcia led all players in the loss to Fresno Pacific with 17 kills to go along with 14 digs for her fourth double-double of the season. Koepke followed up with 10 kills (.400).
Hawai'i Hilo opened the match hitting .467 to take a 1-0 lead but posted under .200 percentages in each of the following three frames.
The Vulcans wrapped up the four-match FPU Sunbird Classic with a 3-1 record after wins over Menlo and Stanislaus State on Friday. Over the four-match weekend, Koepke racked up 44 kills with just three attack errors (.414).
GAME NOTES
- MATCH 1: HAWAI'I HILO 3, UC MERCED 0
- Set 1: Hawai'i Hilo took 12 of 13 points in an early stretch, including eight in a row, aided by six UC Merced attacking errors to jump out to a 16-4 advantage. Koepke posted six total kills in the set and capped the scoring run with a service ace.
- Set 2: After seven ties and six lead changes, Hawai'i Hilo turned a 12-10 deficit and outscored the Bobcats, 13-6, the rest of the way. Garcia led all players with six kills in the set, four of them coming during that closing stretch. UCM had five attacking errors.
- Set 3: Vulcans again turned an 11-9 deficit and outscored the Bobcats, 16-5, the rest of the way. Blutreich had five kills (.500) and UCM had six attacking errors.
- Total Kills: Hawai'i Hilo 42, UC Merced 27
- Total Attack Errors: Hawai'i Hilo 11, UC Merced 21
- MATCH 2: NO. 11 FRESNO PACIFIC 3, HAWAI'I HILO 1
- Set 1: Fresno Pacific managed to score consecutive points to close within reach at 19-17, but Hawai'i Hilo answered by taking six of the last eight points with three kills from Garcia (eight total in the set) and two from Koepke.
- Set 2: Vulcans hit .000 as a team with seven attack errors to aid FPU in pulling away late to even the match.
- Set 3: With the score stuck at 20-all, the Sunbirds managed to take five of the last six points to jump ahead for a 2-1 advantage.
- Set 4: After a 9-9 score, Fresno Pacific managed to go on a 6-0 run to pull away for the match victory.
- Hawai'i Hilo: 5-2 Overall (0-0 PacWest)
- Conference Preseason Poll: No. 3
- UC Merced: 0-2 Overall (0-0 CCAA)
- Merced, California
- California Collegiate Athletic Association
- Conference Preseason Poll: No. T13
- No. 11 Fresno Pacific: 3-0 Overall (0-0 CCAA)
- Fresno, California
- California Collegiate Athletic Association
- Conference Preseason Poll: No. 4
- Reigning PacWest Conference Champion
UP NEXT
- Friday, Sept. 4 (10 AM) vs Seattle Pacific (Honolulu, Hawai'i) – Hawai'i Challenge
- Friday, Sept. 4 (4 PM) vs Emmanuel (Honolulu, Hawai'i) – Hawai'i Challenge
- Saturday, Sept. 5 (10 AM) vs Saint Martin's (Honolulu, Hawai'i) – Hawai'i Challenge
- Saturday, Sept. 5 (3 PM) vs Western Colorado (Honolulu, Hawai'i) – Hawai'i Challenge
PACWEST PRESEASON POLL
Hawai'i Hilo was voted No. 3 in the 2026 PacWest Preseason Coaches Poll. The Vulcans finished the 2025 regular season tied at No. 3 in the conference standings. The four-team 2026 PacWest Championships postseason tournament will be hosted by Vanguard University on Nov. 13-14 in Costa Mesa, California.
PURCHASE TICKETS
Season and individual tickets for the Vulcans' 13 home matches at Vulcan Gymnasium are available for purchase at HiloAthletics.com/tickets. Season tickets are $150 for Preferred Seats ($100 for seniors 65+ and middle/high school students) and $100 for General Seats ($50 for seniors 65+ and middle/high school students).
BUY LIVESTREAM PACKAGE
Video livestreaming will be available for all home events this season through the PacWest Network, powered by Hudl TV. More information is available at HiloAthletics.com/livestream. Single-game passes for volleyball are offered at $15 and a season-package (12 matches) price of $120 (now $90).
