GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM
Hawaii's Victoria Prince slammed one of her nine kills against UTEP during yesterday's match.
UH rolls over MinersHawaii adds to UTEP’s woes while improving to 14-0 for the season and 4-0 in WAC play
By Cindy Luis
cluis@starbulletin.com
It lasted just 86 minutes, but it turned into a very long night for Texas-El Paso. And it didn't take long for the Miners to find out.
Two serves by Alicia Arnott. Two aces by Arnott. And the match was less than 2 minutes old.
It never got much better.
No. 4 Hawaii handed UTEP its second-worst loss of this disappointing season via a 30-18, 30-14, 30-21 sweep last night at the Stan Sheriff Center. The Miners scored just 53 points -- two more than the 51 in the defeat at SMU -- in losing their eighth consecutive Western Athletic Conference match dating back to last season.
A crowd of 5,174 saw Hawaii (14-0, 4-0) remain one of four undefeated ranked teams nationally, getting 11 kills from freshman Tara Hittle and 10 from junior Susie Boogaard, both playing the entire match. The Wahine also got a .692 hitting night from junior Victoria Prince in two games (nine kills, no errors, 13 swings) and a school-record-tying nine blocks in a three-game rally score match.
"I think we came out pretty strong and got the job done," said Hittle, coming up with a team-high 15 digs. "We came out and just played."
At times, it hardly seemed fair. With nine available players -- and two others out with season-ending injuries -- the Miners don't have enough for an intrasquad scrimmage.
Conversely, the Wahine had the luxury of getting in 13 of their 15 players, changing nearly the entire lineup in Game 3, including swapping setters (Cayley Thurlby for Kanoe Kamana'o).
In what could be considered a microcosm of their season, the Miners had just one hitting error but were still losing (23-20). UTEP had a 20-19 lead, only to see Hawaii close it out on an 11-1 run, with senior Melody Eckmier serving for six straight points.
"We knew there would be a pulling-away point," Thurlby said. "I thought both of our teams played real steady. Even when we're on the bench, we have to stay focused. You never know when you'll get called on to go in.
"When my setting moments come, I have to take advantage because they don't come often. For us (the second team) it's 'Let's play. Let's show them what we can do."
There isn't much that UTEP coach Scott Swanson can do at this point. And that's what he tells his team.
"It's tough to motivate them, but I tell the kids we can't make excuses," he said. "We still have to play and this is the team we have.
"Unfortunately, almost every conference match has started out with us being aced twice. Our passers aren't mentally ready and it's taken them a whole game for them to settle down."
Like most of the other WAC coaches, Swanson thought the Wahine would be having an off year.
"I thought Hawaii would be in a rebuilding mode, but their younger kids have stepped right in," Swanson said. "When you have a tradition like this, you're able to get a different quality of player.
"I think they're a better overall team than last year, with a lot more weapons. I'm so impressed with their setter (Kamana'o), and Hittle gets my vote for Freshman of the Year in the conference."
Junior middle Heather Brisnahan led the Miners with 10 kills but hit negative .031. UTEP's kill leader, Kari Stacy (4.43 kills per game), was held to seven kills over three games with six errors.
The Miners were also outblocked 13-3. The Wahine had eight aces, including a career-high-tying four by Arnott.
Hawaii continues to play well at the ends of games and continues to surprise its coach.
"It's hard to describe," UH coach Dave Shoji said. "I guess it's just good karma."
Notes: Hawaii leaves tomorrow for matches at Louisiana Tech on Thursday and SMU on Saturday. ... The Wahine have won 82 straight regular-season WAC matches, 94 including the WAC tournament, and 186 in a row against unranked opponents. ... With No. 2 Southern California being swept at home Saturday by California, Hawaii should move up a spot in today's poll. ... Also staying unbeaten for the season are No. 1 Washington (14-0), No. 9 Ohio State (16-0) and No. 11 Texas (15-0).
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Hawaii def. UTEP
30-18, 30-14, 30-21
Miners (6-9, 0-6 wac)
g k e att pct. bs ba d
Stacy 3 7 6 35 .029 0 1 7
Brisnahan 3 10 11 32 -.031 0 0 0
Murphy 3 6 2 18 .222 0 0 5
Ripple 3 3 1 13 .154 0 3 0
Smith 3 3 0 3 1.000 0 2 5
Swift 3 1 0 1 1.000 0 0 17
Moreno 3 0 0 0 .000 0 0 9
Wawrzyniak 1 1 0 2 .500 0 0 0
Maynard 2 3 6 15 -.200 0 0 1
Totals 3 34 26 119 .067 0 6 44
Rainbow Wahine (13-0, 3-0 wac)
g k e att pct. bs ba d
Sanders 2 4 2 12 .167 0 2 0
Boogaard 3 10 2 30 .267 0 2 8
Hittle 3 11 2 21 .429 0 2 15
Arnott 2 4 4 13 .000 0 0 4
Kamana'o 2 0 0 2 .000 0 5 3
Prince 2 9 0 13 .692 2 7 1
Gregory 1 3 0 9 .333 0 2 0
Eckmier 1 2 0 2 1.000 0 0 1
Watanabe 2 0 0 0 .000 0 0 10
Fotu 1 4 3 11 .091 0 1 4
Thurlby 1 2 0 3 .667 0 1 1
Woolford 1 0 0 0 .000 0 0 6
Ong 1 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0
Totals 3 49 13 116 .310 2 22 53
Key -- g: games; k: kills; e: hitting errors; att: attempts; pct.: hitting percentage; bs: block solos; ba: block assists; d: digs.
Aces -- UTEP (1): Murphy. Hawaii (8): Arnott 4, Hittle 2, Eckmier, Prince. Assists -- UTEP (32): Smith 27, Murphy 3, Maynard, Stacy. Hawaii (47): Kamana'o 25, Thurlby 16, Fotu 3, Hittle 2, Boogaard.
T -- 1:26. Officials --John Martin, Dan Hironaka. A --5,174.
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