Box Score

PALO ALTO, Calif. – The third-ranked University of Hawai'i women's volleyball swept No. 16 Michigan, 25-23, 25-19, 25-18 Saturday night in the NCAA Tournament Regional Final at Maples Pavilion, advancing to its ninth Final Four appearance in school history.

 

The Rainbow Wahine, the No. 12 seed in the NCAA Tournament, improve to 32-2 on the season and reach the Final Four for the first time since 2003.

 

UH used the momentum from a large supporting Rainbow Wahine fan base, which including over half of the 2,925 fans at the Regional Final, to sweep the Wolverines.

 

Sophomore Kanani Danielson was named the Regional All-Tournament Most Outstanding Player and Aneli Cubi-Otineru, Stephanie Ferrell and Dani Mafua were all named to the All-Tournament Team.

 

Danielson led UH with 11 kills Saturday night and Ferrell added 10 kills. Amber Kaufman had eight kills and hit .636 and Cubi-Otineru had seven kills.

 

In the first set, the Rainbow Wahine trailed 8-12, before running off five straight points to take a 13-12 lead. UH went back-and-forth with Michigan for the rest of the set, but pulled out the final two points for a 25-23 win. Cubi-Otineru had four kills and Ferrell, Kaufman and Brittany Hewitt each had three kills. Danielson had two kills and Mafua had 12 assists.

 

UH and Michigan played a tight second set, with both teams trading points until UH took a three-point lead 19-16, forcing a timeout by the Wolverines. The Rainbow Wahine were able to close out the set, winning six of the next nine points for a 25-19 win. Danielson had four kills and Ferrell added three kills in the set. Cubi-Otineru and Kaufman each had two kills and Mafua had 10 assists.

 

The Rainbow Wahine led from the start in the third set and never looked back, leading to a 25-18 win. Danielson had five kills and Ferrell had four kills in the third set. Mafua had 13 assists and Hewitt had three kills.