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Match Notes

HONOLULU – The University of Hawai'i men's volleyball team hosts the 19th Outrigger Hotels and Resorts Volleyball Invitational, Thursday, Jan. 10, through Saturday, Jan. 12, at the Stan Sheriff Center. Matches are 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. each night.
 
The Outrigger, long considered one of the most prestigious early season tournaments in the country, features UH and UCLA of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation, Penn State of the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association, and Ohio State of the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association. UH, UCLA and Penn State have combined to win 15 of the 18 tournament titles.
 
Fifth-ranked UCLA has made 12 Outrigger appearances with a record seven titles to its credit, including the last two years. No. 7 Penn State returns to the field after missing its first Outrigger last season. The Nittany Lions have two titles in 2008 and '09. No. 10 Ohio State will make its fourth appearance and has a 2-7 tournament record. The Warriors have won six tourney titles, most recently in 2010.
 
UH (0-2) is coming off two losses to Brigham Young in a season-opening MPSF series last weekend. UCLA finished 2-1 in last week's UCSB/asics Invitational, falling in the championship match to UC Irvine for the second consecutive year. The Bruins defeated host UC Santa Barbara and UC San Diego to reach the title match. Ohio State opened its season last week with a straight-set home win over St. Francis. Penn State is opening its season with the Outrigger Hotels and Resorts Invitational.
 
Tournament Schedule
Jan. 10             UCLA vs. Penn State               4:00 p.m.
                       Hawai'i vs. Ohio State               7:00 p.m.
Jan. 11             Ohio State vs. UCLA                4:00 p.m.
                       Hawai'i vs. Penn State              7:00 p.m.
Jan. 12             Ohio State vs. Penn State        4:00 p.m.
                       Hawai'i vs. UCLA                      7:00 p.m.
 
Matches #3-5
What: 19th Outrigger Hotels and Resorts Volleyball Invitational
Who: Hawai'i (0-2), No. 5 UCLA (2-1), No. 7 Penn State (0-0), No. 10 Ohio State (1-0)
When: Thursday, Jan. 10, through Saturday, Jan. 12
Time: 4:00 p.m. HT and 7:00 p.m. HT each night
Where: Stan Sheriff Center; Honolulu, HI
Television Coverage: OC Sports (Oceanic Cable Ch. 16 and Digital Ch. 1016) will televise all UH matches live with Howard Dashefsky (play-by-play) and Chris McLachlin (color). Rebroadcast at 10:00 p.m. each night.
Streaming Video: Live video streaming is available on uhstreaming.oceanic.com.
Radio Coverage: ESPN 1420AM will broadcast all UH matches live with Blaine Kauwe calling the action.
Audio Webcast: www.espn1420am.com
Live Stats: Available at HawaiiAthletics.com
Tickets: Lower-level $11; Upper-level adult $8, Upper-level senior citizen $7; Upper-level student (4-HS) $3. UH-Manoa students receive admission with validated ID.
Promotions: Outrigger Hotels and Resorts is the tournament sponsor and will distribute 1,000 tote bags at every UH game. Sign up at the sports marketing table near Gate A for your chance to participate in the “Outrigger Hukilau” contest during the intermission between sets 2 and 3, where two lucky fans can win up to $2,000 cash.
 
Tournament History: The Outrigger Hotels and Resorts Volleyball Invitational is one of the premiere early-season collegiate men's volleyball tournaments in the nation since its inception in 1995. Hawai'i has won the title six times, most recently in 2010, winning a tie-breaker over USC. The only other teams to put their names on the trophy are UCLA (7 times), Brigham Young (twice), Penn State (twice) and Shanghai, China (once). Among this year's participants, UCLA, the two-time defending tourney champions, has made 12 appearances and has a 30-5 all-time record. Penn State returns to Honolulu after missing its first Outrigger Invitational last year. The Nittany Lions are 18-31 all-time which includes back-to-back titles in 2008 and '09. Ohio State has appeared in three previous tournaments (2006, '09, and '10) and are 2-7 overall which includes a current six-match losing streak.
 
Series vs. Ohio State: UH leads the series 3-0. All three meetings have occurred during the Outrigger Invitational. and all three wins were in straight sets.
 
Series vs. Penn State: UH leads the overall series with the Nittany Lions, 12-7, however, PSU has won the last five meetings, all during the Outrigger Invitational. The Lions won the last meeting in 2011, 25-23, 21-25, 25-22, 24-26, 16-14 on the second day of the tournament.
 
Series vs. UCLA: UCLA holds a dominant 59-20 advantage over Hawai'i in the all-time series, including an 11-1 record during the Outrigger Invitational. The Bruins have won the last 10 meetings in the tournament dating back to 1997. The Bruins won all three meetings last season, including an MPSF series sweep in Honolulu in which UCLA won both matches in straight sets.
 
Recapping Last Week's BYU Series: The Warriors dropped both ends of its season- and MPSF-opening series with BYU last week. The Cougars won the opener 25-18, 25-22, 25-17 and the rematch, 25-21, 25-21, 24-26, 25-20. UH hit .101 and .162, respectively, and could not find an answer for All-American Taylor Sander, who had a combined 32 kills, averaging 4.57 per set, while hitting .519. The Cougars had 28 total blocks in the series, including 17 in the four-set win. In the opener, newcomer Jace Olsen led the Warriors with 10 kills but hit -.034 with 11 errors. JP Marks had a team-high 14 kills in the rematch and set career-highs with three aces and four blocks along with eight digs.