HONOLULU -- The No. 5 University of Hawai'i Rainbow Wahine beach volleyball team (12-6) once again made quick work of Big West Conference rival, No. 6 Long Beach State (9-11), in convincing fashion at the first day of team duals action at the Outrigger Resorts Aloha Invitational, Friday at Queen's Beach, coming away with the 4-1 victory.

Hawai'i claimed straight-set victories at spots 2-5 as they rolled out three fresh pairings. First to finish was All-American junior Nikki Taylor and new partner sophomore Ka'iwi Shucht, who cruised to a first-set win and held off a 49ers surge to claim the straight victory, 21-12, 21-19.

Next to finish was another new pair; Taylor's former partner, German-born sophomore Lara Schreiber teamed with junior Hannah Zalopany for a decisive win in the No. 3 slot, 21-16, 21-14. With a 2-0 lead and the No. 1 pair of redshirt freshman Emily Maglio and senior Katie Spieler locked in a see-saw battle at the top spot, junior Hannah Rooks and her new partner freshman Ari Homayun finished Long Beach off at the No. 5 in two sets, 21-18, 21-15, giving the 'SandBows' the 3-0 edge and dual victory.

With the win in hand, senior Ginger Long's strong spikes and Mikayla Tucker's smooth shots continued the sweep parade at No. 4 to give the 4-0 edge to Hawai'i with 21-18, 21-17 victories. Last to finish were Spieler and Maglio who were edged 15-13 in the third set after a late comeback by Rachel Nieto and Nele Barber closed the match, dealing UH its only loss.

With the win over Long Beach State, Hawai'i moves into the winner's bracket finals Saturday at 10:00 a.m. against top-ranked Southern Cal. Hawai'i was edged 2-3 in their last Queen's beach meeting with the Trojans, and are looking to turn the tides with the pressure on. The winner will advance to the nationally-televised final which begins at 2:30 p.m., while the loser will head to the consolation final for another shot to make the winner-take-all televised tournament final.

Saturday's action starts at 8:00 a.m. on the main court at Queen's Beach with the exhibition final, where another Hawai'i team will be playing for the championship. Redshirt freshman Hi'ilawe Huddleston and sophomore Gianna Guinasso battled valiantly through their pool and defeated teammates redshirt freshman Claire Marie Anderson and freshman Casey Castillo to make the final.

No. 6 Long Beach State (9-11) vs. No. 5 Hawai'i (12-6)
April 22, 2016 in Honolulu, O'ahu (Queen's Beach)
 
Hawai'i Def. Long Beach State, 4-1
1. Rachel Nieto/Nele Barber (LBSU) def. Katie Spieler/Emily Maglio (UH), 21-15, 16-21, 15-13
2. Nikki Taylor/Kai'wi Shucht (UH) def. Jenelle Hudson/Zoi Konstantopolou (LBSU), 21-12, 21-19
3. Lara Schreiber/Hannah Zalopany (UH) def. Kobi Pekich/Samantha Thomas (LBSU), 21-16, 21-14
4. Ginger Long/Mikayla Tucker (UH) def. Ciana Wagner/Mykah Wilson (LBSU), 21-18, 21-17
5. Hannah Rocks/Ari Homayun (UH) def. Megan Kruidhof/Morea Wagner (LBSU), 21-18, 21-15