HONOLULU – The No. 6 University of Hawai'i women's beach volleyball team won all three of its matches on the opening day of the Heineken Hawaii Invitational Saturday at Queen's Beach. The Rainbow Wahine clipped No. 11 California, 3-2,  before breezing past Boise State and Nebraska by identical 5-0 scores
 
The SandBows, who shifted their lineups throughout the day, improved to 7-4. The Rainbow Wahine also picked up their first two sweeps of the season vs. the Broncos (5-4) and Huskers (10-4) after facing eight ranked opponents in its first nine matches.
 
UH's opening match versus Cal (9-2) was a barn-burner. It was just the second all-time meeting between the squads with the Rainbow Wahine blanking the Bears, 5-0, in the previous meeting in 2015. This time the Bears had UH hanging on for dear life, taking a 2-1 lead and leading in the third set on the two final courts.
 
But Julia Scoles and Hi'ilawe Huddleston fought off three match points, and when Huddleston served up an ace, the pair pulled off a 14-21, 21-11, 18-16 win over Grace Campbell and Madi Micheletti to tie the match 2-2. UH clinched the match minutes later when Kylin Loker and Pani Napoleon pulled off their own third set rally with a 21-18, 17-21, 18-16 win over Alexia Inman and Madison Dueck.
 
In their next match, UH shuffled the lineup. The SandBows sported a different combination in four of the five flights. The result was the team's first sweep of the year, a 5-0 shutout of Boise State. Redshirt freshman Ashley Stevens saw the first action of her career, pairing with Sofia Russo at the No. 5 court for a  21-12, 21-15 victory over Kenna Hanses and Maya Watkins.
 
UH stayed with that same lineup in the final match and it produced a similar result as the Rainbow Wahine blanked Nebraska. Loker and Huddleston were particularly impressive, steamrolling to a  21-8, 21-6 win over Hayley Densberger and Anezka Szabo on Court 4. UH improved to a perfect 10-0 all-time against the Huskers.
 
The Heineken Hawaii Invitational continues tomorrow with the championship round. UH will face Nebraska in the first semifinal at 9:00 a.m., followed by Cal vs. Boise State in the second semifinal at 10:30 a.m. The third-place match will be at 12:00 p.m., while the championship is set for 1:30 p.m. 
 
Hawai'i  3, Cal 2
1: Mima Mirkovic/Jordan Polo (CAL) def. Amy Ozee/Emily Maglio (UH) 22-20, 21-17
2: Ari Homayun/Morgan Martin (UH) def. Caroline Schafer/Iya Lindahl (CAL) 21-19, 21-16
3: Scoles/Huddleston (UH) def. Campbell/Micheletti (CAL) 14-21, 21-11, 18-16
4: Loker/Napoleon (UH) def. Inman/Dueck (CAL) 21-18, 17-21, 18-16
5: Abby Waldburger/Mia Merino (CAL) def. Jenna Banz/Paige Dreeuws (UH) 22-20, 21-19
Order of Finish: 2,5,1,3,4*
 
Hawai'i  5, Boise State 0
1: Maglio/Ozee (UH) def. Janell Walley/Kendra Bodine (BSU) 21-11, 21-16
2: Homayun/Scoles (UH) def. Morgan Hughes/Sabryn Roberts (BSU) 21-12, 21-13
3: Martin/Napoleon (UH) def. Kylee Johnson/Ellie McDonald (BSU) 21-11, 21-7
4: Loker/Huddleston (UH) def. Kiley Lewis/Jensen Allen (BSU) 21-10, 21-16
5: Stevens/Russo (UH) def. Kenna Hanses/Maya Watkins (BSU) 21-12, 21-15
Order of Finish: 1,3,2*,5,4
 
Hawai'i 5, Nebraska 0
1. Maglio/Ozee (UH) def. Nicklin Hames/Lauren Stirvins (NEB) 21-9, 21-16
2. Homayun/Scoles (UH) def. Jazz Sweet/Kenzie Knuckles (NEB) 21-17, 21-18
3. Martin/Napoleon (UH) def. Mari Kurkova/Madi Kubik (NEB) 21-13, 21-13
4. Huddleston/Loker (UH) def. Densberger/Szabo (NEB) 21-8, 21-6
5. Stevens/Russo (UH) def. Megan Miller/Callie Schwarzenback (NEB) 21-12, 21-13
Order of finish: 4,5,1*,3,2
 
Other Saturday Results
Boise State 3, Nebraska 2
Cal 5, Nebraska 0
Cal 4, Boise State 1
 
Sunday's Schedule
Hawai'i vs. Nebraska, 9:00 a.m.
Cal vs. Boise State, 10:30 a.m.
3rd Place Match, 12:00 p.m.
Championship, 1:30 p.m.