HONOLULU – The University of Hawai'i men's volleyball team swept Nittaidai in straight sets (25-23, 25-23, 25-14) Friday to take the two-match exhibition series at the Stan Sheriff Center.
 
For the second straight match, the Rainbow Warriors were tested early but for the second straight time they proved to be too much for the Japanese squad. UH barely got by in the first two sets, winning by the slimmest of margins before routing the visitors in the final frame.
 
Opposite Rado Parapunov tallied a match-high 13 kills in only two sets of action to lead the Warriors. Redshirt freshman Cole Hogland, who spent two months training the Japanese national team last summer, came off the bench and recorded six kills, hitting .750, with two aces, three digs, and one block.
 
As a team, UH hit .291 and held Nittaidai to .147. Hawai'i also served 10 aces led by Max Rosenfeld's three. Parapunov and Filip Humler each had two aces. The Warriors also recorded 8.5 blocks.
 
Nittaidai was led by Shota Fujiwara's 11 kills and eight digs.
 
UH trailed early in Set 1 before tying it at 10 and taking a 17-13 lead. The visitors rallied back to even the score at 18 before the Warriors scored three straight, which included a kill and block by Guilherme Voss. Another Voss kill put UH up by three and the Warriors sided-out to take the opening set.
 
Nittaidai surged ahead 13-8 in Set 2 with a 7-2 run but Hawai'i came storming back, tying it at 14 with a 6-1 run. The score was tied four more times until UH took a 22-20 lead after a Patrick Gasman-Chaz Galloway double block. The Japanese scored the next two points to tie it but the Warriors answered with two more, including a solo block by Galloway to end a long rally. After a Parapunov service error, Gasman ended it to give UH the 2-0 lead in the match.
 
In Set 3, Hawai'i scored seven straight behind the serving of Hogland for an early 9-3 lead. The Warriors were never threatened and finished the frame with five aces while hitting .364. 
 
UH will next host No, 2 BYU Thursday, March 5 and Friday, March 6 in a battle between two unbeatens and the top two teams in the country. First serve is 7:00 p.m., at the Stan Sheriff Center both nights and fans can purchase tickets online at HawaiiAthletics.com.