HONOLULU – The University of Hawai'i men's volleyball team saw several long win streaks come to an end in a four-set loss to No. 3 Penn State on the second day of the 27
th OUTRIGGER Invitational at SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center. Set scores were 21-25, 25-23, 25-21, 25-23.
The Rainbow Warriors (16-1) suffered their first loss of the season and in the process saw three win streaks snapped – 25-match overall win streak; 29-match home win streak; and 34-match regular season home win streak. The 25-match win streak was tied for the longest in program history.
Penn State (16-2) used a strong service game to keep Hawai'i out-of-system throughout the match. The Nittany Lions served seven aces, including three by Cal Fisher, but also committed 22 service errors – 11 of which occurred in the first set.
Dimitrios Mouchlias led UH with 16 kills, hitting .333 with two aces and five digs.
Spyros Chakas added 14 kills but hit just .222, well below his season average of .417. UH hit for a season-low .250 and managed just five blocks and four aces.
Four Nittany Lions finished with double-figure kills including Fisher and Michael Kowal, who each tallied 12 kills. Toby Ezeonu finished with 10 kills – including the match-winner – and five blocks.
UH pulled out the first set win despite hitting .000 with six kills and six errors. The Warriors strung together three straight points late – on three kills – and
Chaz Galloway's lone kill of the set gave Hawai'i the game.
In Set 2, the Nittany Lions scored consecutive points on a block and ace for a 20-18 lead. UH tied it at 22 but PSU scored two straight and a kill by Rose closed out the set.
The Nittany Lions were in complete control of Set 3, taking a 20-11 lead before the Warriors mounted a comeback. A 7-1 run pulled Hawai'i to within three but PSU sided-out to take the set 25-21.
UH trailed for the first half of Set 4 until tying it at 17 after consecutive questionable calls went in Hawai'i's favor after review. A
Keoni Thiim service error and Kowal kill made it a two-point lead for the Nittany Lions. UH tied it at 23 after Mouchlias recorded an ace and kill on consecutive plays. But PSU closed out the match with kills by Kowal and Ezeonu.
In the opening match of the day, UCLA defeated Purdue Fort Wayne in straight sets, 25-20, 25-21, 25-16.
The final day of the tournament concludes with the anticipated feature match of the tournament as host Hawai'i will face its former Mountain Pacific Sports Federation rival second-ranked UCLA on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. Penn State and Purdue Fort Wayne will face off at 4:00 p.m. in the earlier match.
#HawaiiMVB
