LONG BEACH, Calif. — The third-ranked University of Hawai'i men's volleyball team made a major statement on Saturday night, following up Friday's five-set marathon with a straight-set sweep of No. 2 Long Beach State at the LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid. Set scores were 25-18, 25-22, 25-20.
With the win, the Rainbow Warriors (19-3, 2-0 BWC) secured their first series sweep over the Beach in Long Beach since the 2015 season and third time under head coach
Charlie Wade.
Louis Sakanoko provided the offensive firepower for the Warriors, tallying a team-high 15 kills with a remarkable .619 hitting percentage. He also added an ace, three digs, and three blocks to his all-around performance.
Kristian Titriyski finished with 11 kills, hitting at a .400 clip, and served two service aces.
Setter
Tread Rosenthal orchestrated the efficient attack, dishing out 33 assists while adding four blocks and three kills of his own. His distribution kept the Beach defense off-balance, as Hawai'i finished with a .437 team hitting percentage for the match. Defensively,
Trevell Jordan and
Justin Todd anchored the middle with a combined seven blocks as the duo helped UH out-block the Beach 8.5 to 7.0.
For Long Beach State (14-4, 0-2), Wojciech Gajek led the effort with 16 kills, but the Beach was held to a .218 hitting percentage as a team. No other player had more than seven kills.
Hawai'i wasted no time setting the tone in the opening frame, hitting a blistering .500 as a team. After a double block by Sakanoko and Jordan, followed by a Titriyski ace, UH jumped to an early 9-6 lead. The Warriors then caught fire with an extended 7-1 run that pushed the advantage to 13-7, eventually leading by as many as eight points before cruising to a 25-18 win.
The second set proved to be a tighter battle, featuring 15 ties and five lead changes. The Beach jumped out to an 11-8 lead behind a 4-0 run, but the Warriors displayed the same grit that carried them through Friday's five-setter, rallying back to take a 15-13 lead following consecutive kills from Sakanoko. After the Beach surged back to lead 21-19, UH found another gear.
Two natural points off the serve of
Kainoa Wade put the Warriors ahead 23-22, and a massive triple block by Sakanoko, Titriyski, and Todd eventually sealed the set. Hawai'i's "big block" remained the story in Set 3, where another defensive stand gave UH a 6-3 lead. A Sakanoko ace later extended it to 15-12, and the Warriors broke the set open with a four-point run highlighted by a Jordan solo block.
The Warriors return to Honolulu for a two-match Big West series with UC Santa Barbara Friday, March 27, and Saturday, March 28 at the Bankoh Arena at Stan Sheriff Center.
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