HONOLULU — Lone senior
Vladimir Kubr earned his first career start Saturday night as No. 2 University of Hawai'i men's volleyball team claimed the outright Big West regular season title with a four-set victory over No. 18 CSUN (25-15, 21-25, 25-14, 25-16) at Bankoh Arena at Stan Sheriff Center.
With the win, the Rainbow Warriors (26-4, 9-1 BWC) tied the program record for most wins in a regular season and secured the outright conference crown for just the second time in history.
Kubr got the start in place of
Tread Rosenthal and helped Hawai'i jump out to a 10-3 lead in the opening set before being replaced by Rosenthal. The Torrance, Calif., native also saw action in the closing moments of the match and finished with five assists in his most extensive time as a Rainbow Warrior.
The Warriors dominated the net for the second consecutive night against the Matadors with a season-high 14.5 total team blocks and held CSUN to a .073 hitting percentage.
Adrien Roure led the offensive attack with a match-high 17 kills on a .424 clip and added two aces, six digs, and two blocks.
Kainoa Wade made his second straight start and finished with 13 kills, six digs, and three blocks, while
Justin Todd tallied six kills, three aces, and six blocks.
Rosenthal directed the offense that hit .363 and posted 36 assists along with seven digs and six blocks.
Louis Sakanoko added seven kills, two aces, and six blocks, while
Ofeck Hazan had two kills and five blocks. Hawai'i fired nine service aces on the night.
CSUN (12-14, 0-10 BWC) was paced by Jalen Phillips, who hammered 15 kills despite early struggles.
The Warriors set the tone immediately, scoring the first four points of the match and racing to an 8-1 lead. Hawai'i extended the margin to 11-3 and was never threatened in the opening frame, finishing the set with 8.5 team blocks. Todd led the defensive wall with four blocks in the set as UH cruised to a 25-15 win.
The second set featured a tighter battle as the Matadors took a 16-15 lead. CSUN utilized a 23-19 advantage late in the frame, sparked by a Joao Avila ace, and Phillips recovered from a slow start to hammer 10 errorless kills in the set. Siding out at 80 percent, the Matadors evened the match with a 25-21 victory.
Hawai'i regained total control in the third set, opening with an 8-2 run fueled by back-to-back aces from Todd. The Warriors hit a blistering .545 in the frame while holding the Matadors to a .043 clip. Roure hammered six kills in the set as UH led by eight at the media timeout and coasted to a 25-14 win.
The momentum carried into the fourth set as UH jumped out to a 6-1 lead. An ace by Hazan pushed the advantage to 15-6, and the Warriors never looked back, hitting .316 to close the match with a 25-16 victory before 9,360 fans.
Top-seeded Hawai'i will now head to the Big West Championship in Irvine, where they will face either UC Santa Barbara or UC San Diego in the semifinals on Friday.
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