HILO, Hawaii – Women's volleyball left Vulcan Gymnasium with a narrow loss to Hawaii Hilo, dropping the match in straight sets (19-25, 23-25, 22-25) on Thursday evening. The Lions hit a respectable .240 (40-16-100) over the three sets, but fell victim to the Vulcans' highest hitting percentage since October 2023, as UHH hit .381 (48-11-97) to carry out the win.
The Blue and Gold drop the conference bout to start their road trip, moving to 11-3, 1-2 in the Pacific West Conference. Hilo makes it three wins in a row and jumps to 13-7, 3-2.
VU trailed in all major statistical categories, but saw the most sizable margins in blocks (7-3 UHH) and assists (46-32 UHH). Both teams sported similar numbers in aces (8-6 UHH) and digs (34-31 UHH).
What Happened? VU took on an early 3-1 lead with a pair of kills from
Adeline Galvanoni and a cross-court look from
Morgan Cole. The lead was short-lived, however, as the Vulcans fired their way back on terms with three straight points unanswered, followed by two more kills before
Delaney Hill gave VU a point back from the right pin (6-6).
Viktoria Dickson's roll shot was the only Lion point amid a 6-1 Hilo burst. Down 12-7,
Macy Kavanaugh gave the Lions a much-needed boost. Her serving run was fueled by a Hilo error, a service ace, and a kill for the junior setter to stay within distance of the home team.
The Lions remained on the hunt, trading points evenly through the tail end of the set courtesy of a pair of kills from
Kayla Robinson and Dickson. Kavanaugh's second dump of the contest brought VU within two (20-18 UHH). Despite two VU timeouts to reassess the danger, Hilo were hard to hinder down the stretch, as the Vulcans churned a 5-1 run to end the frame.
UHH was a staggering .500 (19-3-32) in the set to overshadow VU's .300 (13-4-30) tally.
Set 2- Though it finished as the closest set of the night on the scoresheet, the lead never changed in the second period. Hilo led the jump, plotting out a 6-0 start to the stanza, which included two aces. Galvanoni gave the Lions their first point, and the Vulcans surrendered two errors to bring VU up to three points in the set.
The Lions put together a healthy spell to fight their way back. It started with a kill through the middle from Robinson, followed by a well-placed shot by Cole and another kill for Hill. The Lions would outscore Hilo 11-8 thanks to back-to-back aces from Dickson to level the score at 14.
Both teams traded minor runs before entering the red zone. A pair of kills for Hilo was answered with a kill and ace from VU. A trio of points from Hilo was countered by two kills from Robinson and a sneaky finish from Hill. Stuck at 21-all, Hilo finally pulled away with a 3-0 run to force set point. Dickson delivered a kill and ace to push the Vulcans into a timeout, but their side-out kill out of the restart secured the set, winning 25-23.
VU and UHH each had 15 kills in the set, but Hilo harbored just two attack errors (15-2-38) to hit .342, while VU totaled six errors (15-6-41) to swing .222. UHH won the front row 4-1 in blocks, while VU led in aces 4-3.
Set 3- Set three provided the match-low hitting percentage for both sides. The Lions clocked at .207 (12-6-29) in the interval, and Hilo hovered just below .300 at .296 (14-6-27).
The reduced fluidity was evident early, with three attack errors split between the two teams over the opening six points. Galvanoni grabbed a kill from the right side, and UHH committed two more attack errors to hand VU the 7-4 lead. The Lions maintained the three-point cushion with points from Robinson and Hill heading into the midway point of the set (9-3 VU).
The frame unraveled off a dominant serving run from the Vulcans. Hilo handed out three aces in a row, then minimized their attack errors for a blazing 9-2 run.
Down 15-11, VU did have one more push left to try and flip the deficit. Kavanaugh collected her third kill of the evening and soon set Galvanoni on her way for a one-on-one kill at the net. Hil and Cole also got involved in the scoring groove, and a dump from
Julia Ringenberg placed the Lions down one (19-18 UHH) to close the 7-4 run.
Like set two, however, Hilo had the answers. The Vulcans kept the Lions' defense on their toes with their service pressure and squeezed out a 6-4 run to claim the victory in straight sets.
The Lions were led by Galvanoni, who had 10 kills, hitting .226. Robinson and Hill each had seven kills, with Robinson going errorless for her second match in a row, this time hitting .700. Dickson delivered six kills and a season-best three aces.
What's Next? The Lions will get set for a rematch with Chaminade on October 11 at 6 pm PST.
