HONOLULU — All eyes were on the players in the reverse-colored jerseys at the Stan Sheriff Center on Saturday night.
For UC San Diego, it was a homecoming for Iolani School graduate Naya Dong. Dong, a Kailua native, had a team-high 11 digs in a hard-fought four-set loss to Hawaii.
UH fought off three set points in each of the first two sets and a strong effort from UCSD in the third to prevail in four, 27-25, 30-28, 23-25, 25-19 to remain the only unbeaten team in the Big West at 6-0 (9-5 overall).
It was a frustrating but instructive experience for the Tritons, in their second full season as a Division I program. Dong has emerged as a team leader since she transferred from Utah to UCSD in 2021.
“I was really proud of our team. We really fought to the end,” Dong told Spectrum News. “Each set, it was just point by point, and we sided out fast. I was just really proud of people executed, and we really stuck together as a team."
The fact that her team pushed the Wahine nearly to the limit was validation for where UCSD is in its third year as a Big West member. The Tritons are 8-10 overall and 1-5 in conference play after their fourth straight loss, but all during that streak have come on the road and the three prior to the UH game were five-set defeats.
“I came here last year, and I can really see a big difference,” Dong said. “The culture, the dynamic of our team, is improving every day in practice, and we can see that. I’m just really looking forward to our team fighting, because we’re so close, every point.”
Ava McInnes led the Tritons with 22 kills and UCSD won the blocks battle 12-5.
UCSD coach Ricci Luyties said Dong’s family played host to the entire team during the trip. The Tritons spent extra time on the court afterward, receiving lei from the “Aunties” in the front row as well as friends and family members of Dong.
Dong was piled high enough with lei that it resembled a traditional UH senior night for her.
“She’s such a steady, calming force for us on the court,” Luyties said. “No matter what happens, we know she’s going to be good and do her thing. She’s been really good for us, and of course, coming over to Hawaii, her family has also treated us so well. So, it’s a win-win for us.”
Dong did not play at all at Utah in 2019 or 2020, but became a mainstay at UCSD in 2021; she had 33 digs in a match against Cal State Northridge and 14 at the Sheriff that year, in which she finished third in Big West matches in digs per set at 4.38.
For Kainoa Obrey, her former coach at Iolani who was in the stands Saturday, seeing her lead a team from the back row was cathartic. The 5-foot-5 player was targeted as a next-level back-row player from her freshman year as a Raider, he said.
“It’s really cool to see her grow and mature and have this opportunity to be a starting libero at the Division I level,” Obrey said. “We were super lucky to have her at Iolani. She went through some tough injuries throughout her career… but she’s probably one of the best liberos we’ve had. It says a lot, because we’ve had some good ones.”
For UH, an apparent injury during warmups forced libero Tayli Ikenaga out of the lineup mere moments from first serve. Starting defensive specialist Talia Edmonds swapped her jersey to black and took Ikenaga’s place.
Edmonds, a transfer from Michigan State, recorded 28 digs, the most by a Rainbow Wahine player since Tita Akiu had 34 against Baylor in the 2018 NCAA tournament.
Hitter Riley Wagoner had career highs of 25 kills on 51 swings (.314 hitting) in the win. Coach Robyn Ah Mow did not have an immediate update on Ikenaga’s status after the game; her ankle was wrapped, and she left the court on crutches.
Some more shots of the match:
Brian McInnis covers the state’s sports scene for Spectrum News Hawaii.