HONOLULU — For a time, a fairytale outcome appeared very real for Oregon State’s two homegrown players who faced off with the storied Hawaii women’s volleyball team on Friday night.
In the end, it was not to be for Kamehameha alumna Emma Lilo and Mililani product Alexis Rodriguez, but the two freshmen could still smile following the reverse sweep loss to UH as they greeted friend after friend, family member after family member along the Stan Sheriff Center lower bowl.
Even the 20-25, 18-25, 25-22, 25-23, 15-10 result was encouraging for a young Beavers team (1-6) that is attempting to find its identity with a roster comprised by as many freshmen (seven) as all other classes combined.
Neither local player could even guess how many people were there to see them among the crowd of 4,709 (6,033 tickets issued).
“It feels unreal. The environment, the community of Hawaii,” said Lilo, OSU’s starting setter who was coming off a state championship with the Kapalama Warriors last fall. “It’s just crazy to be able to play here when I was just in the stands, coming to games when I was a little girl. I always wanted to play here. It’s been a dream. It’s amazing, all the support that I got today, and Alexis (too). It’s just crazy.”
Lilo notched 35 assists and had a service ace against two errors in playing most of the way; fellow freshman Alara Doganyuz filled in some of her rotations.
It was the first official action for Rodriguez, who capped her Trojans career with an OIA Division I championship last fall. She filled in the back row in the last three sets and registered a dig.
“It was such an incredible feeling,” Rodriguez said. “It was so nice playing in Stan Sheriff. We’ve always dreamed of it as little girls. Instead of being in the stands, we’re actually on the court.”
Rodriguez is working her way back from an ankle sprain.
“It was super fun playing defense against the Wahine,” she said. “That’s something I’ve always trained to do, and it was super nice to be finally on the court back there and trying to do whatever I could back there to help my team.”
Some UH adjustments swung the match in the third. Coach Robyn Ah Mow moved Caylen Alexander to the right pin, swapping places with Tali Hakas. And freshman middle Maddie Way was inserted to spell Jacyn Bamis, who was providing offense but little defense, associate coach Kaleo Baxter said.
UH didn’t record a block until the third set.
Way ended up with the match-winning swing among her seven kills and two blocks.
Baxter said there was no “Tunnel Talk” with Ah Mow this time, a la the first two matches of the year against SMU and San Diego that resulted in UH comebacks; the coaches let the players speak amongst themselves after falling into their first 0-2 sets hole of the season.
“We told them during film that this team had some pieces,” Baxter said of OSU, a Pac-12 remnant school that is in its first year competing as an affiliate West Coast Conference member in volleyball. “Their … record is no indication of their talent. That team’s going to win a lot in the WCC. They have a couple of transfers and two really good freshmen. The local product (from) Kamehameha, (Lilo), played a very nice game.”
Lilo, a Kailua native, relayed that OSU coach Lindsey Behonick was encouraged for her team even in defeat. The Beavers outhit the Wahine .225 to .176 and out-blocked them 10-9. But service errors (18 to UH’s eight) and back-row play (60 digs to UH’s 94) were swing factors.
“Today was definitely a turning point, regardless of whether we won or lost,” Lilo said. “We always say this, but being confident in our play, being patient and trusting our process. Trusting that it’ll happen and putting in the work.”
OSU heads back to Corvallis to host Washington on Tuesday.
UH faces Texas State to cap the Outrigger Volleyball Invitational at 7 p.m. Saturday before heading out on its only nonconference road trip of the year, a challenging three-game swing beginning at UNLV on Tuesday. UH beat TSU in four sets on Tuesday.
Brian McInnis covers the state’s sports scene for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at brian.mcinnis@charter.com.