Hawai’i makes statement, swipes weekend series against No. 5 BYU

Hana hou. 

The University of Hawai’i men’s volleyball team handled business for the second straight match against No. 5 BYU, dispatching the Cougars in four sets on Saturday evening. Freshman Kristian Titriyski led the way again for the Rainbow Warriors, totaling 17 kills, seven digs and seven blocks in the victory as Hawai’i remained unbeaten after the first road trip of the year. 

Fellow freshman Ofeck Hazan tallied six kills and a trio of blocks in the win, providing a calming force in the middle while bringing fire to the floor after each point in UH’s perfect weekend in Provo. The 6-foot-6 middle blocker has committed only six errors all season (five attack errors, one service error) while remaining perfect on the reception and block through 19 sets total that he has played. 

“Three years of military service, he’s an adult man,” Hawai’i head coach Charlie Wade said of Hazan’s presence for the Rainbow Warriors. “Having some guys with a few more rings around the tree is a real benefit and he’s just a really high-level volleyball player, you know? He’s not the biggest, doesn’t jump the highest but he can straight up play volleyball … he’s an impressive young man and we’re really happy that he’s here.” 

After an intense Friday night bout that went the distance and then some, Hawai’i (8-0) came out with determination and purpose to start the Saturday night rematch. The visiting Rainbow Warriors took a comfortable 11-6 lead in the opening set, forcing an early Cougars timeout and temporarily calming the opposing crowd. 

Less than 24 hours after tallying 18.5 team blocks across a five-set thriller, Hawai’i racked up another 9.5 in the first set on Saturday night as the Rainbow Warriors dominated the rest of the frame on the way to a statement 25-18 decision. Redshirt junior Kurt Nusterer had a part in seven blocks in the first stanza, continuing his mastery at the net after matching his career high in Friday’s match. 

The start of the second set mirrored the first, seeing Hawai’i race out to a five-point advantage behind sizzling attacks from Louis Sakanoko and Kristian Titriyski, 16-11. Sakanoko continued his follow-up frame onslaught, recording eight of his 13 total kills on the night in the second stanza to help the Rainbow Warriors take a commanding two set lead. 

Needing a response, BYU (6-4) grabbed three of the first four points of the must-have third frame before Hawai’i fought back to a 7-7 tie. The Cougars retook total control of the frame shortly after, eventually setting up for the first set winning point with a Niko Hales kill and 10-point cushion in hand before Hawai’i made life difficult over the next nine rallies before Keoni Thiim finally put an end to the rapid Rainbow Warrior comeback. 

The fourth (and final) frame was the most competitive of the evening, seeing 11 ties and five lead changes in stanza alone after just seven ties and four lead changes in the other three sets combined. Hawai’i worked in front by three in time for the set’s media timeout, leading BYU 15-12 with the help of a pair of aces. 

The Cougars responded with four of the next five points scored after the media timeout, knotting the critical frame at 16 apiece after forcing Wade to burn through another timeout. Thiim and Teon Taylor combined to reject Titriyski at the net as the run continued, giving the Cougars a 20-18 advantage before Hawai’i came sizzling back with seven of the match’s final nine points scored to sweep the weekend series against BYU. 

Lucas Torres and Keoni Thiim each ended the night with 14 kills but combined to make 16 attacking errors in the loss to the Rainbow Warriors. In all, the Cougars committed over 50 errors across the attack, serve and reception games to ultimately help Hawai’i take two in a place historically difficult for the program to play at. 

Kurt Nusterer matched his career high in blocks for the second consecutive night, racking up 10 denials of Cal State Fullerton while his setter Tread Rosenthal added 42 assists and a couple of service aces. The Rainbow Warriors struggled at times from the service line, committing 12 errors over the four sets, but more than made up for it with a dominant showing defensively at the net with 29 blocks as a team. 

The victory was also the 300th of Charlie Wade’s University of Hawai’i head coaching tenure. 

Hawai’i returns home next week to host another nationally ranked opponent in the Stanford Cardinal for a two-match series. The first of two meetings will be Wednesday, February 5 with first serve scheduled for 7 p.m. HT.