Cal Poly Volleyball carried their winning rivalry momentum into the Rainbow State on Friday night.
After a five-set win over rival UC Santa Barbara on Oct. 7, the Mustangs swept University of Hawaii 3-0 at the Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu to close out the week.
The win increased their overall record to 13-5 and their Big West record to 4-2.
The Mustangs and the Rainbow Wahine have faced each other as Big West rivals for 13 years, but Friday’s match marked the second to last time the teams will face each other in the Big West Conference. Hawaii is set to join the Mountain West conference starting next season.
High-energy offense
Set one opened with an ace by redshirt senior setter Emme Bullis to set the tone for the rest of the match.
Gameplay started off contested with three ties within the first 10 points. The set continued with several neck-and-neck instances including Hawaii going on a 3-0 run and Cal Poly catching up with a 4-0 run a few points later.
With 22 digs, Cal Poly was able to clinch set one with a score of 25-20.
The Mustangs showcased their best offensive performance of the night with a hitting percentage of .459 in set two, earning 19 kills.
Cal Poly kept the lead throughout the second set, capitalizing on the Rainbow Wahine’s errors as they held a hitting percentage well under the Mustangs at .115.
After a stellar offensive performance working in tandem with their defense of 17 digs, Cal Poly dominated set two with a score of 25-14.
Sophomore libero Elif Hurriyet has been a top contributor to the Mustangs defense throughout the season. Averaging 3.10 digs per set, she holds the 8th spot for average digs in the conference.
Set three gave Cal Poly a run for their money as the Rainbow Wahine took advantage of Cal Poly’s lowest offensive performance of the match with a .229 hitting percentage.
With two ties and two lead changes, Hawaii was looking to close the previous score gaps in sets one and two.
Despite the Rainbow Wahine’s best efforts, Cal Poly came out victorious in a tightly scored 15-12 set three to claim their 10th sweep of the season.
With an undefeated home record and a losing away record of 2-3, the Mustangs must implement their energy from this road game into future matches.
Junior outside hitter Emma Fredrick and sophomore middle blocker Chloe Leluge were pivotal for the offense with Fredrick racking in 12 kills and Leluge earning an impressive .615 hitting percentage. Not only did Fredrick shine on offense, but she also led the defense with 14 digs.
Continuing the conference stretch of the season, Cal Poly will be back home to host UC Irvine at Mott Athletics Center on Oct. 17 at 6:00 p.m.