MANOA, Hi. – After dropping the first two sets, the Miners were down 3-9 in the third until they went on a four and a three point run to get back into it. They matched the Rainbow Warriors all the way up to 19-19 in the third, but were unable to closeout the set as Hawaii pulled away to win in three sets.
Set 1:
The Miners kept the first set close in the opening points, trailing by just two at 3-5. A four-point run by the Rainbow Warriors gave the home team some cushion as they pulled ahead by six. Hawaii would follow this up by runs of three and four in the ensuing points, eventually leading 16-7. A kill from
Aaron Sallade (Palatine, Ill./William Fremd) ended the last of the Rainbow Warriors' runs in the first, but the deficit would be too much for the Miners to close as they would go on to lose the set 12-25.
Set 2:
Hawaii didn't waste any time building a lead in the second half, getting three kills as they put together five straight points to start the second set. The Miners would put up four points of their own in the next several rallies, hanging with the Rainbow Warriors to 4-9 in the second. A four-point run by Hawaii would give them a 4-13 lead. The Miners would cut the deficit to eight a couple times in the ensuing points, before Hawaii went on a three-point run to go ahead by eleven, eventually stretching that lead to thirteen to win the set 25-12 over S&T.
Set 3:
Kills from
Tyler Johnwick (Lombard, IL/Glenbard East) and
Nate Meyer (Arlington Heights, Ill./Hersey) kept it close early before the Rainbow Warriors went on a 6-1 run to claim a six-point lead. The Miners answered this time, getting an ace from Johnwick and blocks from Sallade and
Caleb Rohlwing (Barrington, Ill./Barrington) as they scored five in a row to cut the Rainbow Warriors' lead to one at 8-9. Hawaii built themselves a small cushion again in the next few points, but another run by the Miners featuring kills from Meyer, Sallade, and
Grant Edmonds (Shawnee, KS/Edison) gave the Miners their first lead of the set at 13-12. The teams would keep within one point of each other all the way up until 19-19, when the Rainbow Warriors won six of the next seven points to win the third set 25-20.
Hitting was a struggle against Hawaii's stout defensive front, as the Rainbow Warriors recorded ten blocks as the Miners' hitting percentage was a season low of 5.3%. Sallade led the team in kills and blocks with six and two respectively.
The Miners face the Rainbow Warriors again at 11 p.m. today.
