Ke Kalahea

Ke Kalahea - University of Hawaii at Hilo Student-Run Newspaper

Vulcans win in tournament opener

Editor-in-Chief Peter Holden Chao
8/24/2018

Volleyball players celebrating their victory Photo Courtesy of Shelly Blunck, UH Hilo Athletics

Hurricane Lane wasn’t enough to stop Vulcan Volleyball from hosting the First Hawaiian Bank Volleyball Challenge in the Vulcan Gym, despite the rest of the UH Hilo campus, offices, and off-campus locations closing.

In their first game of the tournament the Vulcans proved to be a force not to be reckoned with. Facing off against the Saint Martin’s University Saints, the Vulcans put on at performance winning the first three games with the scores 25-19, 25-16, and 25-16 respectively. The Vulcans led the entire match, with only one exception: a 7-7 draw in the second game.

Ke Kalahea asked Mina Grant, a senior at UH Hilo and libero for the Vulcans, about the team’s performance after the victory: “We have a positive mentality about the team,” said Grant. “We work hard and leave it all on the court.”

The Vulcans look to continue the strong start to the season as they take on University of California San Diego in their second game of the day at 7:30 p.m. in the Vulcan Gym. Junior defensive specialist Kaila Lizama said, “it’s a good start to the season and we’re going to continue it as we go on. We’re going to eat some food and mentally prepare for the next team.”

The First Hawaiian Bank Volleyball Challenge will continue with six games Saturday, Aug. 24, and one game on Sunday. Tomorrow the Vulcans face St. Cloud State at 10 a.m. and on Sunday they play Simon Fraser at 2 p.m. in the final game of the tournament.