The fourth-ranked University of Hawai’i men’s volleyball team remained undefeated on the season, opening a two-match series against No. 9 Stanford with an epic five-set victory Wednesday night at SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center.
A crowd of over 5,000 fans packed SimpliFi Arena for the midweek matchup as the Rainbow Warriors (9-0) debuted their retro-inspired kelly-green jerseys for the first time, but the Cardinal (3-4) weren’t fazed, taking the ‘Bows into deep waters in a back-and-forth slugfest that ended in a thrilling win for Hawaii, 23-25, 25-20, 25-19, 20-25, and 16-14.
Setter Tread Rosenthal orchestrated the offense, setting up pin-hitters Kristian Titriyski, Louis Sakanoko, and Adrien Roure who recorded 15, 14, and 13 kills respectively.
Defensively, Big West Defensive Player of the Week Kurt Nusterer recorded three aces. His dominance at the service line was a turning point in the third set, where he rattled off eight straight points to shift the momentum in Hawai’i’s favor.
Rosenthal finished with 48 assists and six kills, with the last coming on match point.
The teams will have a day off Thursday before facing off again in the series finale on Friday.
First serve is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. HT, with television coverage on Spectrum Sports and radio coverage on ESPN Honolulu.