HONOLULU – The last time the Chaminade University women's volleyball team participated in the postseason, they were the No. 7 seed at the 2018 West Regional in Bellingham, Wash., and were quite happy to have qualified after a 14-year absence.
Fast forward to 2021. The 24th-ranked Silverswords are no longer satisfied being just a participant. Now, they are looking to advance farther with their ultimate destination aimed at Tampa, Fla., site of the NCAA Division II Volleyball Championships.
In order to get that accomplished, the Pacific West Conference champions and West Region No. 3 seed will have to overcome the other seven participants at the Coussoulis Arena in San Bernardino, Calif., starting with Thursday's first round opponent, sixth-seeded and Great Northwest Athletic Conference co-runners-up Central Washington.
"We're excited and honored to represent our university and PacWest Conference on the regional stage," Chaminade head coach
Kahala Kabalis Hoke said. "We know there will be a high level of competition and the margin of error will be slim but we look forward to this challenge."
The Silverswords and Wildcats faced each other in the Western Washington Invitational on Sept. 5, with the 'Swords surviving in five sets. After winning the first two, the Wildcats rallied to force a fifth and led 10-6 before Chaminade stormed back with a 9-2 run to take the match.
If there is an advantage for CWU, they have tournament experience. This is the ninth consecutive appearance for the Wildcats in the West Regional while the Silverswords are in just their second over the past 17 years. Both teams carry momentum heading into Thursday's match. Central Washington won six of its last seven while the Chaminade rides an eight-match winning streak, half of them against the PacWest's upper echelon teams (twice against Azusa Pacific, Point Loma and Hawai'i Hilo).
"When our team plays to our potential, I truly believe we can compete with any team in the country," Kabalis Hoke said.
Tournament Central
NCAA WEST REGION SCHEDULE (Coussoulis Arena, San Bernardino, Calif.; Dec. 2-4)
First Round (Dec. 2, all times Hawai'i Standard)
10 a.m.:
#3 CHAMINADE (27-5) vs. #6 Central Washington (16-8)
12:30 p.m.: #2 Western Washington (21-4) vs. #7 Simon Fraser (17-8)
3:00 p.m.: #4 Cal Poly Pomona (23-4) vs. #5 Cal State Los Angeles (18-9)
5:30 p.m.: #1 Cal State San Bernardino (25-3) vs. #8 Alaska Anchorage (19-11)
West Region Semifinals (Dec. 3, all times Hawai'i Standard)
3:00 p.m.: #3/6 winner vs. #2/7 winner
5:30 p.m.: #1/8 winner vs. #4/5 winner
West Region Championship (Dec. 4, time Hawai'i Standard)
5:30 p.m.: Region championship – winner advances to NCAA Championships in Tampa, Fla.
Ticket information (all seats general admission):
Single day pass: $10
Seniors (55+): $5
Children (3-12): $5
Students (with ID): $5
Purchase tickets
here
Live game links:
Video |
Stats
Official NCAA Division II Volleyball Tournament Program
Digital format
CHAMINADE VS. CENTRAL WASHINGTON
All-time series record:
CWU leads 4-3 (first-ever postseason meeting)
Last meeting:
Sept. 5, 2021 (Bellingham, Wash.); CUH 3-2
'SWORDS IN THE REGIONALS
All-time NCAA regional record
1-3
NCAA postseason results:
Nov. 21, 2002 (Pacific Regional; San Bernardino, Calif.):
L 0-3; UC San Diego
Nov. 18-19, 2004 (Pacific Regional; La Jolla, Calif.):
W 3-0; Cal State Los Angeles
L 1-3; Cal State San Bernardino
Nov. 15, 2018 (West Regional, Bellingham, Wash.):
L 0-3; Cal State San Bernardino
ABOUT THE SILVERSWORDS (27-5 overall, 17-3 PacWest)
Won their first PacWest title since 1996 … ranked No. 24 in the final regular season AVCA Division II Top 25 Poll … ended the regular season with eight consecutive wins, tied for the fourth longest in program history … their 27 wins is a program record … making their fourth all-time NCAA regional appearance … Chaminade is the only team in the field which does not have a player averaging over 3.00 kills per set, instead they have five who average 2.10 kps, one of just two teams in the tournament with five players who average more than 2.00; Cal Poly Pomona is the other … PacWest Setter and Newcomer of the Year
Alexia Byrnes (Chicago/Youngstown State/Saint Francis HS) is responsible for sharing the wealth among the team in which
Brooklen Pe'a (Wood Cross, Utah/Youngstown State/Bountiful HS), the PacWest Player of the Year, averages a team-best 2.98 kills per set … although outside hitter
Annah Rivera (Granada Hills, Calif./Bishop Alemany) is not among the five over 2.00 in the season category, she is averaging 3.17 kills per set in the Silverswords' last four matches.
ABOUT THE WILDCATS (16-8 overall, 12-6 GNAC)
Making their ninth consecutive NCAA regional appearance … finished as the GNAC co-runners-up with a 12-6 mark … won six of their final seven matches to qualify for the regional … sophomore outside hitter Ashley Kaufman leads Central Washington in kills at a 3.11 clip … Marianna Payne and setter Tia Andaya follow at 2.66 and 2.25, respectively … Andaya is second on the team in assists at 5.07 per set while Sydney Remsberg is CWU's assists leader at 5.20 with a team-high 35 aces … libero Hannah Stires is the GNAC's digs leader at 4.67 while Emma Daoud-Herbert and Leanna Shymanski helped the Wildcats average 2.34 blocks per set.
HEAD COACH KAHALA KABALIS HOKE
Years (at Chaminade): 10 (same)
Overall Record: 158-113 (.583)
PacWest Record: 104-89 (.539)
ALL-PACWEST HONORS
PacWest Player of the Year
Brooklen Pe'a enters her first career collegiate postseason averaging 2.98 kills and 2.74 digs per set while also tallying 28 service aces and 43 total blocks.
Setter
Alexia Byrnes was picked as the PacWest's Setter and Newcomer of the Year after putting together one of the top seasonal performances by a setter in school history. Not only was her 1,127 assists a school record but she also had 25 aces and 34 total blocks. Byrnes' 120 kills is the most by a CUH setter since 1988.
Tenth-year head coach
Kahala Kabalis Hoke was named the PacWest Coach of the Year after assembling the squad which set a program record with 27 wins. It is the third consecutive 20-win season (excluding the pandemic-shortened spring 2021) for the program which had just one such year prior to 2018.
Pe'a and Byrnes were All-PacWest First Team selections as was libero
Anna Dalla Vecchia (Vicenza, Italy/University of San Francisco/IIS S.B. Boscardin HS) who set school records for total digs (619) and digs per set (5.16).
Three others were named to the all-conference second team including
Kyra McCain (Chandler, Ariz./Hamilton),
Lataisia Saulala (Morgan Hill, Calif./Oakwood) and
Greta Corti (Varese, Italy/University of San Francisco/Alessandro Manzoni Liceo HS).
DID YOU KNOW?
Kabalis Hoke has been involved in all four of the 'Swords' NCAA regional appearances, twice as an All-PacWest outside hitter in 2002 and '04 and in 2018 and '21 as head coach … the regional is a homecoming of sorts for setter
Alecza Abary (Fontana, Calif./Rancho Cucamonga) who grew up in Fontana, about 10 miles west of San Bernardino … CWU middle blocker Kylee Yamashita is a Pukalani, Maui, native and a 2017 graduate of Kamehameha-Maui.
