Volleyball Begins Spring Tourney at HPU

Collegiate volleyball in the spring is usually where men's indoor and women's beach programs are taking place. However due to the COVID-19 pandemic, most indoor women's programs were pushed to the spring instead of the traditional fall season.
 
While the pandemic has shuttered the years for most conferences on the West Coast in all divisions including Division II's CCAA and GNAC, the Pacific West Conference is carrying on including Chaminade University.
 
Along with fellow 808 schools, Hawai'i Hilo and Hawai'i Pacific, the Silverswords will compete in four two-day round-robin tournaments, dubbed The PacWest Hawai'i Spring Tournaments, the first of which takes place Saturday at HPU's Shark Tank.
 
Chaminade's Saturday season-opener will be against HPU at 10 a.m. followed by UH Hilo at 2:30 p.m. On Sunday, the 'Swords will battle the Vulcans at 10 a.m. and the Sharks at 7 p.m. Fans will not be allowed inside The Shark Tank.
 
The Silverswords return a veteran-laded squad that has consecutive 20-win seasons for the first time ever. With 20 players, it is also the largest roster that head coach Kahala Kabalis Hoke has fielded in her nine-year tenure.
 
Two-time All-PacWest selection and 2019 AVCA honorable mention All-American Rachel Reedy (Temple City, Calif./Arcadia), 2019 PacWest Newcomer of the Year Leka Kiner-Falefa (Honolulu/UNLV/Mid-Pacific Institute), All-PacWest middle blocker Lataisia Saulala (Morgan Hill, Calif./Oakwood), Annah Rivera (Granada Hills, Calif./Bishop Alemany) and Claire Zanon (Beaverton, Ore./Jesuit) headline the returnees.
 
Others who are back are Jacqueline Wolfe (Laguna Hills, Calif./Irvine Valley CC/Mater Dei HS), Tate Lutu (Honolulu/Sacred Hearts), Danielle Wiley (Peoria, Ariz./Centennial), Alecza Abary (Fontana, Calif./Rancho Cucamonga), Tatiana Toleafoa (Union City, Calif./Cal State Fullerton/James Logan HS) and Riley Lynch (Kaneohe, O'ahu, Hawai'i/Kalaheo).
 
There are also nine newcomers, seven being freshmen. The 'Swords added some much-needed height in middles Alyssa Grodell (Valencia, Calif./Valencia) and Kyra McCain (Chandler, Ariz./Hamilton) while solidifying the outsides with Brooklyn Casey (Peoria, Ariz./Liberty) and Kendall Rios (Tustin, Calif./Foothill). There are also three new setters to the mix with Allure Padilla (Arvada, Colo./Faith Christian), Kianna Swingle (Oro Valley, Ariz./Ironwood Ridge) and Elli Tsukano (Austin, Texas/James Bowie).
 
The two transfers are twins Brooklen Pe'a and Kaybrie Pe'a (Woods Cross, Utah/Youngstown State/Bountiful HS), outside hitters who both attended Division I Youngstown State the past two seasons. The former was YSU's top hitter in 2019, averaging 2.90 kills per set.
 
Although the NCAA shut down all fall 2020 championships, these spring volleyball season is essentially extended exhibitions whose results and statistics will count in the record books. While most PacWest schools on the mainland are playing between six and 10 matches, Chaminade, HPU and UH Hilo have ambitious schedules with 16 matches each. And they will get to know each other quite well with each school facing each other at least seven times which harkens back to the NAIA District 29 days in the mid-1980s when each school faced each other an inordinate number of times.
 
Chaminade will host its spring tournament on April 17 and 18 with three matches both days. UH Hilo will host two tournaments including on the final one on April 23 and 24 which includes two matches against the University of Alaska Anchorage.