HONOLULU, Hawai'i – The Hawai'i Pacific University women's volleyball team returned to the Shark Tank Wednesday night, battling Jessup through four tightly contested sets before falling 3-1 in PacWest Conference action.
The Sharks (1-11, 0-6 PacWest) fell by scores of 23-25, 25-21, 21-25 and 22-25. HPU finished with 54 kills while hitting .246 for the match, outperforming Jessup's .223 hitting percentage. The Sharks also held a 9-4 advantage in total blocks. 226752
Ella Schoene delivered a standout performance in the middle, finishing with a team-high 15 kills without an attack error on 29 attempts for a .517 hitting percentage. She also added three blocks and finished with a team-best 17 points. Mia Ferdinand was equally efficient, recording 11 kills on 16 swings with just two errors to hit .563 while leading HPU at the net with six total blocks, including two solo. 226752 226752
HPU came out firing in the opening set, hitting .345 and building a 13-7 advantage behind a balanced attack and a Mayah Nakasato service ace. The Sharks later held a 21-16 lead before Jessup erased the deficit. HPU answered to tie the frame at 23-23 on an Alohalani Chun kill, but Jessup captured the final two points for a 25-23 decision. 226752 226752
The Sharks responded in the second. After the teams traded points throughout the frame, HPU broke a 17-17 tie and moved ahead 21-18. Schoene helped fuel the offense down the stretch before Jordyn McCutcheon delivered an ace to give HPU set point at 24-20. Sophia Cooper then finished the frame with a kill as the Sharks evened the match with a 25-21 victory. HPU hit a match-best .364 with 16 kills in the set. 226752 226752
HPU faced an 18-11 deficit in the third but refused to let the set get away. The Sharks answered with an 8-2 run, highlighted by kills from Cooper, Ferdinand and Kare Ann Oshiro, along with a Ferdinand-Kaoihana block, to pull within 20-19. HPU later cut it to 21-20 before Jessup held on for the 25-21 set. 226752
The Sharks controlled much of the fourth frame, using an early surge to build an 11-4 advantage. HPU remained in front 19-14 and later held a 22-18 lead following back-to-back Schoene kills. Jessup rallied to tie the set at 22 before taking the final three points and closing the match, 25-22. 226752
Cooper added nine kills on .267 hitting and 10 digs for HPU. McCutcheon directed the offense with a team-high 20 assists and added nine digs, while Rosie Larkin recorded 17 assists. Taylor Kaoihana led the Sharks defensively with 12 digs, and Nakasato contributed two service aces and four assists. Chun also recorded six kills and two aces.
