One month ago, after the Long Beach State women’s volleyball team lost to Hawaii at the Walter Pyramid, libero Tyler Jackson said something that summed up the night for the 49ers: “The most disappointing thing tonight is losing but knowing that we could’ve won.”
A similar fate unraveled inside Hawaii’s Stan Sherriff Center of almost 8,000 fans on Saturday, as the Rainbow Wahine halted the 49ers’ winning streak by snatching a close four-game match, ending with scores of 25-27, 25-19, 25-18 and 25-22.
Both teams started the night going neck-in-neck with nine tie scores and five lead changes. After an uncontested Nikki Taylor kill at 8-8, the Wahine’s momentum put them up four points. As the end came close at 18-23, Bre Mackie revived her team with three kills.
After Hartong ‘s high velocity kill gave her team a set point, the 49ers went on a five-point run to give themselves a 25-24 lead. Hartong tried to steal the win with another fast kill, but Delainey Aigner-Swesey and Chisom Okpala each had kills and ended the set at 27-25.
The 49ers trailed the entire second set by as much as seven points but came close to stealing a lead after a five-point run put them at 18-20. Bad passes allowed the Wahine to capture the last four points of the game, ending the set at 19-25.
Troubles with consistency and confidence allowed the Wahine to dominate the pivotal third set with a 10-point lead, ending the set at 18-25.
Redemption would’ve been the perfect word for the fourth set, as the 49ers held onto a comfortable 17-12 lead and looked to be on their way to forcing a fifth set. After a 49er missed serve, though, the Wahine brought themselves out from a deep hole with five kills and tied the score at 18-18.
Intensity and emotions skyrocketed as five tie scores occurred and commotion from the 49ers over supposed bad calls caused the head referee to bring out penalty cards.
“In a marginal situation, if calls go in your favor, you win the set,” head coach Brian Gimmillaro said. “I know [the referees] did their best, but I had to express my opinion on the situation.”
A Mackie kill reserved hope at 22-22, but the Wahine ended the 49ers’ chance of a fifth game after a Wahine kill and two 49er hitting errors.
“They blocked very well in the last set, and we didn’t execute our offense,” Gimmillaro said. “Every player on that team is capable of playing really, really well.”
Okpala carried the 49ers (12-10, 5-4 Big West Conference) with an error-free night, as she contributed nine kills and hit at a .409 clip. Mackie finished with 11 kills, Haleigh Hampton finished with a team-leading six blocks and Tyler Jackson controlled the back row with 13 digs.
Although Aigner-Swesey and Alex Reid were the only two players of the night with double-doubles, racking up a combined 27 kills and 27 digs, they acquired the lowest hitting percentages of the night, both going under .080.
For the Rainbow Wahine (18-4, 7-3 Big West), Taylor had the night’s best hitting percentage of .440 with 12 kills. Emily Hartong led the match with 21 kills while Jade Vorster and Taylor dominated at the net with a combined 15 blocks. Tai Manu-Olevao finished the night with 11 kills and Ali Longo with 18 digs.
The 49ers will return to the Walter Pyramid to host UC Davis and Cal State Northridge this weekend. They will take on the Aggies at 7 p.m. on Friday and the first-place Matadors at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday.