High stakes, emotions, and one of the sport's great rivalries. The No. 4 University of Hawai‘i's men's volleyball team's upcoming home series against No. 1 Long Beach State checks just about every box.
Over the course of two nights at the Stan Sheriff Center, the two teams atop both the NCAA RPI and Big West standings will battle for positioning two weeks prior to the conference tournament. Friday night's match is trending towards a sellout, while tickets are no longer available for Saturday's contest, which will also serve as the regular season home finale and senior night for the Rainbow Warriors.
Although the 'Bows (22-3, 5-1 Big West Conference) will host the Big West Tournament from April 24-26, members of the team are eager to test themselves against The Beach (23-1, 5-1). Any senior night held in Hawai‘i brings a bevy of emotions, but the fact that the 'Bows will hold it against their rivals in 2025 only multiples those sentiments.
The Rainbow Warriors, particularly their seniors, wouldn't want any other team coming to town this weekend.
"I think it's a perfect situation," senior libero ‘Elu Choy said. "It'll be senior night, but this is an opportunity for us to prove as a team that we can beat any team. I think we proved multiple times this season that we can. We also proved times where when we're not decent, any team could beat us.
"I think this is kind of like a good test for the big stage, like Big West or NCAA if we make it, but, yeah, I wouldn't want to have any other way. I definitely want Long Beach to be here for our senior night so we can prove that we can beat any team."
Last weekend, the 'Bows were swept by No. 9 Cal State Northridge on Friday to begin their road trip. The Rainbow Warriors returned the favor on Saturday in sweeping the Matadors, who are at the bottom of the conference standings at 1-5.
Freshman opposite and team kills leader Kristian Titriyski went down with an ankle injury at the end of Saturday's match, marking his status this weekend as questionable. UH head coach Charlie Wade says he's currently evaluating the injury on a day-to-day basis. If Titriyski is not able to play, freshman Kainoa Wade and Finn Kearney appear poised to receive extended playing time.
Regardless of who UH trots out there on Friday and Saturday, both teams will posses a burning desire to defeat each other in another chapter of a storied rivalry. On multiple occasions, The Beach and the 'Bows have obstructed the other from winning conference and national titles. In 2019, UH defeated Long Beach State in the Big West championship game but fell to LBSU in the national title match. Hawai‘i went 28-3, with all three of its losses coming to The Beach. In 2022, Hawai‘i and LBSU split its regular season series, though UH swept The Beach in both the Big West championship and national title matches.
"It'll be emotional, but in a good way," Hawai‘i head coach Charlie Wade said. "I think everybody knows they're important matches. ... It seems like whenever we play, there's something at stake. So it just kind of goes with the territory. And I think everybody's been looking forward to it for a long time and excited to get out and compete."
Friday and Saturday's matches could serve as an appetizer for future matches in the coming weeks. As was the case in 2019 and 2022, the Rainbow Warriors and The Beach met twice in the regular season for their standard Big West series before meeting an additional time in both the conference and NCAA Tournament.
Regardless of how Saturday night's match ends, five seniors on the UH roster will be honored afterwards: Choy, Clay Wieter, Zachary Thompson, Kawai Hong and Kurt Nusterer.
Nusterer, the team's starting middle blocker for two years straight, was a late addition to the senior night festivities. Although he would be eligible in 2026, he is leaving that year on the table in order to take a position as a wealth management professional analyst with Goldman Sachs in Los Angeles.
"I've just been looking for some career opportunities, both out here and on the Mainland. I got a call last week that I got just a really, really great opportunity that doesn't come around a lot," Nusterer said. "I'm grateful I got an opportunity that came up. Looking forward to moving forward with that. It was a very hard decision.
"I can really leave everything out there for volleyball these last couple of weeks, this last month. It's actually really ideal timing in that regard. ... I can really lock in and give everything I've got these last couple of weeks."
Christian Shimabuku can be reached at christian@alohastatedaily.com.
