The University of Hawaiʻi Rainbow Wahine beach volleyball team will travel to Southern California for the East Meets West Invitational, according to a March 10 announcement. The team, currently ranked No. 13, is set to face three nationally ranked opponents—No. 5 Texas, No. 8 Arizona State, and No. 12 Louisiana State University—as well as Florida International during the two-day tournament in Manhattan Beach.
This event marks the first road trip of the season for the BeachBows, who have started their campaign with a record of six wins and five losses. The team began with defeats against four top-10 teams but managed an upset over preseason top-ranked UCLA at the OUTRIGGER Duke Kahanamoku Beach Classic. Most recently, they secured a 5-1 record to win the Heineken Queen’s Cup.
The schedule includes matches against Texas and Florida International on Friday, followed by contests with LSU and Arizona State on Saturday. In previous meetings, Hawaiʻi leads its series against Texas 3-2 but has lost the last two encounters. Against Florida International, Hawaiʻi has won all but one of eight past matchups and defeated them in last year’s East Meets West Invitational. The team holds a narrow lead over LSU (5-4) and has split recent games played in Manhattan Beach. Against Arizona State, Hawaiʻi has won eight out of nine meetings; however, Arizona State claimed victory in their most recent contest last season.
Statistically, Hawaiʻi holds an all-time record of 108 wins and 117 losses against ranked squads and is slightly above .500 at neutral sites (51-50). Their performance against unranked teams is stronger with a record of 164-6 overall and 71-3 at neutral venues.
The BeachBows have used fourteen different pair combinations so far this year. Julia Lawrenz and Izadora Stedile are undefeated as a pair at the Heineken Queen’s Cup and have consistently played together at the top position for seven consecutive matches.
