HONOLULU — Was there any shred of program pride, any scrap of the legacy of national champions, that could propel the Hawaii Rainbow Wahine to extend their season just a little longer?
The answer was yes. For one set.
The Wahine submitted one of their better efforts of their woeful 2025 season, but it was not enough to prevent a season-ending four-set loss to Long Beach State on Saturday night.
UH, a Big West champion for five years running, completed a stunning faceplant. It registered the first losing season (12-17) and first losing conference season (8-10) in program history. Its remarkable run of 31 straight seasons qualifying for the NCAA Tournament came to an end, too.
FINAL: #HawaiiWVB falls in 4 to Long Beach State on senior night. Season ends at 12-17, 8-10 Big West, with the first losing marks in program history.
NCAA Tournament qualification streak ends at 31 seasons. pic.twitter.com/2lpBz23cZr
— Brian McInnis (@Brian_McInnis) November 23, 2025
[Note: See below for more photos of Hawaii women’s volleyball senior night against Long Beach State.]
Coach Robyn Ah Mow, a proud former Rainbow Wahine standout setter and an Olympian, appeared sullen as she walked onto the floor for postgame handshakes and hugs. Some players shed tears.
Ah Mow, who delegated media obligations to assistant coaches Kaleo Baxter and Nick Castello for much of the season, agreed to do an on-court season sendoff interview.
“Initially, not good,” the ninth-year coach said of her emotions when it ended. “Definitely frustrated and angry. But it is what it is. That’s how our season was going. We had a chance. We had to win this game.”
She said she took a breath and gathered herself to send off her team’s three seniors — Bri Gunderson, Tyla Reese Mane and Morghn Monahan — in the traditional Hawaii farewell.
UC Irvine’s upset sweep of Cal Poly earlier Saturday meant UH knew what it had to do by the time it took the floor for warmups. They had to upset the Beach, or pack it in — UCI had the head-to-head tiebreaker over UH and finished at 8-10 to get the sixth and final berth to next week’s Big West championships at LBSU.
UH beat a much weaker foe, UC San Diego, in four sets on Friday night to give itself a shot. The Stan Sheriff Center was eerily quiet before first serve with the rival Beach, though a season-high 5,137 (6,741 tickets issued) turned out for the final Big West match of UH’s second chapter in the conference. UH heads to the Mountain West in most sports next season.
“Definitely thank you to all the fans that supported the team, supported us through the season, even though we did (perform) up and down,” Ah Mow said. “It’s probably not the season that everybody wanted, but it is what it is. We’ll just rebuild and come back again.”
The Hawaii women’s volleyball team posed together after their senior night ceremony. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Ah Mow was given a two-year extension by then-interim athletic director Lois Manin in January and is under contract through the 2027 season. Spectrum News asked how she would target the offseason.
“I mean, everybody knows, NIL, transfer portal is real, who knows who’s going to stay, who knows who’s going to leave,” Ah Mow replied with a shrug. “It is what it is. I can’t tell you right now. I don’t know.”
A season that began on a foul note with season-ending injuries to two six-rotation players ended with a valiant try, but it was not enough against one of the BWC’s four clear conference title contenders in the 25-18, 23-25, 25-23, 25-16 decision.
UH was rarely able to sustain momentum from week to week, let alone within a single match. It started the year 0-4, then strung four straight wins together, and wobbled throughout most of Big West play. But it looked like it might’ve found something in early November with three straight wins.
Then UH dropped three of its last four, including a dispiriting road trip to contenders UC Santa Barbara and Cal Poly last weekend.
Ultimately, UH went 0-8 against the top four teams in the conference: UC Davis, UC Santa Barbara, Cal Poly and LBSU.
LBSU (21-8, 14-4) needed the match to improve its seeding position to third for the tournament, and played like it. Logan King posted 18 kills and 10 digs and Rhiann Sheffie added 15 kills and six blocks.
“One of them (the challenges) was we had a new lineup every night, so just trying to find the pieces and jell together, but we eventually did,” Gunderson said. “I’m really proud of the way that certain people have stepped up. I think Tyla took a lot more swings than she was expecting to. And just a lot of people stepping up when we need them.”
The Wahine hit well in Set 1 but were simply overwhelmed by a more talented team. They had eight attack errors in Set 2, but still scrapped to even the match, earning a hearty “Let’s Go ‘Bows” chant from the white-out crowd that helped carry them to the winning point in the frame.
A key review and overturn of a touch call swapped UH’s 23-22 lead in Set 3 with the same score for the Beach. LBSU quickly took advantage, going up 2-1 overall with an ace by Tatum Hoff. The air seemed to go out of the building.
The Beach put a stranglehold on the match with a 7-1 lead in Set 4. UH got within three points at 8-5 but no closer the rest of the way.
Some of the same old problems plagued the Wahine at inopportune times. There were two out-of-rotation errors. UH played some balls clearly headed out.
“There was some signs of, ‘K, we’re right there, we’re right there, we’re right there.’ And then that lapse that we had all season, that one lapse — six-point run,” Ah Mow said. “Those are the ones that are hard, trying to get some energy going back in it. But I mean, the fight was there at times.”
Gunderson, an Eastern Washington transfer, tried to rescue her lone Wahine season with 16 kills on 35 swings (.314). Mane, an Aiea High graduate, added 14 kills against 11 errors on 42 swings (.071). Freshman Cha’lei Reid put down nine kills without an error on her first 14 swings, but couldn’t maintain it — the Kahuku product finished with 13 kills against six errors on 34 swings (.206).
UH hit .213 to LBSU’s .241. The Beach had seven aces to UH’s three.
“It was definitely an uphill battle,” Mane said of the season. “There was a lot of ups and downs, a lot of hardships you have to go through. I’m really grateful for the girls I’ve gotten to play with. With their support, we’ve been able to patch things up, grow as a team. Coach Rob references us as a young team, and I definitely agree with that. I think going into the next couple of seasons I’m excited to see where they go.”
One of UH’s two players who suffered season-ending injuries, Tali Hakas, was present with the team, while the other, Stella Adeyemi, was not.
Coach Robyn Ah Mow, middle, and her team posed for a melancholy photo. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
UH assistant coach Kiran Costa hugged middle Miliana Sylvester after the loss. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Hawaii senior hitter Tyla Reese Mane, middle, wiped a tear during the postgame gathering of her final career match. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Hitter Cha’lei Reid hugged assistant coach Kiran Costa. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Defensive specialist Leilani Lopez greeted fans around the lower bowl of the arena. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Hawaii celebrated a point late in the match. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Coach Robyn Ah Mow, right, went over technique with middle Miliana Sylvester. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Hawaii coach Robyn Ah Mow glanced down after a Long Beach State point late in the match. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Hawaii setter Adrianna Arquette, front right, tried to find middle Miliana Sylvester on a one-handed connection. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Long Beach State coach Natalie Reagan celebrated a set win. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Hawaii’s Cha’lei Reid hit into the block of Long Beach State’s Madi Maxwell (16) and Rhiann Sheffie (11). (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Hawaii coach Robyn Ah Mow gave a frustrated look after a point. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
A superfan raised a sign amid the “white-out” crowd of over 5,000 in house. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Hawaii fans raised signs after a UH block. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Hawaii coach Robyn Ah Mow smiled at assistant coach Nick Castello. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Hawaii players celebrated taking Set 2 from the Beach. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Long Beach State’s Tatum Hoff, top left, celebrated with her teammates after her ace ended Set 3. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Hawaii middle Bri Gunderson tried to block LBSU’s Nieko Thomas. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Bri Gunderson took a swing in the middle against LBSU’s Logan King (8) and Rhiann Sheffie (11). (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Tyla Reese Mane, middle, and UH players came together after a point. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Hawaii libero Victoria Leyva clapped after a point. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Hawaii pin hitters Cha’lei Reid, left, and Tyla Reese Mane headed into a timeout huddle with grins early in the match. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Hitter Cha’lei Reid,top middle, exulted in a point for Hawaii. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Injured hitter Tali Hakas talked to Victoria Leyva during a timeout. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Defensive specialist Jaci Miyasaki passed the ball. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Tyla Reese Mane (14) and Victoria Leyva exchanged a look after a point. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Middle Bri Gunderson celebrated a point on her senior night. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
The Hawaii “white-out” crowd got to its feet to rouse their team. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Hawaii’s Cha’lei Reid, middle, elevated for a swing against LBSU’s Elise Agi (24) and Nieko Thomas (28). (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Long Beach State’s Logan King reacted after putting down a kill. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Bri Gunderson sent the ball back to Long Beach’s side. (Spectrum News/Brian McInnis)
Note: This story has been updated with details, quotes and photos.
Brian McInnis covers the state’s sports scene for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at brian.mcinnis@charter.com.