Wahine freshman Alexander eager for her first NCAAs

The NCAA Tournament was appointment viewing for Caylen Alexander through her high school volleyball career.

This week, the University of Hawaii freshman has a date to make her first appearance in the event.

“We would always watch the NCAAs,” the Rainbow Wahine outside hitter said. “And that’s why it just feels so crazy that we’re here now and I’m about to go play on my first tournament.”

Alexander is slated to make her NCAA debut this week when the Big West champion Rainbow Wahine face LSU (15-13) in a first-round match at Stanford’s Maples Pavilion.

The match is set for 2:30 p.m. Friday and the Wahine are scheduled to depart today for Northern California in the latest spin in a whirlwind week.

UH clinched its third straight Big West championship and the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament with a five-set win at UC Santa Barbara on Friday and capped the regular season with a four-set win at Cal State Northridge on Saturday. The Wahine returned to campus on Sunday, and watched the tournament selection show that afternoon.

Hawaii jumped back into practice Monday and will embark on its sixth trip to California in the past 11 weeks today.

UH coach Robyn Ah Mow said Monday practices are generally lighter, but with this week’s travel itinerary, “I told them we gotta get ready because we’re on a plane already (today).”

Although it makes for a hectic few days, all of the above offer opportunities that Alexander looked forward to when she signed with UH a little more than a year ago as a senior at Centennial High School in Alpharetta, Ga.

“I just felt so excited, all of us just jumping up and down in the room when we made the (selection) show,” she said. “So I think that just really made me feel even better about my decision.”

Alexander closed the regular season by setting a school record with her sixth Big West Freshman of the Week award, breaking a tie with Hanna Hellvig, who claimed five awards in 2019.

The Rainbow Wahine claimed three of the four weekly awards, with middle blocker Amber Igiede named the BWC Offensive Player of the Week for the second time this season and sophomore Kate Lang earning her third Setter of the Week honor.

Alexander hit .306 in UH’s final weekend of the regular season, with 16 kills in the Big West title-clinching win at UC Santa Barbara last Friday and 12 more at CSUN. She had two aces at UCSB, raising her team-leading total to 33, and posted a season-high six blocks, including two solo, against CSUN.

“That was very exciting because ever since the Cal Poly loss (on Oct. 15) I made it one of my goals to get better in blocking because that whole game was about blocking for us,” Alexander said of UH’s lone Big West defeat. “As time has gone on, I’ve been getting better at it and CSUN was the cap to it.”

Igiede earned her fourth Big West weekly award this season, including two Defensive Player of the Week awards. She hit .500 with 37 kills against five errors in 64 attempts on the road trip. She had 18 kills and five blocks against UCSB and followed with 19 kills on .607 hitting with a career-high four aces against CSUN.

Lang had 89 assists while directing the Wahine to a .316 hitting percentage over the weekend. She tied her career high with 55 assists at UCSB and set a career best with six kills. She added 17 digs against the Gauchos in her eighth double-double of the season.

The all-conference teams and postseason awards will be announced Wednesday.