LAS VEGAS (UNLVrebels.com) – The UNLV volleyball team caps its three-game homestand in Cox Pavilion on Tuesday, Sept. 17 with a midweek match against the Hawai'I Rainbow Wāhine. The match is set with the first serve at 6:30 p.m. PT, set as the Rebels' annual Polynesian Night.
 
PROMOTIONS: The Scarlet & Gray have a plethora of events scheduled before the match, festivities starting at 2:30 p.m. with a luau in the Cox Pavilion Plaza. The tailgate has scheduled live performances in the Plaza starting at 4 p.m., alongside several food trucks and games to celebrate Polynesian night with the Rebel community. The food trucks attending the tailgate include Hibachi Time, Slanging Tacos, BOWL IT UP, Midwest Jerk & Green, Grinds 2 Da Max and Crunch of Aloha. Once doors to Cox Pavilion open to the public, the first 250 fans into Tuesday's match will be given a free one-time Polynesian Night poster unique to the match. The tailgate celebrations will go on until the match's first serve at 6:30 p.m. During the match between the second and third sets, there will be a Hawaiian Dance performance 
 
TICKETS: Tickets to UNLV volleyball's home games may be purchased at UNLVtickets.com, by calling 702-739-3267 or by visiting the ticket window between Cox Pavilion and the Thomas & Mack Center. Tickets start at $6 when you buy online and in advance to the game and are reduced to $5 each when you buy at least 15. The Rebels will be unveiling limited premier courtside seats that will only be available for select games during the 2024 season.
 
LAST TIME OUT: UNLV (4-2 before Saturday) hosted its final invitational in Cox Pavilion last weekend, the team battled both North Texas and Cal Poly over the three-day stretch. 
 
ABOUT THE ROSTER: UNLV's roster consists of 12 returning student-athletes and five first-year Rebels. The Scarlet & Gray have picked up some notable honors so far in the early season, Jordyn Freeman picking up the first Mountain West Offensive Player of the Week award on Sept. 2. The middle blocker currently ranks second among conference hitters in hitting percentage at .472, which currently ranks seventh overall among NCAA DI student-athletes. Defensively, the team ranks third in the Mountain West in blocks per set, the Rebels averaging 2.54 per set through 26 sets in the season. Senior Dakota Quinlan leads the UNLV offense after collecting All-Tournament nods in both home invitationals in the 2024 season, leading the team with 2.92 kills per set and 3.37 points per set.
 
ABOUT THE OPPONENT: The Rainbow Wāhine (6-1) have had a strong start to 2024, their lone loss of the season being a five-set thriller to Pepperdine. Caylen Alexander is currently the focal point of Hawaii's offense, producing 5.09 kills per set and 5.61 points per set, both statistical marks ranking in the top-10 among NCAA DI student-athletes. Senior setter Kate Lang facilitates the offense with her 9.7 rate in assists per set, earning back-to-back 50-set matches through this past weekend. On the defense, the Rainbow Wāhine's top dig collector averages 3.97 per set, Tayli Ikenaga owning that top spot on the roster with three matches so far this season with 20 or more digs. Ikenaga owns the program's lone Big West weekly honor with a Defensive Player of the Week nod earned on Sept. 9.
 
LAST TIME AGAINST HAWAI'I: Although the two programs haven't met during an official NCAA-championship season since 2003, the Rebels have sat on the opposing side of the net to the Rainbow Wāhine back in the spring during the team's training trip to the islands. The two teams traded punch-for-punch in the five-set match, Hawai'I earning the fifth set win (25-22, 18-25, 25-15, 22-25, 15-13). Gabrielle Arretche-Ramos led the offensive gameplan with a team-leading 15 kills, hitting a .293 attacking percentage off of 41 attempts. Arien Fafard and Quinlan each collected 11 digs out of the team's 58, Quinlan posting a double-double with 12 kills to her stat line. Chloe Thomas also showcased a strong game on both the offense and defensive sides of the net, the Allen, Texas native credited with 11 kills, seven digs and five block assists. The Rebel defense tallied 18 total blocks in the match. An official box score can be found here.
 
BROADCAST INFO: Tuesday's match will be streamed on the Mountain West Network, Wyatt Tomcheck and Drew Neverett calling the action. All links to how you can follow the Rebels on gameday can be found on the UNLV schedule here, as well as their social medias: Twitter / X, Instagram and Facebook.