UC San Diego held two set leads and stood even at 24 in the fourth. Hawaii still owned the finish. The Rainbow Wahine won the last two points of that frame, then controlled the fifth to beat the Tritons 3-2 Sunday night at Stan Sheriff Center.
The set scores traced the swings: UCSD won 25-22, Hawaii answered 25-15, the Tritons moved back ahead 25-21, and the hosts forced a decider with a 26-24 escape. Hawaii then closed the Outrigger Invitational with a 15-8 fifth set and extended its all-time advantage over UC San Diego to 12-0.
UCSD recovered from a 9-4 deficit in the opener. After a 17-17 tie, the Tritons won seven of eight rallies and reached set point at 24-18 on consecutive Ireland McNees kills. Hawaii saved four set points before a service error ended the comeback attempt and gave UCSD the first frame.
The second set moved in the opposite direction almost immediately. A Molly McCluskey kill put the Tritons ahead 1-0, but Hawaii turned a 1-1 tie into a 7-1 lead. UCSD found scattered kills later in the frame without closing the opening gap, and the Rainbow Wahine evened the match by 10 points.
Set three returned to a one-possession fight. From 18-18, UCSD took four of five points behind kills from Gia Rivera and Yasemin Elmas and a shared block by Elmas and McCluskey. Lucia Barroso and McNees supplied the final two kills after Hawaii pulled within 23-21.
The fourth was the hinge. UCSD reversed a 13-11 deficit with four straight points and later led 20-18 on a Dillyn Griffin ace. Four Triton service errors helped Hawaii move to set point at 24-23. Barroso tied it once more, but the hosts took the next two rallies. Momentum became scoreboard distance in the fifth, where Hawaii built a 10-point lead before UCSD's last run narrowed the final margin.
Rivera posted career highs with 15 kills and 17.5 points, adding four blocks. McCluskey recorded 14 kills, 13 digs and two aces for her fourth double-double of the season. Marleena Catalan set career highs with 36 assists and 10 digs, her first college double-double. Paulina Baillie led the Tritons with 15 digs.
The result left UCSD 2-4 and 0-2 in five-set matches. Both deciding-set losses came during the same Honolulu trip, a narrow outcome pattern built through different routes. Sunday was not a failed comeback from two sets down; it was a missed chance to close after leading twice and reaching the last two points of the fourth on level terms. That distinction puts the review on execution at the finish, not recovery at the start.
UC San Diego next travels to Las Cruces to face New Mexico State on Friday at 5 p.m. Pacific. The fifth set will draw attention because of its lopsided opening, but the more useful review starts earlier. At 20-18 in the fourth, the Tritons were five points from the match. Four serving errors helped move that finish out of reach before the decider began.