Second-seeded Hawaii defeated seventh-seeded Georgia Tech (34-4) 32-34, 33-31, 30-24 and 30-25 in front of a crowd of 9,412 in the NCAA Regional Finals, giving UH a trip to the NCAA Championships for the third time in the past four years. The Rainbow Wahine move to 36-1 with the win. Hawai`i will take on Florida on Thursday, Dec. 18 at 8:30 p.m. (CT).
Hawaii is one of the nation's most successful NCAA Tournament teams. The Rainbow Wahine are playing in their 22nd tournament, missing only in 1992, and have compiled a 54-18 (.750) overall record. This is their eighth appearance as a WAC member, compiling a 23-7 (.767) mark. Hawaii has won the NCAA title three times: 1982, 1983 and 1987. The Rainbow Wahine finished second in 2000, 1998 and 1996. This season, the Rainbow Wahine have played all their NCAA matches in Honolulu with wins over Idaho and BYU in the early rounds. Hawaii defeated Illinois and Georgia Tech to reach the national semifinals.
ESPN2 will show the first semifinal (USC vs. Minnesota) on tape delay on Thursday, Dec. 18 at 10:00 p.m. (CT). The second semifinal (Hawaii vs. Florida) will be televised Friday, Dec. 19 at 2:30 p.m. (CT). The championship match will be televised live on Saturday, Dec. 20 at 2:30 p.m. (CT).