For the first time since 2023, the Bears will be traveling to Honolulu for the Hawai’i Invitational, hosted by the Rainbow Wahine.
After two weeks off during spring break, Cal beach took the time to prepare for its final matches at home against a string of local challengers — and the work paid off. Back on the road, it has the chance to compete against opponents old and new.
Instead of the usual bracket of three or four teams, the Bears will only be facing off against Hawaii and GCU, but will play each team twice.
The repetition will allow Cal to hone its skills with unique insight, as there are less than 24 hours between its two matches against the Antelopes.
But its first match is against the home team, and junior Jenna Colligan shared her excitement at the chance to travel to the beautiful state.
“We love playing in Hawaii,” Colligan said. “It’s such a great place to play and then we’re so lucky that we get to travel there. We’re also really excited that the two teams that we’re playing this weekend are ranked teams. They’re gonna be really good competition.”
Hawai’i is ranked No. 16 and holds a record of 12-15 as it nears the end of the season. This tournament marks the end of its regular season matches before the Big West Championships, held on April 24 and 25.
The Rainbow Wahine also have the advantage of being accustomed to the Hawaiian climate — something Cal has tried to prepare for throughout practice this week.
Having competed against many of the same top players as Cal throughout the season — UCLA, Texas, USC — Hawai’i is also no stranger to intense competition.
The Rainbow Wahine do have some successful pairs that will likely contend against Cal’s top players — juniors Sarah Burton and Caprice Lorenzo have played every match together this season, and won 14 of their 27 matches.
“They’re on their home court and it’s their senior weekend, so there’s gonna be a lot of spirit there for them,” Colligan said. “That’s definitely gonna put them out of advantage. But we’re also very prepared for that and I’m just ready to take on both of these teams.”
As for GCU, the Bears competed against them in the MPSF Mid-Season tournament in March, winning by a narrow margin of 3-2.
The match brought some surprising upsets for the Bears nearly a month ago, one of them being a loss from Ella Sears and Ella Dreibholz, a duo that has dominated this season. The pair has an 11-4 record so far, and Dreibholz has an individual record of 16-5.
Earlier this season, Dreibholz broke the all-time record for career wins with her 84th. Now, she has clocked in 96, and could make it 100 if she plays every match this weekend.
Some games went to three against GCU, as Colligan and Christine DeRoos narrowly beat the Lopes 17-15 in the third set.
“We barely beat GCU the last time we played them, so we know that they are gonna be coming for us again,” Colligan said. “It’s really hard to beat a team twice in a row, so that’s going to be a challenge for us. We’re coming in super prepared and we know that they’re gonna come out just as hard, but we are prepared to fight.”
Since that first matchup, No. 13 GCU has seen success — nearly equal to that of the Bears. Its record stands at 17-6, and it is undefeated at home.
With a five-win streak, GCU is likely to come in ready to challenge Hawai’i and Cal, making for an exciting weekend.
As for the Bears, they are focused on the task at hand. Their first match will be at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday against Hawai’i.
“We’re really just focused on winning these games this weekend, even just focused on the first game of the weekend,” Colligan said. “We’re making sure that no matter who we’re playing for the rest of the season, that we treat every game with the same amount of intensity as if it were the championship game.
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