[media-credit name=’Derek Montgomery’ align=’alignnone’ width=’648′][/media-credit]The Wisconsin volleyball team has a rather large task ahead of it in the NCAA Tournament regionals tonight. To keep their season alive, the Badgers will have to do what no team has been able to accomplish this season: hand the Hawaii Rainbow Wahine a loss.

Although No. 14 UW heads into its meeting with the No. 3 seed Hawaii as an underdog, it does so as an underdog with a distinct home court advantage, playing at the Resch Center in Green Bay.

“We’re just so pumped to play them,” sophomore outside hitter Maria Carlini said. “To play against any big team, we just get so excited, especially since it’s in Green Bay. We’re so pumped and we’re so focused. We really want to win.”

The Rainbow Wahine, ranked No. 2 in the nation in the latest USA Today/CSTV Top 25 Coaches Poll, enter tonight’s meeting with a spotless 30-0 record. Hawaii, the WAC champion, is fresh off wins over Colorado and Purdue in the first and second rounds of the tournament.

“They’re a really well-rounded team,” Wisconsin head coach Pete Waite said. “All the players pass well, block well, hit well. Their setter’s quick with their offense and a very good blocking setter. A combination of their skills and their past history makes them a very tough team.”

The key to the Hawaii attack is sophomore setter Kanoe Kamana’o, who is being touted as a national player of the year candidate. Kamana’o is averaging 13.63 assists per game this season, along with 3.13 digs per game. At just 5-foot-8, she also excels at blocking, recording 1.14 stuffs per game. However, it is still on offense that Kamana’o is most dangerous.

“Our block has to be very disciplined,” Waite said. “Around that block, our defense has to sit still and dig some balls because she’s deceptive and she’s quick. Our best bet would be to serve tough so we can keep her off the net.”

Kamana’o directs an up-tempo and balanced Rainbow Wahine attack. Unlike 2003, when Hawaii featured Kim Willoughby, this season’s squad relies on a multitude of hitters. The team’s best attacker this season has been left-side hitter Alicia Arnott, at 4.11 kills per game. Head coach Dave Shoji also deploys Susie Boogaard on the left (3.82 kills per game). Freshman Tara Hittle has impressed at the right-side position.

In the middle, Washington State transfer Victoria Prince has put together a dominating 2004 season, hammering 3.40 kills per game and hitting at a .420 clip. The Hawaii record for single-season hitting percentage is .417. Kari Gregory has seen most of the time at the other middle hitter position.

Defensively, Teisa Fotu will start at libero in place of Ashley Watanbe, who suffered a broken hand in practice prior to the NCAA tournament.

Wisconsin hopes to negate the Hawaii offense with its stifling block. In last weekend’s wins over Loyola and Notre Dame, UW averaged 5.67 blocks per game, in addition to 18.67 digs. To beat the Rainbow Wahine, the Badgers will have to be at their best in the back row as well as the front.

“Our passing has got to be there,” Waite said “They’re also a tough serving team, so we’re going to have to really be solid with our passing and limit our errors. Then I think we can stay in the game with them.”

Along with home court advantage, another factor in Wisconsin’s favor is ease of travel. While the Badgers are a comfortable Thursday-bus ride away from Green Bay, the Rainbow Wahine will continue to rack up the frequent flier miles. After flying back to Honolulu from opening round matches in Fort Collins, Colo., Hawaii caught a 7:50 flight out of Honolulu Tuesday, arriving in Chicago at 8 a.m. Wednesday. After a nearly three-hour layover in Chicago, the Rainbow Wahine touched down in Green Bay just after 11:30 a.m.

“They’ve got to be tired,” Wisconsin middle blocker Sheila Shaw said. “That’s got to be a long flight. I would not want to be them. I think it’s a huge advantage for us and I hope we do get a lot of fans. I know they travel with a lot of people, too. I hope it’s harder for them to get people to Wisconsin and I hope it’s really cold.”

The winner of Friday’s match will meet either Texas or Stanford Saturday afternoon in the regional final. The last time Wisconsin faced a team ranked second in the nation, it defeated the then-No. 2 Minnesota Golden Gophers 3-2 at the UW Field House Oct. 30.

“We have nothing to lose,” Carlini said. “We’ll just go out there and play as hard as we can. I know if we just continue playing like we’ve been playing throughout this tournament, we’re really going to do well, we’re going to win.”