Seventh-ranked Hawai'i kept its road record perfect, sweeping Idaho, 25-17, 25-13, 25-21, last night in a Western Athletic Conference volleyball match watched by 1,055 at Memorial Gym in Moscow, Idaho.

The Rainbow Wahine (21-3, 14-1 WAC) have not lost a match on the road this season, winning all 21 sets away from home going into their final regular-season conference match tomorrow at Fresno State. But, the set they lost to the Vandals in the conference opener in Honolulu could be costly. If Hawai'i and New Mexico State — which has swept Idaho twice — finish the regular season tied for first, that lost set will give NMSU the top seed in the WAC Tournament.

"There's not a whole lot of difference between first and second," UH coach Dave Shoji said. "You would play the seventh or eighth seed in the first round and No. 3 or 4 in the semifinals. The way our conference is, all the teams are pretty even in those areas. It's probably just an ego thing with me, but I'll have to get over it."

The 'Bows showed remarkable balance last night behind setter Dani Mafua, though their torrid hitting — .350 or better the previous four matches — cooled considerably. The third-place Vandals (16-9, 9-5) had won nine of their past 11 and started six upperclassmen, yet never held a lead until the final set.

Hawai'i got 11 kills from middle Amber Kaufman and 10 from freshman Kanani Danielson, who added 12 digs to get her seventh double-double — her second against the Vandals. The other three starting hitters all had at least five kills.

Idaho did slow UH senior Jamie Houston, who had been on a tear, hitting better than .500 her last four matches. Houston finished with five kills on negative .043 hitting.

"I told the team when we can win and she has an average hitting night it's probably good for the team that we don't have to rely on one or two people," Shoji said. "Idaho dug a lot of balls early. We stayed patient and eventually somebody got a kill. Jamie wasn't getting kills on the first attack, but we were winning most of the rallies anyway."

The Rainbow defense shut down Haley Larsen, the Vandals' most effective hitter, limiting her to nine kills on 37 swings and negative .027 hitting. Hawai'i outblocked the WAC's best blocking team 11-5, with Kaufman getting five stuffs and Aneli Cubi-Otineru and Houston four each. Libero Tara Hittle also had 12 digs.

Hawai'i never trailed in the opening set despite Houston getting shut out offensively. After losing the first three points, Idaho tied it at 5 and 6, but an 8-3 UH run put it up 14-9 and the Vandals could get no closer than two again.

The Rainbows blocked six balls in the set, with Houston in on half and Nickie Thomas, Cubi-Otineru and Kaufman getting two stuffs apiece.

Idaho would stay with UH only to 4-all in the second set. The 'Bows scored 11 of the next 14 behind Kaufman, Danielson and five Vandal errors.

Idaho was ahead 18-16 in the final set before the 'Bows scored nine of the final 12 points. The Vandals hit just .078 for the night, and were outdug 55-44.

"We continue to play good defense," Shoji said. "The only way teams are getting kills is through the block. They are not going over or around it, so our block is pretty solid and we're digging around it."

NOTES

Tomorrow's game: The Rainbows' match at Fresno starts at 5 p.m. HST tomorrow. It will be broadcast live on ESPN 1420 AM. Hawai'i is home again Saturday, in a non-conference match against Utah Valley. It will be preceded by the annual alumnae exhibition.

Keeping pace: New Mexico State lost the first two sets at Nevada Thursday — hitting negative .025 — but rallied to win 15-10 in the fifth. The Wolf Pack hit negative in the final three sets. The Aggies (19-7, 13-1 WAC) also lost the first set last night at Fresno State before rallying to win in four and keep pace with Hawai'i atop the WAC stands.

No. 6 loses: Unranked Arizona upset sixth-ranked California in a Pac-10 match Friday.