As the Hawai'i volleyball team learned the hard way, being good is not always good enough.

The Warriors hit .365, including .508 in the final two sets, but were no match against sizzling Brigham Young last night in the Smith Fieldhouse in Provo, Utah.

The scores were 30-23, 30-23, 25-30, 30-22.

"They had a hard time stopping us," UH coach Mike Wilton said, "but we had a harder time stopping them."

The Cougars' three pin hitters — Mat Taylor (22 kills), Kevin Sagers (21 kills, one error) and Andrew Stewart (19 kills) — hit a combined .614.

"It's a mind-boggling number, to me," Wilton said.

Smith Fieldhouse is one of the most intimidating venues on the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation circuit. Most of the fans are students, and they sit close to the court. Seven of the 12 Warriors on the active roster were making their first trip to Provo.

"It's a different environment than anywhere else," Wilton said. "There are a lot of young people making a lot of racket."

The Warriors did not appear to be in sync in the first two sets, struggling with their accuracy, serves and block. "Maybe there's a learning curve," Wilton said. "We looked more comfortable in the third set."

For the second consecutive match, Warrior middles Steven Grgas and Matt "Dragon" Rawson played well offensively. Grgas had nine kills with no errors; Rawson had eight kills with one error. And the left-side attack of Steven Hunt (19 kills) and Gus Tuaniga (.375 hitting percentage) provided some damage.

But the Warriors could not find stability at opposite. Brennon Dyer started, but hit .231. Josh Walker's nine kills were offset by seven errors. Jim Clar, the captain, was the best, with three kills in six swings.

Clar has been limited because of tenderness in his right shoulder. But because he is an active blocker — and the Warriors were lacking on the right-side block — Clar will either start or receive extended playing time in tonight's rematch.

The Warriors fell to 1-5 and 0-3 in the MPSF. The Cougars are 3-5 and 1-0.