Tenth-ranked Hawai'i takes its gaudy 116-match WAC volleyball winning streak to Fresno State today. For the first time in more than a decade, the Bulldogs won't have any Hawai'i ties.

Punahou graduate Lindy Vivas was let go after finishing 15-13 last season, her 14th at FSU. Kahuku's Tuli Peters transferred to Brigham Young-Hawai'i.

New coach Ruben Nieves cut Iolani graduate La'akea Campbell five weeks ago. "It's just not working," Nieves said then. "The coaching change has been an adjustment for everybody, and Kea is not the only person struggling with the change in style and philosophy and expectations, but she was struggling with it to where it was not productive."

Wednesday, Nieves cut Ilima Sam Fong, who is from Utah but has close ties here, and Kamehameha's Mounia Nihipali. Both sophomores are on the cover of the FSU media guide.

Nieves said all three players, who are roommates, were cut for poor attitudes. Their scholarships will be honored until the end of the school year.

Nihipali said yesterday Nieves had asked her to quit earlier. "I'm not sure how or when this even started," Nihipali said. "All I know is, he just kept telling me that I have an attitude and he doesn't want me to do certain things on the team.

"He had the biggest problem with Kea and I. It kept building and I don't know why. I didn't even do anything. I couldn't figure out what he wanted."

Nieves issued a statement on the cuts this week, and asked yesterday that his response be contained to that. In part, it read that "Once the (coaching) relationship with (Campbell) took a turn, it impacted the relationship with the whole group."

Campbell, a three-time FSU Scholar-Athlete, is a senior. Nihipali and Sam Fong plan to transfer to play somewhere else their final two years. Nihipali said both already have options.

UH coach Dave Shoji said problems often come up after a coaching change. Nihipali denied that she had a problem simply with the transition.

"If I didn't want to be here, I would have left after last year," she said. "But I like Fresno, so I stayed. He (Nieves) kept bringing up Lindy and referred to us as 'Lindy's girls.'"

Through it all, the Bulldogs have struggled to a 4-16 record, but have upset Utah State and Nevada this month. Which gives Nieves hope tonight.

"This team has responded to adversity and tough situations in a surprising way ...," he said. "I think we can beat Hawai'i once out of every 25 times, or maybe 50, maybe 100. For other teams it might be once out of every 10 or 15. It's kinda like the lottery. If we keep playing, eventually we're going to win."

Tonight's match begins at 4 p.m. HST. Sports Radio (1420 AM) will have reports during the football game and carry the end of the match live, if it is still going after the post-game show.

Reach Ann Miller at amiller@honoluluadvertiser.com.