For openers, the University of Hawai'i volleyball team committed a false start.

The Warriors could not control their accuracy nor UC Santa Barbara's Evan Patak in a 30-27, 30-28, 30-25 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation loss before 461 in the Gauchos' Robertson Gym last night.

The Gauchos improved to 2-2 overall and 1-0 in the MPSF. The Warriors are 0-1.

Because of budget constraints, the Warriors reduced their window of travel. They arrived at the Guesthouse Inn and Suites at 1:30 yesterday morning. They never had a wake-up call during a match that lasted 95 minutes.

Still, UH associate coach Tino Reyes insisted, "It wasn't the travel. We can make all of the excuses in the world. But Santa Barbara was very good, and we weren't as good. Let's not take anything away from Santa Barbara."

UCSB setter Max Klineman kept the Warriors guessing with his decision-making. "He really did a good job. He's a good player," said Reyes, noting Klineman was a member of the U.S. 18-Under national team the past two summers.

It was a sweet revenge for Klineman, who had wanted to play for the Warriors. "But we had Sean Carney and Brian Beckwith," Reyes said. "We couldn't afford another setter. He made a good choice going to Santa Barbara. He's a nice player."

Klineman easily grasped the Gauchos' game plan, in which the correct answers were: A) Patak, and B) outside hitter Michael Fisher.

Patak is 6 feet 8, 260 pounds, and can slam a volleyball at speeds of up to 65 mph. Last night, he sizzled 18 kills (against four errors) and hit .400. He took 34 percent of the Gauchos 103 swings.

"He can really hit it," Reyes said. "We knew that."

The Warriors had few clues about Fisher, a 6-foot-6 sophomore who put down 10 kills in 17 swings, hitting .529. Patak and Fisher also had four block assists each.

"We've never seen (Fisher) before," Reyes said. "He attacked well."

The Warriors, meanwhile, could not respond. They opened with two players — outside hitter José José Delgado and middle blocker Maulia LaBarre — who did not start in last week's exhibition victories over Douglas College of Canada.

But the new lineup — selected on a system rating practices — did not pay off immediately. Delgado, who had difficulty with his passing, was replaced in the middle of Game 1. LaBarre did not start the second game.

UH's two starting left-side hitters, Delgado and floor captain Matt Carere, combined to hit .000 (eight kills and eight errors in 29 swings). Their struggles offset the play of Eric Kalima, who came off the bench to put down six kills and hit .333, and opposite hitter Lauri Hakala.

Kalima, a converted libero, replaced Delgado and then Carere.

"Only Kalima hit (successfully) on the left side," UH coach Mike Wilton said.

Hakala started in place of Matt Bender, who will miss at least another four weeks because of torn ligaments in his left ankle. Hakala, a second-year junior from Finland, finished with a team-high 15 kills.

The Warriors led in each game. But they had difficulty passing accurately in Game 1. In the second game, they could not slow Patak. In Game 3, they couldn't stop anyone. The Gauchos committed one error in 39 swings in the third game.

UH also had difficulty with its serves, keeping only 82 percent in play. UH's goal is 90-percent serving accuracy.

"We didn't put the ball away," Reyes said. "We committed too many hitting errors. The passing wasn't very good. It was a whole team thing."