LAIE, Hawaii - Fresno Pacific stunned #4-ranked BYU Hawaii in a five-set thriller on Saturday night, handing the Seasiders their first PacWest loss in more than a year and becoming the first team to defeat the four-time defending PacWest champions on their home court since 2010.

Despite playing their third match in as many nights, the Sunbirds put an exclamation point on an undefeated Hawaii road trip, winning their ninth consecutive match and putting themselves in the driver's seat for a playoff berth.

"I couldn't be more proud of this team," said head coach Kelly Winter. "This is without a doubt the toughest road trip in our conference and they took on every challenge that came their way. They faced three strong teams, thousands of miles from home, with many of them playing through sickness or nagging injuries while already being mentally and physically exhausted. None of that mattered tonight. Their mentality going in was that they were going to just put it all out there. They were entirely focused. This trip was not a vacation in any way. They've worked on homework, watched film, been totally committed, and the results are there."

It was a total team effort for the Sunbirds (16-6, 10-3 PacWest), who showed right off the bat that this would not be the typical three-up, three-down match that Seasider fans have become accustomed to. BYUH hadn't lost a set all season and just last week had rolled through the rest of the conference's top teams, making quick work of Dixie State, Cal Baptist and Point Loma. The Sunbirds, however, had other ideas and even though the team would drop a tightly-contested first set 25-23, they made a statement early on that the Seasiders could be in for a long night.

FPU came alive in set two, handing the Seasiders a 25-18 setback and holding BYUH to a .119 attack percentage in the set. The momentum shifted the Sunbirds' way in set three as BYUH led 20-16 late in the set before a 9-2 Sunbird run closed it out and gave FPU the 2-1 lead. The Seasiders battled back with a 25-16 win in set four to force a fifth set.

FPU jumped out to a commanding 7-0 lead in the final frame, behind some phenomenal serving from Rupia Inck. The team led 8-2 at the switch but the Seasiders refused to go quietly, crawling back into it to make the score 13-9. Inck's kill on the ensuing play brought the Sunbirds to match point, but the Seasiders rang off four consecutive points to cut the FPU lead to 14-13. Gabriela Macedo delivered the late-game heroics, driving a ball off the hands of a BYUH defender that bounced out of reach of multiple diving Seasider players.

"Our serve and pass game really was the difference in the match," said Winter. "We passed so well and kept ourselves in system, even though we struggled offensively at times. We came up with some huge plays defensively and everybody executed when they had to. The crazy thing is that this team has yet to play its best volleyball. We still have some things to clean up and if this team stays the course I expect them to be even better."

Inck finished with a match-high 19 kills and added 11 digs, Macedo delivered arguably her best individual performance of the year with 16 kills and 18 digs. Hannah Butler had a team-high 21 digs and Bissie DenHartog dished out 32 assists. Kathleen Anderson had 12 kills, Morghan Williams added nine and Rebecca Waller finished with eight. Sarah McCann added 22 assists.

The Sunbirds held BYUH outside hitter and three-time PacWest Player of the Year Shih Teng Chen to a .180 attack percentage on the night.

It was the second time this season that FPU took the Seasiders to five sets, as the Sunbirds came within one point of upsetting BYUH in Fresno three weeks ago. It also marked the third time since FPU joined the PacWest in 2012 that the Sunbirds have taken BYUH to five sets. That year's team came within two points of knocking off the Seasiders in a match that ultimately decided the conference title.

The win is likely to get the program some national recognition, as the team is currently not receiving votes in the NCAA Division II poll despite its recent hot streak. The Sunbirds return home to face conference rival Azusa Pacific on Wednesday night.