STANFORD, Calif. — If Hawai'i wasn't muzzled by the No. 12 seed put around its neck by NCAA Volleyball, it shouldn't be intimidated by the fact that it is the lone non-BCS team in the elite eight.

Tonight, the third-ranked Rainbow Wahine face 16th-ranked Michigan in the final of the Stanford Regional. The 'Bows chased fifth-seeded Illinois last night. The 13th-seeded Wolverines — who lost to the Illini twice during the Big Ten season — hammered the fourth-seeded home team, 25-18, 23-25, 25-22, 25-11.

This should be no surprise. Hawai'i (31-2) swept Stanford the third week of the season. Michigan (27-5) was fourth in the Big Ten, but the only team that extended two-time defending national champion Penn State to five sets.

"They're undersized, they're fast, their setter (Lexi Zimmerman) is really, really good," UH coach Dave Shoji said of the Wolverines. "She gets them isolated all over the court. She can set anybody at anytime from anywhere. The other thing is, their serving is unbelievable.

"We're in for a battle. I don't know how they've lost as many times as they've lost."

The four-time national champion Rainbows are in their 18th regional final. They have been in a battle from the moment the Western Athletic Conference season ended.

They even had to switch weapons last night when all-region middle Amber Kaufman aggravated an abdominal strain and sat out the three sets UH won. The senior was so distraught Shoji asked her to leave the floor for the final half of the match.

"I just felt like she should not be out there," Shoji said. "She couldn't play, couldn't pull herself together."

She probably won't play tonight, leaving 6-foot-4 transfer Alexis Forsythe in the middle.

The 'Bows are focused on breaking down the Wolverines' attack. Particularly on the outside, where Juliana Paz and Alex Hunt helped Zimmerman carve Stanford up.

Michigan is much more battle-tested than the 'Bows.

"The Big Ten is as strong as it's ever been, maybe stronger," said Michigan coach Mark Rosen. "That benefits us. Once you get out of it, if you get out of it, you're in pretty good shape."

Added Shoji: "This is huge for our program. You look at the bracket and we are the only non-BCS school left. We're really proud of that. We feel like we represent everybody that is non-BCS. There are lots of good teams out there. But our players don't worry about that stuff."