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Post by Cubicle No More ... on Apr 30, 2015 3:08:29 GMT -5
ohio st lost to loyola today. for the second time in the last couple of weeks, hawaii controls its own destiny. win tomorrow and get to the mpsf final ... and they virtually guarantee themselves at least an at-large bid. And also hope UCI makes it to the final. Yup that too!
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Post by Cubicle No More ... on Apr 30, 2015 14:19:48 GMT -5
Warriors can't wait to playBy Stephen Tsai, Honolulu Star-Advertiser POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Apr 30, 2015 BRUCE ASATO / JAN. 18 Taylor Averill, left, and Jennings Franciskovic lead the Rainbow Warriors into the MPSF volleyball semifinals on Thursday.IRVINE, Calif. » As it turned out, the motivational carrot was Orange. For the University of Hawaii volleyball team, all those weight-training sessions, sprints under an unforgiving sun, and work-to-exhaustion practices have led to Orange County. The Warriors play Pepperdine in Thursday's Mountain Pacific Sports Federation semifinal match in UC Irvine's Bren Center. Irvine and USC meet in the other semifinal. "This is what it's all for," UH opposite attacker Brook Sedore said. "This is why you play volleyball. Nobody plays to play on a team like San Diego, where you don't win a single game. … The focus of a national championship is motivating. You keep this feeling in the back of your mind, and it makes training a lot better." If UH and Irvine win on Thursday, both likely will be invited to next week's NCAA tournament at Stanford. "Everyone is in a good place because we know we've put the work in," UH coach Charlie Wade said. "We know we're a good team. We know we're going to be playing a good team. It's coming down to the end. We're excited. It's an opportunity. It's what you play for in your career. To get a chance to be playing in the league semifinal with the chance to advance is well deserved." The Warriors won both regular-season matches against Pepperdine in Honolulu. They also played in the Bren Center twice this season, splitting a two-match series against top-ranked Irvine. Bren Center, with a seating capacity of 4,984 for court sports, is a preferred arena for volleyball players, ranking high along with UH's Stan Sheriff Center and UCLA's Pauley Pavilion. Bren has high ceilings and roominess behind the end lines. "Ask a jump shooter," Wade said, a reference to why basketball players and volleyball servers prefer backdrops that offer good sight lines. "It's all about depth perception," said Sedore, one of the Warriors' best servers. Here's a look at the matchups: Hawaii
The Warriors' youngest starter — 19-year-old setter Jennings Franciskovic — has matured in his two years at UH. "That's something I've been working on since high school," he said. "I used to get really upset at times. I've been working on staying neutral and being that calm person on the court." This season, the Warriors focused on an inside-out offense — feed the middle, forcing opponents to bunch the block and opening the pins and back-row attacks. Taylor Averill is considered the nation's most complete middle, relying on misdirection plays to swing in one direction while the blocker is going in the other. Franciskovic, who has a 41-inch vertical jump off an approach, and Averill are partnered as blockers in two rotations. Meanwhile, the other middle, Davis Holt, has expanded his repertoire. At 6 feet 9, Holt mainly was fed high sets. In recent weeks, Holt has feasted on three-ball sets — short and quick placements. Holt also has been effective with his dancing float serve. Wade often has struggled with using a substitute for defense or allowing Holt to serve. "His serve has become so reliable," Wade said. Holt said: "All other servers bring heat. It's like, heat, heat, heat, heat, heat, and mine is like a little fluff ball. It throws them off." With his height and reach, Holt's serve is delivered at "a weird angle. It shakes around and floats and then drops off the table." Franciskovic, meanwhile, has been instructed to go from placement serves to jump-spinners. To increase his velocity, Franciskovic worked on his contact point. "I tend to over-rotate sometimes and (strike the volleyball) at a weird spot," Franciskovic said. "It's something I've been working with the coaching staff over the past couple months. It's been pretty nice to score some points (on serves), but, really, it's all about my contact point." PepperdineThe Waves run one of the league's quickest pin attacks — in part to setter Matt West's accurate placement; in part to left-side hitter Joshua Taylor and opposite Parker Kalmbach. Taylor has a wicked angle shot that is difficult to block and cover. He also blends tips and roll shots. Taylor is hitting .355, remarkable effectiveness for a player who often faces double and triple blocks. Kalmbach is at his best when he strikes line shots. Kalmbach leads the MPSF in kills (4.10 per set) and scoring (4.60 points per set). The Waves have found their groove, going with the same seven starters the past five matches. Max States and Joshua Stewart are used as serving subs for Taylor and middle Mitchell Penning, respectively. Taylor and Penning are actually tough servers, with the Waves scoring natural points on 39 percent of the plays they initiate the past five matches. Penning served three consecutive aces against California Baptist. RAINBOW WARRIOR VOLLEYBALLIn Irvine, Calif. >> Who: Hawaii (24-5) vs. Pepperdine (23-5) >> When: 2 p.m. Thursday >> TV: OC Sports >> Radio: KKEA >> Also: UC Irvine (26-4) vs. USC (19-8), 4:30 p.m. Thursday >> Winners: Meet at 4 p.m. Saturday for the MPSF championship and automatic berth in the NCAA tournament
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Post by Cubicle No More ... on Apr 30, 2015 14:23:42 GMT -5
Stephen Tsai's blog on Star-Advertiser: Semifinal day: Pepperdineby STEPHEN TSAI on APRIL 30, 2015 Excerpt: "The Warriors had a lively 90-minute practice yesterday afternoon and were animated in serve/pass drills this morning. First serve is at 2 p.m. Hawaii time on OC Sports, ESPN 1420 and staradvertiser.com ..." There's also a cool slo-mo vid of Kupono Fey jump serving ... but it looks like you have to download it to view it. Full post here: hawaiiwarriorworld.com/warrior-beat/semifinal-day-pepperdine/
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Post by madonna on Apr 30, 2015 16:13:47 GMT -5
"This is what it's all for," UH opposite attacker Brook Sedore said. "This is why you play volleyball. Nobody plays to play on a team like San Diego, where you don't win a single game.".
What an arrogant statement.
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Post by soljah808 on Apr 30, 2015 17:35:01 GMT -5
"This is what it's all for," UH opposite attacker Brook Sedore said. "This is why you play volleyball. Nobody plays to play on a team like San Diego, where you don't win a single game.". What an arrogant statement. Nobody plays to lose....I think that was his point. Im sure he remembers when they were 7-20 his frosh year I believe.
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Post by madonna on Apr 30, 2015 17:50:05 GMT -5
"This is what it's all for," UH opposite attacker Brook Sedore said. "This is why you play volleyball. Nobody plays to play on a team like San Diego, where you don't win a single game.". What an arrogant statement. Nobody plays to lose....I think that was his point. Im sure he remembers when they were 7-20 his frosh year I believe. If that's what he meant, he should have left out the San Diego reference. And in case he had forgotten... hawaiiathletics.com/custompages/Stats/Mvb/2012/01062012.htm
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Post by Cubicle No More ... on May 6, 2015 14:20:22 GMT -5
Warriors' dream ends with loss to Penn StateBy Stephen Tsai, Honolulu Star-AdvertiserPOSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, May 06, 2015 TONY AVELAR / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISER Kupono Fey soared for a kill attempt during the third set of Hawaii’s loss to Penn State at the NCAA men’s volleyball tournament.STANFORD, Calif. » The Hawaii volleyball team's championship dreams burst from a pair of Penn State pins. Outside hitter Aaron Russell and opposite Nick Goodell provided the 1-2 punch from the pins to help the Nittany Lions outpoint the Warriors 25-22, 25-20, 17-25, 27-25 in a play-in match for the NCAA tournament in Maples Pavilion. The Warriors' season ends at 24-7. The Nittany Lions advance to Thursday's final-four match against top-seeded Lewis. "Obviously, we knew Aaron Russell was a really good player coming in," UH libero Kolby Kanetake said. "When there's another guy like Goodell going off, who are you going to stop?" In practices Sunday and Monday, the Warriors moved Scott Hartley into the lineup in place of opposite Brook Sedore, who recently was named to the All-America second team. Although Sedore's kill production had slipped in the past three games, the switch was a defensive tactic. Hartley was assigned to defend the 6-foot-9 Russell. "That was strictly to shut down one of the best players in the country," Sedore said. "I go against Scott every day in practice. He's helped make me the player I am today. I can't thank him enough. I told him, ‘I have confidence in you, buddy. You'll do awesome.'" Russell pounded a match-high 20 kills, but committed nine attack errors and hit .239 — 156 points below his season average. In the previous four matches, Russell hit .560. But the Warriors, who never led in the first two sets and trailed by as much as 19-10 in the opener, decided to scrap the plan in favor of the power and emotion that Sedore provides. Of the strategy, UH coach Charlie Wade said: "We tried it early, but it wasn't making a big enough impact that we were winning the match, so it made no sense to stick with it. Brook's been one of our emotional leaders, and we got him back on the floor." Penn State coach Mark Pavlik said he thought the momentum shifted when Sedore entered late in the second set. Wade also tweaked the rotation in the third and fourth sets to create more favorable matchups. But the Nittany Lions were able to widen their attack, with the pin hitters accounting for 54 of the 59 kills. With the Warriors tilting the block in front of Russell, that freed Goodell (19 kills) and left-side hitter Chris Nugent (15 kills) to swing against one-on-one coverages. Goodell credited accurate passing that gave setter Taylor Hammond more options. "It made it easier," Goodell said. In a prototypical lineup, Goodell, who is 6 feet 4, and Russell would trade positions. "I've always been the small guy," Goodell said. "When I go back home and hang with my friends, I'm the tall guy. When I'm back at the school with my team, I'm the short guy. It's something I've been playing with for five years. I work on the shots to help get around the bigger (blockers)." In recent weeks, Goodell has struggled hitting D sets from the back right. He worked extensively with Hammond to expand his repertoire. Goodell, who is accomplished hitting line, developed a sharp-angle shot. Against UH, nine of Goodell's kills were launched from the back right. "(Hammond) puts me in the best position possible," said Goodell,who can strike the ball at 11 feet 6. "That's why I've been so successful." After recovering from slow starts in the first two sets, the Warriors steadied their passing, allowing then to run their quick attack. Middle attacker Taylor Averill had 15 kills against one error and hit .609. Davis Holt, the other UH middle, contributed nine kills and hit .538. And while the Warriors dominated at the net — they built a blocking advantage of 17.5 to 9.5 — they weren't able to find the court with their hardest swings in the fourth set. Siki Zarkovic soared to reject Jalen Penrose to ward off match point and tie the fourth set at 24. But later, with UH trailing 26-25, Zarkovic's blast from the right pin went long. "We can talk about different things," Zarkovic said, "but what happened, happened. I'm really proud of this season. We proved we're a good team. Tonight, Penn State was a better team." "No regrets," UH left-side hitter Kupono Fey said. Wade said: "I'm not gonna shoulda-woulda-coulda on anything in the match. I'm more focused on all the positive things that came out of the season." The Warriors, who missed the playoffs in 2014, were ranked No. 1 for five weeks through the final weekend of the regular season. Although they lost to Pepperdine in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation semifinals, they earned enough credits to qualify for the play-in match. It was their first NCAA postseason appearance since 2002. "It was such a great journey," Wade said. "There were so many great stories coming out of this year — individual achievements, redemption, success. There was so much love. I'm certainly disappointed in losing this match, but really grateful for the many people who worked so hard on my staff and on the team to get Hawaii volleyball back on the national stage. That is not any small thing. It was important to capture the hearts and minds of people in Hawaii. Hawaii is such a special place to represent."
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Post by Cubicle No More ... on May 6, 2015 14:21:43 GMT -5
Cindy Luis' blog on the Star-Advertiser: The morning afterby CINDY LUIS on MAY 6, 2015 "Rather than extending the previous thread, here’s a new one. To sum up some of the last comments: Great season overall. Questionable lineup against PSU. Lose a lot, good core coming back, really good recruits coming in." Blog Post here: hawaiiwarriorworld.com/volleyshots/the-morning-after/#comment-2607259
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Post by Cubicle No More ... on May 6, 2015 14:22:56 GMT -5
Stephen Tsai's blog on the Star-Advertiser: A season of will and graceby STEPHEN TSAI on MAY 6, 2015 Excerpt: "Of the five stages of loss and grief, one of them isn’t supposed to be gratitude. But after the Warriors’ four-set loss to Penn State in last night’s play-in match, the players and coaches expressed appreciation for their hard work, the season’s “journey” and the support from followers new and old. ..." Full Blog Post here: hawaiiwarriorworld.com/warrior-beat/a-season-of-will-and-grace/
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Post by Cubicle No More ... on May 6, 2015 14:24:52 GMT -5
i have yet to watch the match, since i was traveling the past week. i'm disappointed, of course, like any fan would be.
but this was a great ride this season. and it was nice to see this program rise up and be a contender once again. it's been a while since we could say that ...
thank you, warriors!
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Post by kahusancali on May 8, 2015 3:46:08 GMT -5
It was fun following the Warriors this season.
hope they'll make a return next year. Mahalo to everyone and see u all next year!
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Post by Cubicle No More ... on May 8, 2015 17:02:26 GMT -5
Rainbow Warrior volleyball are built for the long runThe Rainbow Warriors have constructed a deep roster that should serve them well in the futureBy Stephen Tsai, Honolulu Star-AdvertiserPOSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, May 08, 2015 LAST UPDATED: 02:00 a.m. HST, May 08, 2015 TONY AVELAR / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISER Hawaii’s resurgence to the top level of college volleyball should be a lasting one, according to head coach Charlie WadeDARRYL OUMI / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISER Kupono Fey, left, Kolby Kanetake, Davis Holt, Scott Hartley, Taylor Averill and Jennings Franciskovic were key contributors to a team that was ranked No. 1 much of the season.Hawaii volleyball coach Charlie Wade has 2016 vision. Even during this season's journey that ended in an NCAA play-in loss on Tuesday, Wade already had a sequel in production. "This isn't a one-time thing," Wade told boosters during the banquet three weeks ago and then to reporters on Tuesday night. Wade, who completed his sixth and most successful season as UH head coach, learned a few years ago that to succeed in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation meant to compete in the arms race. More arms — depth at point-producing positions — is key in a league where there are no easy nights. In a sport in which the equivalent of 4.5 scholarships is spread over 20-player rosters, Wade has noted, "every team has good players." "It's a grind in our league," Wade added. "It's brutal. There's no chance to take a night off or a week off." The degree of difficulty might become greater. There is talk of dividing the MPSF, with the Big West breaking off into a six-team conference. UH is a member of the Big West in most non-football sports. With the Midwest strengthening and the NCAA field still set at six, advancing into the postseason is expected to become more challenging. Wade and his staff believe the answer is to stockpile arms. That depth helped this year. When outside hitter Siki Zarkovic suffered a high-ankle sprain and then Kupono Fey hit an emotional and physical wall, fifth-year senior Scott Hartley emerged. When setter Jennings Franciskovic needed a break, senior transfer Alex Jones guided two comeback victories. Zach Radner also helped when middle Davis Holt had a medical issue. Seven seniors, including opposite Brook Sedore and middles Taylor Averill and Holt, have completed their UH eligibility. But Wade vowed the 2016 team can "take this thing even further." The Warriors return Franciskovic and their three best passers — Zarkovic, Fey and libero Kolby Kanetake. Hendrik Mol, who did not play the past month due to an eye infection, can be used at either outside hitter or opposite. Iain McKellar, who missed most of the season after having knee surgery, is the first option at opposite. McKellar is left-handed, which is regarded as an advantage for a right-side hitter. UH's last left-handed opposite was Yuval Katz. There were times when McKellar was the most effective hitter in fall practices. Wade has projected Zach Radner, who played sparingly this year, will be one of the MPSF's best middles next year. Radner's father and grandfather played professional football. Radner, at 6 feet 8, has a 39-inch vertical jump off an approach. Vaughn Wellenreiter, who transferred from Cal State Northridge last summer, might contend at the second middle. UH also is considering moving setter Kekoa Pukahi, a 6-foot-5 freshman who redshirted this year, to the middle. Another freshman who redshirted, Luke Owens, is in the middle mix. McKellar also can play there. While watching the MPSF title match last week, Wade noted he tried to recruit several Pepperdine and UC Irvine starters. Conversely, Wade said, those schools did not try to recruit any current Warrior. The recruiting balance has shifted. The Warriors signed seven players during the fall in a recruiting effort that is considered one of the nation's best. Three of the recruits played on the championship youth national team. There might be as many as 10 newcomers in the fall. The plan is to redshirt them, although 6-9 middle/opposite Patrick Gasman might find his way into the lineup. "We feel this program is in a place where it's going to be in this (postseason) position again," Wade said.
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Post by kahusancali on May 8, 2015 19:55:17 GMT -5
4.5 scholarships is spread over 20-player rosters
Is this the standard for all men's volleyball collegiate program or differs from school to school?
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Post by midwestfan on May 8, 2015 20:24:45 GMT -5
Standard!
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Post by WahineFan44 on May 8, 2015 23:48:46 GMT -5
4.5 scholarships is spread over 20-player rosters Is this the standard for all men's volleyball collegiate program or differs from school to school? Its not always spread between 20 players. Maybe only the 10 will get money. Some of them will be walk ons. I for one, think the number should go up to 8.
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