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Post by Deleted on Aug 30, 2015 3:43:12 GMT -5
A really entertaining match. Pretty good volleyball considering it's still the first week of the season. Wichita State looked really good. Their offense looked really quick which made it really difficult for Hawaii to get a lot of blocks to slow their offense for the first 2 1/2 sets. As others have mentioned Lehman is just unbelievably good and she really hurt Hawaii when she was in the front row. Hawaii won all of their sets when she rotated to the back. They'll do fine in conference and might be able to surprise a couple of the other ranked teams they have on the schedule. If they continue to improve over the course of the season, they should definitely be an NCAA tournament team. Hawaii played significantly better than the first night, especially the back row. Kahakai did better. Still needs some work to really take control of the back court, but no big miscues like last night. Taylor had a great night. She kind of wore down at the end, which is a concern since this is only the first week, but she seems to be ready to take the role of the go to hitter. Magill also looked like she was ready to take a lot of swings in the front row and while Higgins had a couple of mis-sets to her, it is so much better than last year. Passing still needs some work and Hawaii needs to get more production out of the left and second middle position. Also, they really need to work on stopping the middle attack. The better teams will have a potent middle attack, and Hawaii has to learn to slow it down. They were only able to get blocks when Lehman was in the back and Maglio was able to load up on the left. I also read a lot about Olevao in this thread. I agree that she is not consistent, but I am always surprised to see all this hostility and frustration towards her and Shoji. In the ideal, Olevao was never pegged to be a go to player, let alone a starter. She burned her redshirt year in 2012 so Hawaii had an outside hitter available when Croson was suspended from the team. And had Croson not transferred out, the 2013 line up would have likely been Hartong, Croson and Taylor at the pins, with the 2014 line up probably looking like Croson, Taylor and Greeley. Olevao was not a top 100 Senior Ace and I think the only other player to be a starter since the list came out was Hewitt. All other starters, excluding liberos, have been top 100 in their class. Olevao has tried to set up to be the offensive outlet Hawaii needed when there were few to no options. I will agree that now Shoji has options and he needs to re-evaluate the position. But again, I'm just incredibly surprised at how much hostility there is towards a player who has tried to go above and beyond. Manu-Olevao is a career .190 hitter, are u surprised?? I think Sudduth and Illustre got much worst back in the day.
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Post by WahineFan44 on Aug 30, 2015 3:43:31 GMT -5
A really entertaining match. Pretty good volleyball considering it's still the first week of the season. Wichita State looked really good. Their offense looked really quick which made it really difficult for Hawaii to get a lot of blocks to slow their offense for the first 2 1/2 sets. As others have mentioned Lehman is just unbelievably good and she really hurt Hawaii when she was in the front row. Hawaii won all of their sets when she rotated to the back. They'll do fine in conference and might be able to surprise a couple of the other ranked teams they have on the schedule. If they continue to improve over the course of the season, they should definitely be an NCAA tournament team. Hawaii played significantly better than the first night, especially the back row. Kahakai did better. Still needs some work to really take control of the back court, but no big miscues like last night. Taylor had a great night. She kind of wore down at the end, which is a concern since this is only the first week, but she seems to be ready to take the role of the go to hitter. Magill also looked like she was ready to take a lot of swings in the front row and while Higgins had a couple of mis-sets to her, it is so much better than last year. Passing still needs some work and Hawaii needs to get more production out of the left and second middle position. Also, they really need to work on stopping the middle attack. The better teams will have a potent middle attack, and Hawaii has to learn to slow it down. They were only able to get blocks when Lehman was in the back and Maglio was able to load up on the left. I also read a lot about Olevao in this thread. I agree that she is not consistent, but I am always surprised to see all this hostility and frustration towards her and Shoji. In the ideal, Olevao was never pegged to be a go to player, let alone a starter. She burned her redshirt year in 2012 so Hawaii had an outside hitter available when Croson was suspended from the team. And had Croson not transferred out, the 2013 line up would have likely been Hartong, Croson and Taylor at the pins, with the 2014 line up probably looking like Croson, Taylor and Greeley. Olevao was not a top 100 Senior Ace and I think the only other player to be a starter since the list came out was Hewitt. All other starters, excluding liberos, have been top 100 in their class. Olevao has tried to set up to be the offensive outlet Hawaii needed when there were few to no options. I will agree that now Shoji has options and he needs to re-evaluate the position. But again, I'm just incredibly surprised at how much hostility there is towards a player who has tried to go above and beyond. I've spoken to olveao. She Is so kind and sweet, but this should be about putting your best team on the floor. Some of the hitting errors she made tonight were awful. I think 5 were unforced, and the rest were blocks. I may have been a little too hostile, but with her, the wahine were going down points. We should have the best team in the floor, and we get that with granato.
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Post by roy on Aug 30, 2015 3:50:01 GMT -5
Manu-Olevao is a career .190 hitter, are u surprised?? I think Sudduth and Illustre got much worst back in the day. Yes, I am surprised. I believe both Sudduth and Illustre were Fab 50 players. Olevao was a project player coming into UH and was supposed to redshirt her freshman year. If she didn't start in either 2013 or 2014, who would you put ahead of her? Maybe Kastl in 2013 but she has never shown to be more consistent than Olevao. For 2014, do you want Long, Passi, or Huff in the L1 spot instead of Olevao?
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Post by roy on Aug 30, 2015 3:56:49 GMT -5
I've spoken to olveao. She Is so kind and sweet, but this should be about putting your best team on the floor. Some of the hitting errors she made tonight were awful. I think 5 were unforced, and the rest were blocks. I may have been a little too hostile, but with her, the wahine were going down points. We should have the best team in the floor, and we get that with granato. And I don't disagree. Granato is an option but just because she was a high school AA doesn't automatically make her better than Olevao. I'm sure she'll get her chances this season and if she wins the starting spot, all the better. But frankly, some of the comments by the posters and the hostility she has gotten this and last season just surprise me.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 30, 2015 4:00:22 GMT -5
Manu-Olevao is a career .190 hitter, are u surprised?? I think Sudduth and Illustre got much worst back in the day. Yes, I am surprised. I believe both Sudduth and Illustre were Fab 50 players. Olevao was a project player coming into UH and was supposed to redshirt her freshman year. If she didn't start in either 2013 or 2014, who would you put ahead of her? Maybe Kastl in 2013 but she has never shown to be more consistent than Olevao. For 2014, do you want Long, Passi, or Huff in the L1 spot instead of Olevao? She just has not improved, most wahine starters improve drastically during their careers, she has not.
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Post by jr67 on Aug 30, 2015 4:08:17 GMT -5
How is Wichita State not ranked? They're a solid all around team and so far their #22 looks to be the best middle in this tournament.
On the whole the Wahine played better tonight than last night and did so against a much better team. There were times in the third and forth sets that I finally got a fleeting glimpses of how good this team could actually be. While Nikki carried this team offensively, I thought Greeley was the unsung hero tonight. She doesn't play with a lot flash and she still needs to put more power in her hits but she played solid and steady tonight. She was the steadiest serve receiver tonight.
I'm glad both Kahakai and Maglio got closer to playing up to the level they're both capable of playing. Maglio is still too often underneath or in front of the ball when she contacts it. She and Higgins still need to work on that connection.
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Post by hawaiifan808 on Aug 30, 2015 4:15:10 GMT -5
Not to sound like an a$$ but those stuffs tonight really got me going. Everyone else managed to change a little tonight from last nights match, but those stuffs on olevao got me thinking. Olevao is a senior she can be consistent at times, but with this being her last year, she swings hard right into that block and sadly if Dave wants to go far in the tournament or take the BW title, he needs olevao to wake up NOW or bench her sadly.
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Post by roy on Aug 30, 2015 4:15:57 GMT -5
She just has not improved, most wahine starters improve drastically during their careers, she has not. Sure. We haven't seen a dramatic improvement over the course of her career like we did with others. But looking at last season, who do you want to start ahead of her. Long got her share of venom on the forum. Passi wasn't able to sustain a high level of D1 volleyball. And Huff just wasn't ready. But Olevao got a lot of heat when she tried to step up as the go to player while Taylor was out. She didn't hit for a high percent but she was never really meant to be a go to hitter. I'll concede that Shoji could have pulled her earlier in the match. But it was a judgment call. Olevao had 2 aces in set 1 to even the match up around 15. And she saved one set point in set 1. By set 2, Shoji was already pulling her for Granato in the back row. And by the middle of set 3, she has been completely replaced. 2 1/2 sets to see if she had improved and could work her way out of the slump isn't completely unreasonable.
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Post by 5100 on Aug 30, 2015 5:50:40 GMT -5
I also read a lot about Olevao in this thread. I agree that she is not consistent, but I am always surprised to see all this hostility and frustration towards her and Shoji. In the ideal, Olevao was never pegged to be a go to player, let alone a starter. She burned her redshirt year in 2012 so Hawaii had an outside hitter available when Croson was suspended from the team. And had Croson not transferred out, the 2013 line up would have likely been Hartong, Croson and Taylor at the pins, with the 2014 line up probably looking like Croson, Taylor and Greeley. Olevao was not a top 100 Senior Ace and I think the only other player to be a starter since the list came out was Hewitt. All other starters, excluding liberos, have been top 100 in their class. Olevao has tried to set up to be the offensive outlet Hawaii needed when there were few to no options. I will agree that now Shoji has options and he needs to re-evaluate the position. But again, I'm just incredibly surprised at how much hostility there is towards a player who has tried to go above and beyond. It's Olevao's senior year already. Can we give the "burned her redshirt year" excuse a rest? She started some of that season and has pretty much been a fixture in the starting lineup since then. I don't think anyone comes out of high school and sign up with a top program to specifically redshirt their first season. That's just ridiculous. The fact of the matter is, Olevao is just not the type of player who can can consistently produce when the passing is terrible. But I agree that there is no need for hostility. But frustration? Towards her and Shoji? You're actually "incredibly" surprised? Olevao has never hit .200 in any season. And Shoji keeps starting her. You can't blame fans for being frustrated. I'm not here to rag on Olevao. It's her senior season, and given the three years she's had, I'm not hoping that she has made a tremendous improvement that she'll be an All-American at the end of this season. I understood why she was in the lineup last year. Long wasn't a terminator either, so they had no choice. But this year, with options available, I would expect Shoji to replace Tai if she is struggling. Not wait two matches to realize that she isn't cutting it.
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Post by Seahawks 1972 on Aug 30, 2015 10:10:15 GMT -5
I also read a lot about Olevao in this thread. I agree that she is not consistent, but I am always surprised to see all this hostility and frustration towards her and Shoji. In the ideal, Olevao was never pegged to be a go to player, let alone a starter. She burned her redshirt year in 2012 so Hawaii had an outside hitter available when Croson was suspended from the team. And had Croson not transferred out, the 2013 line up would have likely been Hartong, Croson and Taylor at the pins, with the 2014 line up probably looking like Croson, Taylor and Greeley. Olevao was not a top 100 Senior Ace and I think the only other player to be a starter since the list came out was Hewitt. All other starters, excluding liberos, have been top 100 in their class. Olevao has tried to set up to be the offensive outlet Hawaii needed when there were few to no options. I will agree that now Shoji has options and he needs to re-evaluate the position. But again, I'm just incredibly surprised at how much hostility there is towards a player who has tried to go above and beyond. It's Olevao's senior year already. Can we give the "burned her redshirt year" excuse a rest? She started some of that season and has pretty much been a fixture in the starting lineup since then. I don't think anyone comes out of high school and sign up with a top program to specifically redshirt their first season. That's just ridiculous. The fact of the matter is, Olevao is just not the type of player who can can consistently produce when the passing is terrible. But I agree that there is no need for hostility. But frustration? Towards her and Shoji? You're actually "incredibly" surprised? Olevao has never hit .200 in any season. And Shoji keeps starting her. You can't blame fans for being frustrated. I'm not here to rag on Olevao. It's her senior season, and given the three years she's had, I'm not hoping that she has made a tremendous improvement that she'll be an All-American at the end of this season. I understood why she was in the lineup last year. Long wasn't a terminator either, so they had no choice. But this year, with options available, I would expect Shoji to replace Tai if she is struggling. Not wait two matches to realize that she isn't cutting it. Well Higgins also had 3 years to improve more than what was displayed tonight. As mention in another post how can you have any type of liability at OH1 and starting setter??? On a side "off the topic" note- so nice to see Jade Voster doing well early on during her senior season at Liberty. I miss her humility and joyful presence that she brings to the game. I always love to make the trip to see her play, and her sister as well. Go Flames
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Post by Wolfgang on Aug 30, 2015 10:48:34 GMT -5
Shoji is already thinking of benching Manu-Olevao. He did not hesitate to insert Granato in her place -- and even at pressure moments. So, he's already headed in that direction. Just let it play out. It's going to happen.
Someone said that Annie Mitchem might also start by BW season. You can see this is a possibility also. Shoji is inserting her whenever he can to speed up her learning process. Even with only 6 or so practices, he's putting her in over a solid Maglio. So, he's also headed in that direction. You can just sense that's what Shoji wants. Just give it time.
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Post by 5100 on Aug 30, 2015 11:40:38 GMT -5
I wish there was a way to keep both Maglio and Mitchem in the lineup. When the latter was hyped as a six-rotation versatile player, I entertained thoughts of her being moved to the left (although I have no idea if she has the skill set of a left side hitter) or the right. If she moved to the right, I envisioned Nikki Taylor as the go-to player on the left. But Burns' injury and Shoji seemingly intent on keeping Taylor on the right (perhaps that is where she is most effective) has probably erased any likelihood of Mitchem moving to either pin position. Which would mean two things: 1. She'll either be the No. 3 middle for the majority of the season or 2. She eases her way into the starting lineup and Maglio sits. Which is too bad.
Just like Wolfgang, I am not convinced Koelsch should be the primary setter yet. But I like the way Shoji has been using her. And I love that she has been making the most of the limited time she has on the court.
I liked Greeley, especially in the back row. I hope she gets more involved in the offense.
Kahakai bounced back from a horrific first match. Anderson has been solid. But I'd like to see Guinasso and Ponce as well. I thought Ponce did a good job last year and I like Guinasso's presence on the court. I think she has what Shoji would call "the range that we like in our defensive specialists."
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Post by manoamist on Aug 30, 2015 12:12:14 GMT -5
Summary: The frustration is more with the coaching than Olevao. She's been put in that position. Shoji has options so we'll see. Between the passing/setting/serving errors, sitting the two captains may have given us 15 or more points. Our National team is not allowed to jump serve for good reason. Granato/Mitchem/Huff are waiting. Given also and assuming Kendra could do no worst than what we saw in setting and provided the added blocking needed up front. Lets see if its the same ole line-up tonight. LOL
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Post by Pipe Attack on Aug 30, 2015 12:42:10 GMT -5
I think it's good to differentiate hostility vs. frustration. All of the criticisms (for lack of better terms) happened during the game -- where of course emotions are running high. I think a lot of that came in the 2nd set when Olevao was just not producing anything. I think a lot of people share the sentiment of -- well, if she's not passing (as Taylor had to relieve some passing duties) and she's just making errors when hitting (and we're not even talking one error -- but multiple errors) ... why is she still in the game? And then the errors compound ... and then you see more frustration from the fans. There were times I thought, why is Higgins (even on nice passes) going to Olevao when she is constantly getting blocked (and Magill is right there)? In fact, that was another frustration -- why is Higgins being so dependent on Olevao? So, I guess the frustration stems from the play of those 2 -- but because Olevao is the hitter she gets more flack. Part of the problem also is, all the media that hyped how well she did in Europe. I honestly was expecting a different Olevao (maybe better with shot selection) -- but she's similar to what we saw last year. I don't think anyone necessarily wants Olevao replaced as a starter, but when she's tanking, and since there are supposedly options, it would be nice to see a different look (from a fan's perspective). A lot of it may also be the fans wanting to see what the game of the other players (since it's so early in the season). Although, the other concern is the setting position, I think the best we got is Higgins ... with Koelsch being able to provide some relief (but maybe not ready to set an entire match). But with Higgins setting at times, it makes me feel on the edge of my seat!!! With that said, I'm glad Kahakai turned it around from night 1!!!
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Post by Wolfgang on Aug 30, 2015 14:22:49 GMT -5
I'm making a short wish list of all the coaches I want as Shoji's successor. This short wish list may include coaches who have no interest in Hawaii (and vice versa), but it's my wish list. The list so far:
Chris Lamb, Wichita State Jeff Stork, CSUN Chris Beerman, Pitt
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