Post by Noname on Mar 5, 2004 17:04:29 GMT -5
By Stephen Tsai
Advertiser Staff Writer
Face it: When the University of Hawai'i men's volleyball team is out of sight, it can drive fans out of their minds.
When the Warriors are on the road — as they are with today's road match against Cal State Northridge — the only available play-by-play is through KKEA's broadcasts or audio streamlining on the Internet. UH's regular-season road matches are not televised.
Tatum Ino, a pharmacy technician at the Hawai'i Kai branch of Longs Drug Stores, relies on updates from customers. At home, she follows road matches on the Internet.
"I'm a big fan," said Ino, a season-ticket holder who can be seen in the background during television interviews between Games 2 and 3 at the Stan Sheriff Center.
Doug Lee, a maintenance mechanic for the state Department of Transportation, has followed UH sports for more than two decades. For a home football game, he will park his car near Aloha Stadium on Friday night, then catch a ride in another car to his home in Kane'ohe. The day of the game, Lee and his son Kala'i will be dropped off at the stadium.
He uses as much energy to follow volleyball road matches.
"Sometimes I can't get the (radio) reception at home," he said. "Maybe it's the area we live in. Sometimes I go in the car and drive around and see if I can catch it. I remember last year when they were in the playoffs, I had to drive around Kane'ohe to listen to the match."
First Hawaiian Bank recovery specialists Michelle Mendonsa and Jennifer Knutson also scramble to listen to the broadcasts. The sound has been disabled on their office computers.
On slow days, "everyone has their radio on," Knutson said. "It's like surround sound."
Other times, "even our supervisor and boss will go" to a downstairs room to get a broadcast update, Knutson added. "They'll come back and tell us the score. We'll take turns."
Mendonsa said she always scans the Warriors' upcoming schedule. When the Warriors are on the road, she finishes her work early, then hurries to her Hawai'i Kai home to listen to the broadcast.
"In our office, we have the football fans, we have the basketball fans, we have the volleyball fans," Mendonsa said. "We all help each other. When the (UH) football team played on Friday (in 2001), all of the guys would leave early," she recalled.
Dori Robbs and her daughter have an added reason to listen to volleyball broadcasts. Dori's husband, Scott, is the Warriors' play-by-play announcer.
"It's not just because of him," she said. "We really like volleyball. But it's a good way to hear how he's doing."
Scott and Dori have found a way to communicate during matches. Scott's pet line for a UH kill — "He crushed the coconut!" — actually is a valentine for Dori.
"I wanted to figure out a way to show I was thinking about her during the match," Scott recalled.
When she was younger, Dori received the nickname "Coconut Girl" from her older brother.
"I wanted to find a way to incorporate 'coconut' into (the broadcast)," Scott said. "It turned into my signature (phrase)."
Dori said: "It's basically his way to say 'hello' to us."
Advertiser Staff Writer
Face it: When the University of Hawai'i men's volleyball team is out of sight, it can drive fans out of their minds.
When the Warriors are on the road — as they are with today's road match against Cal State Northridge — the only available play-by-play is through KKEA's broadcasts or audio streamlining on the Internet. UH's regular-season road matches are not televised.
Tatum Ino, a pharmacy technician at the Hawai'i Kai branch of Longs Drug Stores, relies on updates from customers. At home, she follows road matches on the Internet.
"I'm a big fan," said Ino, a season-ticket holder who can be seen in the background during television interviews between Games 2 and 3 at the Stan Sheriff Center.
Doug Lee, a maintenance mechanic for the state Department of Transportation, has followed UH sports for more than two decades. For a home football game, he will park his car near Aloha Stadium on Friday night, then catch a ride in another car to his home in Kane'ohe. The day of the game, Lee and his son Kala'i will be dropped off at the stadium.
He uses as much energy to follow volleyball road matches.
"Sometimes I can't get the (radio) reception at home," he said. "Maybe it's the area we live in. Sometimes I go in the car and drive around and see if I can catch it. I remember last year when they were in the playoffs, I had to drive around Kane'ohe to listen to the match."
First Hawaiian Bank recovery specialists Michelle Mendonsa and Jennifer Knutson also scramble to listen to the broadcasts. The sound has been disabled on their office computers.
On slow days, "everyone has their radio on," Knutson said. "It's like surround sound."
Other times, "even our supervisor and boss will go" to a downstairs room to get a broadcast update, Knutson added. "They'll come back and tell us the score. We'll take turns."
Mendonsa said she always scans the Warriors' upcoming schedule. When the Warriors are on the road, she finishes her work early, then hurries to her Hawai'i Kai home to listen to the broadcast.
"In our office, we have the football fans, we have the basketball fans, we have the volleyball fans," Mendonsa said. "We all help each other. When the (UH) football team played on Friday (in 2001), all of the guys would leave early," she recalled.
Dori Robbs and her daughter have an added reason to listen to volleyball broadcasts. Dori's husband, Scott, is the Warriors' play-by-play announcer.
"It's not just because of him," she said. "We really like volleyball. But it's a good way to hear how he's doing."
Scott and Dori have found a way to communicate during matches. Scott's pet line for a UH kill — "He crushed the coconut!" — actually is a valentine for Dori.
"I wanted to figure out a way to show I was thinking about her during the match," Scott recalled.
When she was younger, Dori received the nickname "Coconut Girl" from her older brother.
"I wanted to find a way to incorporate 'coconut' into (the broadcast)," Scott said. "It turned into my signature (phrase)."
Dori said: "It's basically his way to say 'hello' to us."
