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Post by StuffU on Sept 19, 2012 20:03:55 GMT -5
Is it just me or does Shoji seem more critical of this team than in past years? So far he has mentioned this team being weak in passing as well as saying Hawaii is usually a bad road team. That's not to say it is't true, but I've always thought he was a pretty optimistic guy. I guess it could just be more aggressive journalism, but I did find it strange as we have yet to see this team travel and I didn't think the passing has been all that bad (certainly not as bad as last year). I read the article as "ALL Hawaii teams", as in all University of Hawaii sports teams are historically bad road teams ... not specifically volleyball. After the team appeared to be overconfident after the Stanford win and the resulting loss to Cal, he may be giving them food for thought to keep the focused for the first Big West road trip. It's not the WAC and his returning players need to be in a different mindset than the normal WAC road trip. Just my thought...
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Post by wang pu on Sept 20, 2012 3:15:47 GMT -5
Is it just me or does Shoji seem more critical of this team than in past years? So far he has mentioned this team being weak in passing as well as saying Hawaii is usually a bad road team. That's not to say it is't true, but I've always thought he was a pretty optimistic guy. I guess it could just be more aggressive journalism, but I did find it strange as we have yet to see this team travel and I didn't think the passing has been all that bad (certainly not as bad as last year). Shoji never really sugarcoated things.
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Post by Cubicle No More ... on Sept 20, 2012 11:49:43 GMT -5
Wahine survive -- barely Hawaii fends off two match points, topping Cal State Northridge in a five-set nail-biterBy Joseph D'Hippolito / Special to the Star-Advertiser POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Sep 20, 2012 LAST UPDATED: 02:25 a.m. HST, Sep 20, 2012 DARRELL MIHO / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISER Hawaii’s Jade Vorster and Kaela Goodman blocked Cal State Northridge’s Mahina Haina, an ‘Iolani graduate.NORTHRIDGE, Calif. » Hawaii began its first Big West Conference women's volleyball season in 17 years by rallying from match point twice in the fifth set to win. The seventh-ranked Rainbow Wahine escaped Cal State Northridge with a 22-25, 25-16, 17-25, 25-17, 19-17 victory Wednesday night in their first road match this year. Jane Croson pounded a match-high 18 kills for Hawaii (8-2) and added 11 digs. Emily Hartong finished with 16 kills and nine digs. Ali Longo contributed 12 digs and five service aces and Mita Uiato passed for 45 assists. Blocking proved critical. The Wahine executed 17 team blocks compared to 12 for the Matadors (9-4), who lead the Big West in blocking and had four blockers among the top 10 in that category. Jade Vorster made eight block assists, Kalei Adolpho added seven block assists and Hartong participated in five block assists and added a solo block. Nevertheless, UH coach Dave Shoji believes his team must display more composure. "We need to play a little steadier than that," Shoji said. "We're disappointed that we didn't play at a higher level, especially in Games 1 and 3." In those first and third sets, the Rainbow Wahine hit just .114 and .000. Northridge, meanwhile, compiled attack percentages of .235 and .231, during those sets. But in the second and fourth sets, Hawaii's attack succeeded at rates of .367 and .233, respectively, while holding Northridge to hitting percentages of .088 and .000. UH took a 3-0 lead in the fifth set, but the score would be tied seven times. At 12-12, the Matadors' Cieana Stinson punched a kill off a UH block. Then the Wahine committed a violation that gave the hosts a 14-12 advantage. Shoji called time out. "We knew we had to win two points in a row," he said. "We had to go back and serve tough and try to force them into a bad pass. Then, if we got a transition ball, I wanted our hitters just to swing hard and high. We were pretty tentative up until that point." UH scored three successive points to move ahead, 15-14. After Stinson's spike went long to make it 14-13, Vorster pounced on a free ball for a kill to tie it and Hartong followed with a cross-court kill from the right antenna. But with a chance to secure the match, Hartong launched a spike long and wide, making it 15-15. Croson's kill put UH ahead 16-15 but her long serve made the score 16-all. Again, Hartong's kill from the right gave the Wahine a one-point lead, but Britney Graff responded with a spike from the left side to tie the score at 17. Ashley Kastl pounded a kill to give Hawaii an 18-17 lead. Then the visitors won the match when Sydney Gedryn's attempted tip fell wide. ‘Iolani graduate Mahina Haina had 10 kills and three digs for Northridge. Casey Hinger led the Matadors with 14 kills, Cindy Ortiz made 27 digs and Gedryn compiled 40 assists, 11 digs, four block assists, and a solo block.
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Post by Cubicle No More ... on Sept 20, 2012 11:55:47 GMT -5
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Post by c4ndlelight on Sept 20, 2012 12:01:38 GMT -5
I"m beginning to sense another post-season journey to Troy for the Wahine.
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Post by Wolfgang on Sept 20, 2012 12:09:51 GMT -5
I'm surprised the phrase "missed opportunity" wasn't uttered by the Matador coach. It should be a required post-match quote of all losing coaches. I mean, it's not even a tongue-twister.
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Post by Cubicle No More ... on Sept 22, 2012 13:31:35 GMT -5
Wahine dominateBy Joseph D'Hippolito Special to the Star-AdvertiserPOSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Sep 22, 2012 LAST UPDATED: 01:42 a.m. HST, Sep 22, 2012 DARRELL MIHO / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISER Kaela Goodman jumps to hit the ball against a UC Riverside defender.RIVERSIDE, Calif. » In less than 48 hours, Hawaii turned anxiety into dominance during its second Big West Conference women's volleyball match Friday night. The Rainbow Wahine, ranked seventh nationally, dispatched host UC Riverside 25-17, 25-16, 25-19 for their fourth victory in five matches. UH will conclude its first road trip today against Cal State Fullerton. The match starts at 4 p.m. Hawaii time. The triumph came two nights after Hawaii (9-2, 2-0) had to win the final two sets — and survive match point twice in the fifth set — to defeat Cal State Northridge. "At Northridge, we had kind of a rough time in those five sets," said Emily Hartong, who played a pivotal role in Friday night's first set against Riverside (4-9, 0-1). "But we felt better today and I think we'll just keep improving." For UH coach Dave Shoji, feeling better means adjusting to the three-hour time difference from Hawaii to California. "We needed that first game," Shoji said about the match at Northridge. "We were ready to play tonight and we played much better." But the Rainbow Wahine had to rally to win the first set after squandering an early lead. UH held a 5-0 advantage, but the Highlanders moved ahead 8-7. Hawaii regained a 14-10 lead that Riverside narrowed to 16-15. Then Hartong took control. The junior pounded three kills, assisted on one block and served an ace to lead a 10-1 surge. Ashley Kastl added three kills during that run. "I think our middles were established a little more, so it opened up some seams with hitting," Hartong said. "That opened up a lot of the hitters." Jane Croson seized her opportunity to dominate in the second set. With UH holding a 14-9 lead, Croson slammed three kills during a 4-0 spurt that extended the Wahine's advantage to 18-9. The sophomore scored six of Hawaii's final 11 points on kills. UH saved its most impressive spree for the third set. Down 10-6, the Wahine used a 13-0 blitz to build a 19-10 advantage. Hartong amassed four kills and a block assist, but libero Ali Longo made perhaps the biggest contribution. Longo used her hard, floating serve to score those 13 points, which included one ace. "It's very aggressive," Shoji said of that serve. "The ball is close to the net when it goes over. It's hard to track and she can pinpoint it to the weakest passer on the other side." Hartong viewed Longo's serving as decisive. "That was very, very crucial for us," Hartong said. "It frees us up a little bit. We really needed that." Hartong finished with 11 kills, 10 digs and four block assists. Croson punched a team-high 13 kills and added eight digs, and Kastl had 10 kills and four block assists. Defensively, Hawaii held the Highlanders to an attack percentage of .115. Riverside's Amanda Vialpando had 11 kills and Megan Patterson dug 13 balls. 3 HAWAII 0 UC RIVERSIDEKEY: Emily Hartong led a 10-1 surge in the first set NEXT: At Cal State Fullerton, 4 p.m. today DARRELL MIHO / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISERHawaii’s Mita Uiato set up teammate Jade Vorster during Friday’s match against UC Riverside. Uiato finished with 26 assists in the three-set victory.DARRELL MIHO / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISERStephanie Hagins hits past a UC Riverside defender.DARRELL MIHO / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISERJane Croson hits the ball against UC Riverside defender.DARRELL MIHO / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISERHawaii’s Emily Hartong sent a kill between UC Riverside’s Ashley Cox and Megan Reza.DARRELL MIHO / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISER Emily Hartong hits the ball past two UC Riverside defenders attempting to block.
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Post by Cubicle No More ... on Sept 23, 2012 16:34:07 GMT -5
Wahine hang on in 5 setsCal State Fullerton rallies from a 2-0 deficit before Hawaii holds on to winBy Joseph D'Hippolito / Special to the Star-Advertiser POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Sep 23, 2012 Darrell Miho / Special to the Star-Advertiser Hawaii's Ashley Kastl hit against Cal State Fullerton's Julie Consani during Saturday's match.FULLERTON, Calif. » After overwhelming its opponent in the first two sets Saturday night, Hawaii had to scramble to end its longest road trip of the season undefeated. The Rainbow Wahine had to repel Cal State Fullerton's late surge to earn a 25-12, 25-15, 26-28, 25-27, 15-12 victory and remain unbeaten in Big West Conference play. Seventh-ranked Hawaii (10-2, 3-0) won its third consecutive match and fifth in the past six while handing the Titans (6-9, 0-2) their fifth straight loss. The Wahine retained their perfect all-time record against Fullerton. UH has not lost to the Titans in 28 matches. Emily Hartong amassed 21 kills and added four block assists. Jane Croson had 16 kills, 16 digs and two service aces, with five kills and three digs coming in the fifth set. Mita Uiato finished with 41 assists, 14 digs and six block assists, while Ali Longo had a match-high 22 digs. In compiling three road wins, UH made a discovery. "We understand that in the Big West, you've got to play hard every night," coach Dave Shoji said. "To go five games twice already in the conference is a big wakeup for us." In Wednesday night's five-set victory over Cal State Northridge, the Wahine had to win the final two sets and rally from match point twice in the fifth set. But Saturday night, a sweep appeared imminent. UH held Fullerton to an attacking percentage of minus-.014 after two sets. Meanwhile, the Wahine were hitting .292, and Hartong had yet to make an attacking error. Fullerton held only one lead in the first two sets. The Titans' Bre Moreland served an ace to begin the match. Yet the Wahine's dominance would sabotage them. "I think we let down a little bit and just got a little too comfortable," Longo said. "Every time you're up 2-0, you have to push hard for the third (victory). The other team is trying to fight for it, too. "If we would've come out and just pushed right from the get go, I think (our effort) would have been a little stronger." Shoji blamed himself. "I changed the lineup," he said. "I felt like we were in control, and I wanted to see everybody play. We completely lost our momentum. "It was a bad decision by me to sub. We probably should have started our starting lineup in Game 3 and seen how that went, then maybe get the kids in." Fullerton responded by changing liberos, improving its defense and thwarting the Wahine's attack. The Titans out-blocked UH in the third set 7-1, and held Hawaii's hitters to .186 in the third set and .043 in the fourth. Offensively, Titans setter Kaylynne Taeatafa — whose mother played at UH for Shoji — passed for 22 assists in the third and fourth sets. "She did a nice job keeping us off balance," Shoji said. As a result, the Titans began controlling the net. "They ran their middles a lot better," Longo said. "They beat us in areas we weren't expecting them to attack us in." But with the score tied 2-2 in the final set, UH used a 7-1 blitz to move ahead 9-3. Ashley Kastl led the rally with three kills and Croson added two. Fullerton narrowed the deficit to 13-11, then a pivotal point went Hawaii's way. Croson's long spike out of bounds drew the Titans within 13-12. But Fullerton's Kayla Neto committed a violation before Croson hit, so UH received a point that extended the lead to 14-11. The Titans closed within 14-12 when Croson served into the net. But Hartong's kill from the right ensured victory. Neto and Moreland each had 14 kills and 13 digs. Taeatafa finished with 31 assists and Leah Best had three solo blocks and four block assists. 3 HAWAII 2 FULLERTON KEY: The Titans rallied from a 2-0 deficit to force a fifth set, but UH held on to win, with Emily Hartong’s kill ending the fifth set at 15-12
NEXT: UH vs. Toyota Auto Body (exhibition), 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Stan Sheriff Center
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Post by Cubicle No More ... on Sept 25, 2012 13:18:42 GMT -5
Danielson returns with pro team
By Ann Miller, The Star-Advertiser
POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Sep 25, 2012
Kanani Danielson's past and future collide tonight when Hawaii plays an exhibition volleyball match against Japanese pro team Toyota Auto Body.
Danielson graduated from UH in May after an All-American career. Monday was her first practice with Toyota, the team she will play for when her pro career begins next month.
The exhibition starts at 7 p.m. at Stan Sheriff Center. All tickets are general admission and priced at $10 (adults), $8 (seniors) and $5 (students). UH-Manoa students are free with valid ID.
Toyota Auto Body plays in V. Premier League, Japan's top level for men and women. The Queensies are based in Kariya city, Aichi Prefecture.
"It's a professional team, so they are older, more experienced players," UH coach Dave Shoji said. "They are not under-sized, like the Japanese college teams. They have got size. I'm not sure what to expect, but I expect them to be very, very good. It will be a good experience playing against a different style, a higher level."
Hawaii (10-2) learned a little about itself and a lot about its new conference on its first Big West trip. National coaches found the Wahine's unbeaten week unimpressive and dropped them a spot — to eighth — in this week's AVCA Coaches Top 25.
Shoji was not impressed either. The Wahine fought off two match points in the fifth set Wednesday against Cal State Northridge, in their first Big West match in 17 years. After sweeping Cal State Riverside on Friday, they went five again with Cal State Fullerton on Saturday.
"That is more times than we need to go five," Shoji said, before acknowledging Big West matches will be more entertaining to watch than the Western Athletic Conference has been the past 16 years.
"I think everybody will be entertained except the coaching staff," Shoji said. "This league is much more competitive. There's more balance and more depth."
The new opposition probed the Wahine weak points last week, exploiting their inexperienced middles and erratic passing. Hitters Emily Hartong — the Big West kill leader — and Jane Croson took 56 percent of the Hawaii swings and buried 56 percent of the kills.
That lack of balance has Shoji still looking at Hartong and junior transfer Ashley Kastl on the left and right. Last week's erratic experience left him no closer to a decision.
"We will just continue to evaluate that situation," Shoji said. "Hartong (on the right) gives us a chance to be more balanced, but we need to get her the ball and sometimes that's not possible on the right, so that's what we've got to wrestle with."
Something has got to give this week. After tonight's exhibition, Hawaii hosts two other unbeaten conference teams at Stan Sheriff Center. UC Irvine (7-8, 2-0) is here Thursday and Long Beach State (7-6, 2-0) on Saturday.
The 49ers bring in Big West Player of the Week Alma Serna, a 6-foot-3 middle who hit .511 and averaged 3.86 kills against Cal Poly and UC Santa Barbara. The Anteaters roofed their way to their first 2-0 start since 2008 by out-blocking UCSB and Cal Poly 35-9.
Before heading over the ocean, the Beach plays Northridge, which won a five-setter over Riverside on Saturday to move to 2-1.
The glut of close matches follows a national pattern. This week's Top 25 has Penn State moving from fourth to first and unbeaten Oregon bolting from eighth to second after sweeping then-No. 2 USC. The Trojans, who beat then-No. 1 UCLA two nights earlier, are third, followed by the Bruins, Washington, Nebraska and Stanford.
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Post by madonna on Sept 25, 2012 21:41:07 GMT -5
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Post by Barefoot In Kailua on Sept 26, 2012 12:54:58 GMT -5
Wahine hold their own with Japanese pro team
By Ann MillerBruce Asato / basato@staradvertiser.com Hawaii's Ginger Long hit one off the block of Toyota Auto Body's Tomomi Eto and Natsumi Fujita in the third set Hawaii lived through an out-of-ordinary midseason experience Tuesday in a volleyball exhibition against Japanese pro team Toyota Auto Body. Of all the odd sights in the Queensies' 22-25, 25-22, 25-22, 25-22 win, the oddest was seeing former Rainbow Wahine All-American Kanani Danielson parked on the Toyota bench. A year after lifting the Wahine into the NCAA regionals — and the final four two years before that — and four months after graduating, Danielson is about to embark on the next phase of her life. She signed with Toyota in June and heads to Japan on Saturday. The exhibition came about, in part, because her 26 new teammates and coaches wanted to "pick her up." The team also has known UH coach Dave Shoji for more than a decade and had been looking for an "excuse" to come, coach Masayuki Izumikawa said. He said his team pursued Danielson because of her versatility. After Tuesday, she looks like a great fit on the left. Her first practice — and face time — with her new team was Monday. "They basically welcomed me with open arms," said Danielson, who signed with the Japanese elite league because it offered a better contract and more comfortable "culture" than other foreign options. A Stan Sheriff Center crowd of 1,078 did not see her play. The Queensies' system is so sophisticated and Danielson so far behind that she stood with the reserves all night, slapping hands with her new teammates and taking steps toward learning what she hopes will become "fluent Japanese" by the time she comes back home. The pro season begins in November. "I'm happy starting here because they work very, very hard and at the same time they're jolly, they're chill," Danielson said. "They smile all the time." They also tip and dig like crazy, which was basically the difference in a surprisingly tight match. "After watching them (Toyota) practice I thought we might not be in this match," Shoji said. "But our kids had good attitudes and played hard. It was a bounce-back after the road trip for us." The Queensies couldn't touch Emily Hartong in the opening set. The Big West kill leader went 7-for-11 without an error, playing on the right but also burying balls from the back and left. Her teammates made those points stand up with a defense that combined for 14 digs and six stuffs — three by Jane Croson, who shut down Toyota's right side. She finished with 11 kills and 43 error-free serve receptions. "Jane had a good night," Shoji said. "She's so important to our whole game. It's really based on her and Hartong." The Queensies hit just .103 in Set 1. That ballooned to .350 and up in the final three as UH managed just three more blocks. "When they're in system it's hard to block them," Shoji said. "First game we served really hard, tough, and they had to set high so we blocked well. After that they kind of got into their rhythm and it was hard to stop their offense." Toyota stayed with its starters in Set 2, while Hawaii made major changes. Shoji brought Kaela Goodman and Ashley Kastl, who had a team-high 13 kills, into the front row for setters Mita Uiato and Monica Stauber. Stephanie Hagins replaced Kalei Adolpho in the middle and got that position's first kill. The changes had an impact. Hartong, on the left this time and supposedly easier to find, only got two kills. The UH block, even with the small setters out of the front row, managed just one stuff. Toyota led nearly the entire set, then came out with its starters again in the third. Hartong took a rest and iced her ankle — standing up — while Kristiana Tuaniga moved into the middle for Jade Vorster. By the end of the set nearly every Wahine had played, as Shoji substituted liberally. In the fourth both benches cleared. Through all the odd rotations in the third, Hawaii trailed, but never by much. It was ahead 21-19 in the fourth before Toyota passed by on the last lap. Shoji hopes that's a good sign for the rest of the week. UC Irvine (7-8) and Long Beach State (7-6) come in for Big West matches Thursday and Saturday. Both are 2-0. The Wahine (10-2) are 3-0 — barely — after a conference-opening road trip last week in California. *
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Post by c4ndlelight on Sept 26, 2012 13:01:44 GMT -5
^^ It's not Queensies, It's Queenseis. Seis as in "6" in Spanish for the 6 players on the floor. Nonsensical code-switching, but hey, it's Japan
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Post by Barefoot In Kailua on Sept 26, 2012 13:10:23 GMT -5
^^ It's not Queensies, It's Queenseis. Seis as in "6" in Spanish for the 6 players on the floor. Nonsensical code-switching, but hey, it's Japan Haha, yes. I believe Cindy Luis had to be corrected too.
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Post by Psychopotamus on Sept 26, 2012 15:41:49 GMT -5
Out of curiosity did Shoji give up on converting Adolpho to a RS? Last season I thought that may have been in Hawaii's best interest, and this year I think it still might not be a bad idea. It would allow him to keep Hartong on the left and put up a big RS block. Was her offense that lacking?
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Post by kaBOOOOM on Sept 27, 2012 15:23:45 GMT -5
Out of curiosity did Shoji give up on converting Adolpho to a RS? Last season I thought that may have been in Hawaii's best interest, and this year I think it still might not be a bad idea. It would allow him to keep Hartong on the left and put up a big RS block. Was her offense that lacking? I don't think her offense is lacking. She is really good on the slide and hits with a lot of velocity. Maybe he just wants to keep her at MB because we need to have a good middle attack. Mita needs to work on her middles more. Early in the season, the first wk, they were doing good. I believe Vorster was hitting over .500 and Adolpho well over .300. She has then gone away from them and looks to be struggling with them. I sure do hope that they get the middles involved. We need them because we can't always go left to a weary Croson/Hartong.
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