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Post by VT Five-0 on Sept 13, 2024 14:01:21 GMT -5
Early success a boost for Wahine volleyball team
By Billy Hull
Today • Last updated 11:55 p.m.
At the midway point of the Hawaii women’s volleyball nonconference schedule, the Rainbow Wahine are building a resume that could pay off in a big way come November.
Hawaii’s 4-1 start has been a roller coaster within every match as the Rainbow Wahine have yet to play a three-set match and have gone to five sets three times.
The fortunate part of that is the seeding criteria used by the committee that selects at-large teams to the NCAA Tournament don’t include sets won and lost within a match.
he primary criteria, according to NCAA.com, is RPI (Ratings Percentage Index), head-to-head competition, results versus common opponents, significant wins and losses and KPI.
Whether Hawaii needs an at-large berth if it can’t win the Big West Conference Tournament, or is looking to improve its seeding as the BWC champion, the schedule put together by the Hawaii coaching staff and Hawaii’s early-season success within it is shaping up to be a big help come tournament time.
“In my mind, it is all about RPI. That’s the name when it comes to us getting into the NCAA Tournament if we don’t win the Big West championship,” associate head coach Kaleo Baxter said after Hawaii’s four-set win over Texas State on Tuesday night.
September can be seen as a little early to be scoreboard watching with so many matches to be played from now until November, but the murmurs inside of SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center watching Hawaii’s first opponent, SMU, have been hard to ignore.
Since losing to Hawaii in five sets, the Mustangs are 5-1. They swept San Diego in their second match of the Hawaiian Airlines Wahine Volleyball Classic and then three days later swept then-No. 2 Nebraska, which Hawaii head coach Robyn Ah Mow said she went home and watched after practice that day.
Prior to UH’s win on Tuesday night, SMU again pulled off another big win, sweeping No. 18 Baylor on the road in Waco, Texas.
Meanwhile, San Diego, which UH defeated opening weekend, beat No. 17 BYU tonight in 5.
All but two of Hawaii’s nine nonconference opponents received multiple votes in the AVCA preseason top 25 rankings, including Texas State, which Hawaii will play again on Saturday to wrap up the Outrigger Invitational, which starts for the Rainbow Wahine tonight against Oregon State.
The Bobcats are spending a full week in Hawaii as part of their season-opening stretch of 13 consecutive matches away from home.
They are the preseason favorite in their conference, as was Pepperdine, which Hawaii split two matches with last week.
The Rainbow Wahine have three matches on the road next week, including a Texas two-step next Friday and Saturday at No. 6 Texas and at Baylor, before starting Big West play.
Take care of business this weekend and the nonconference schedule can play out exactly as the UH coaching staff envisioned, which included scheduling multiple Tuesday matches in lieu of having three teams competing in nonconference tournaments instead of four.
“(Tuesday) was a quick turnaround, but there are numerous teams playing Tuesday night matches that we aren’t used to here at Hawaii, and it also sets us up for next week when we are playing (this) Tuesday at UNLV,” Baxter said. “(It’s) a lot of volleyball, and when these young women are able to get a lot of touches, that’s when we really see their game elevate and grow.”
Texas State (4-3) swept Oregon State (1-5) on Thursday to open the Outrigger Invitational.
The Beavers have two players on their roster from Hawaii. Freshman Emma Lily, who finished second in the Honolulu Star-Advertiser Fab 15 last year, is Oregon State’s starting setter and finished with 19 assists and seven digs against the Bobcats.
Alexis Rodriguez is a 5-foot-11 freshman outside hitter from Mililani who hasn’t played yet this season.
Outrigger Invitational
At SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center
Tonight
>> Hawaii (4-1) vs. Oregon State, 7 p.m.
Saturday
>> Hawaii vs. Texas State, 7 p.m.
>> TV: Spectrum OC16
>> Radio: 1420-AM / 92.7-FM
7 Comments
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Post by abacaxi on Sept 13, 2024 14:14:27 GMT -5
I read that collegiate athletes from outside Hawai’i are charged at the in state tuition rate. Using $12.2k/year for in-state tuition and fees — manoa.hawaii.edu/fas/cost/2023-2024-cost-of-attendance/- $73.2k/year to fund an additional six scholarships. - $732k funding commitment required to fund an additional six scholarships over the ten year life of the House settlement with no annual inflation to tuition. - $839k funding commitment required to fund an additional six scholarships over the ten year life of the House settlement with 3% annual inflation to tuition. If the Women's program will offer 18 scholarships, I imagine that the Men's program will do the same. Using your numbers, the bill for the Men's program would be: $164.7K 1 year $1.65M 10 years $1.89M 10 years with inflation The total cost to fund both programs with inflation over 10 years would be $2.73M. Wonder if the athletic department has those monies. Or can find it. |
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Post by wahinefan on Sept 13, 2024 14:44:19 GMT -5
I keep hearing and reading that Tali Hakas plays a lot like Riley Wagoner. That she seems a lot more comfortable playing the Outside Hitter position, then at Opposite. Since Caylen Alexander does look a lot more comfortable at the Opposite position then Tali Hakas, why not move Caylen Alexander to Opposite.
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Post by noblesol on Sept 13, 2024 15:18:32 GMT -5
It won't change anything if the current House settlement isn't approved. Nothing changes if it is approved, until UH Manoa decides how to proceed under the settlement — what can they get the University and State to commit to funding for the next ten years. It's ok to speculate about what might be, but don't conflate speculation with the reality — nothing new has been approved or funded. Are you under the impression that it won’t be approved? Seems like most programs are in preparation for this to be a done deal and covering their bases so they’re not caught flat footed. I would imagine there have been department meetings discussing preparations for this new era of athletics. If the Hawai'i AD hasn't had department meetings to talk about possible implementation, if the department hasn't drafted a plan and budget and discussed it with the approval chain, I'd be in favor of calling for the public castigation of the AD. I can understand if they haven't shared it, but they'd be wise to at least reveal they've been doing their homework and drafted plans. However, no one should be under the impression that any school or program has an approved, authorized, and already funded plan for additional scholarships that they are already recruiting to. That would be foolishness worthy of reprimand at this point, possibly skirting into compliance issues requiring self-reporting of recruiting violations. The proposed changes to cap roster sizes and increase authorized scholarships are part of the not yet approved settlement. No school is authorized to be recruiting to it until it's approved and incorporated into NCAA regulations. And no non-P4 conference is on record as to how they'll adjust to whatever gets approved. Will non-P4 conferences have different implementation plans for their schools? If they do will there be variation by non-P4 conference and sport? As to when there is a settlement approval, or possibly a trial outcome, it could be measured in mere weeks, or months, or in years. None of the parties to the settlement know, and the journalists reporting on it don't know. How then could any of us know when? Or what will come out of the process of final negotiations or trial? Or what changes and timing of the final result will bring to implementation? In such an environment, it's wise for the fanbase to not conflate rampant speculation with current reality. It's the job of the AD to keep his pencil sharp and draft plans updated with every twist and turn. A wiser focus for the fanbase than assuming Hawai'i will fully implement as if it's a P4 school, is to get the AD to provide some insight into what's going on behind the scenes of the Hawai'i athletic department to prepare for whatever might be coming. Since Hawai'i is not P4, not funded like it, and IAW current settlement language is not required to elect revenue sharing with roster caps and addition of scholarships, just what does implementation look like according to the AD? Nothing I can find has been anything but speculation. |
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Post by VT Karen on Sept 13, 2024 15:18:48 GMT -5
I keep hearing and reading that Tali Hakas plays a lot like Riley Wagoner. That she seems a lot more comfortable playing the Outside Hitter position, then at Opposite. Since Caylen Alexander does look a lot more comfortable at the Opposite position then Tali Hakas, why not move Caylen Alexander to Opposite. I think it's because when moving Caylen, you lose your primary passer and outlet. It could be worth a look but I don't think it's all that smart to move your best outside hitter. |
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Post by WahineFan44 on Sept 13, 2024 15:31:42 GMT -5
I keep hearing and reading that Tali Hakas plays a lot like Riley Wagoner. That she seems a lot more comfortable playing the Outside Hitter position, then at Opposite. Since Caylen Alexander does look a lot more comfortable at the Opposite position then Tali Hakas, why not move Caylen Alexander to Opposite. gross youre back. But ill answer We need alexander to be available at all times, and kate is much more comfortable setting the left than she is on the right. Caylen is more of a right than tali for sure, but caylen being on the left is WAY more beneficial to us |
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Post by wahinefan on Sept 13, 2024 15:52:24 GMT -5
I keep hearing and reading that Tali Hakas plays a lot like Riley Wagoner. That she seems a lot more comfortable playing the Outside Hitter position, then at Opposite. Since Caylen Alexander does look a lot more comfortable at the Opposite position then Tali Hakas, why not move Caylen Alexander to Opposite. I think it's because when moving Caylen, you lose your primary passer and outlet. It could be worth a look but I don't think it's all that smart to move your best outside hitter. The primary passer would then be Tali Hakas, who according to a lot of people here, is a much better receiver and passer then Caylen Alexander. Also, Caylen Alexander can still be the Outlet Hitter, at Opposite, just like Nikki Taylor was, playing Opposite. Who is to say that, Tali Hakas, will not be a better Outside Hitter, then Riley Wagoner was, since the Outside Hitter position is Tali Hakas's natural position. |
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Post by wahinefan on Sept 13, 2024 15:56:45 GMT -5
I keep hearing and reading that Tali Hakas plays a lot like Riley Wagoner. That she seems a lot more comfortable playing the Outside Hitter position, then at Opposite. Since Caylen Alexander does look a lot more comfortable at the Opposite position then Tali Hakas, why not move Caylen Alexander to Opposite. gross youre back. But ill answer We need alexander to be available at all times, and kate is much more comfortable setting the left than she is on the right. Caylen is more of a right than tali for sure, but caylen being on the left is WAY more beneficial to us What you say about Kate Lang could be right, but we do not know for sure. If Kate Lang is able to set the Opposite position like she does the Outside Hitter position, then it would be smarter to move Caylen Alexander to Opposite, and let Tali Hakas play her natural position of Outside Hitter, where she feels a lot more comfortable doing. It could be a win-win situation for the Wahine Team. |
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Post by HawaiiVB on Sept 13, 2024 16:07:37 GMT -5
I keep hearing and reading that Tali Hakas plays a lot like Riley Wagoner. That she seems a lot more comfortable playing the Outside Hitter position, then at Opposite. Since Caylen Alexander does look a lot more comfortable at the Opposite position then Tali Hakas, why not move Caylen Alexander to Opposite. I think it's because when moving Caylen, you lose your primary passer and outlet. It could be worth a look but I don't think it's all that smart to move your best outside hitter. Correct. Dave did shift the Opp with Nikki Taylor into a 6-rotation offensive weapon. He had Tai take the passes and get the junk ball sets. When Kalei Greeley played the OH 2 position, she was the primary passer hitter, this was before she got injured. So he had Kalei and Tai passing/hitting on the left, and Nikki passing and hitting in 6 rotations, mostly the D sets and RS. Nikki was also a blocking OPP because she was 6' 4". Cayleen could play OPP but she would be blocking more, and if Coach Rob wanted to use the 2-setter sub, then Cayleen would come out in the back row and they would lose her BIC/PIPE attack. In theory, Mane is in there to block and be the 3rd option. Sometimes, you have to set your offense to what you have versus what would be ideal. |
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Post by medusa on Sept 13, 2024 16:09:51 GMT -5
Watching vids of Caylen last year when she was playing opp, She looks more comfortable on OH than she does opp.
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Post by goblin on Sept 13, 2024 16:18:14 GMT -5
Caylen is so productive on the left side and basically does everything. The one area of improvement I would wish for is to keep more of her serves on the court. Maybe backing up might
help but she takes so many steps and does a skip thing before launching serves. Maybe she should start her serving run from the tunnel Lol.
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Post by ManapuaSurprise on Sept 13, 2024 16:29:01 GMT -5
I keep hearing and reading that Tali Hakas plays a lot like Riley Wagoner. That she seems a lot more comfortable playing the Outside Hitter position, then at Opposite. Since Caylen Alexander does look a lot more comfortable at the Opposite position then Tali Hakas, why not move Caylen Alexander to Opposite. gross youre back. But ill answer We need alexander to be available at all times, and kate is much more comfortable setting the left than she is on the right. Caylen is more of a right than tali for sure, but caylen being on the left is WAY more beneficial to us did it comment again on how Leyva will beat out Ikenaga for libero? |
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Post by Barefoot In Kailua on Sept 13, 2024 16:30:17 GMT -5
I keep hearing and reading that Tali Hakas plays a lot like Riley Wagoner. That she seems a lot more comfortable playing the Outside Hitter position, then at Opposite. Since Caylen Alexander does look a lot more comfortable at the Opposite position then Tali Hakas, why not move Caylen Alexander to Opposite. Welcome back. Please refrain from consistently deriding the Wahine program. |
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Post by rainbowcard on Sept 13, 2024 16:45:24 GMT -5
gross youre back. But ill answer We need alexander to be available at all times, and kate is much more comfortable setting the left than she is on the right. Caylen is more of a right than tali for sure, but caylen being on the left is WAY more beneficial to us did it comment again on how Leyva will beat out Ikenaga for libero? To be fair, Leyva's first two matches she was 2 digs shy of Ikenaga's numbers and on the court less than her, the Pepperdine matches for Ikenaga (20+ digs) could be an anomaly but I do think Ikenaga is playing well thus far, but Leyva could start at libero for a lot of D1 schools, and should be our libero next season. |
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Post by wahinefan on Sept 13, 2024 16:52:13 GMT -5
I keep hearing and reading that Tali Hakas plays a lot like Riley Wagoner. That she seems a lot more comfortable playing the Outside Hitter position, then at Opposite. Since Caylen Alexander does look a lot more comfortable at the Opposite position then Tali Hakas, why not move Caylen Alexander to Opposite. Welcome back. Please refrain from consistently deriding the Wahine program. Thank you. Where in that statement was I deriding the Wahine program. I am just trying to come up with ways to make this Wahine Team better. We all can see that Tali Hakas is ineffective as an Opposite, but she is effective, at her natural position, as an Outside Hitter. Tali Hakas is also an effective back row player, so why not put her in Riley Wagoner's old position. Caylen Alexander can get kills at Opposite. She seems a lot more comfortable playing that position then Tali Hakas, or even Stella Adeyemi. What you would is a balanced attack, not one that is predominantly Outside, and sometimes Middles, depending on the pass. I can see Tali Hakas upping her Offensive numbers if she is allowed to play her natural position, Riley Wagoner's old spot. I also do not believe, moving Caylen Alexander will hurt her Offensive numbers much, if she is used like Dave Shoji used Nikki Taylor. Caylen can still be the go to player even at Opposite, like Nikki Taylor was. |
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