Notebook
Wednesday, September 9, 1998
By the time yesterday's practice was over, a half-dozen University of Hawaii players were in the Cooke Field stands in various stages of disrepair. Practice hard
on ’Bows’ healthRunning back Avion Weaver, who suffered a sprained neck, was the most seriously injured. He was forced to go to the hospital for X-rays, but the Rainbows training staff said they were negative. He should be available for next week's game at Utah.
Hawaii also had two tight ends go down with knee injuries. Jimmy McClain, who said he heard something pop in the Arizona game, felt something pop during yesterday's hard-hitting workout. Chris Pinkney also went down with a slight knee sprain. Both also should be back in the lineup next week.
Linebacker Rinda Brooks and freshman wide receiver Ray Harrington suffered mild concussions. They are listed as day-to-day, as is defensive lineman Miles Garner. He went down with a sprained ankle, but said he would be fine in a few days.
"We came out and hit hard, which is the only way we're going to get better," UH head coach Fred vonAppen said. "Being hurt is part of life in football. If those guys can't get better in time, then we'll play with the ones on the field.
"We're not tough enough mentally in a number of areas. We've also got a lot of inexperienced players that if we don't put them out there in a game-like situation, they're not going to know how to respond on Saturday."
Several other players are sidelined, too. Defensive backs Celnell Bobbitt (stress fracture), Donnell Williams (hip pointer) and Damien Arafiles (sprained ankle) haven't practiced this week. The only one expected back for Utah is Williams.
"We came out of that game in pretty good shape," vonAppen said. "You're always going to be a little sore. But we can't worry about the ones we don't have. We have to play with the healthy ones and wait for the others to return."
GETTING THEIR KICKS: It might be a friendly rivalry at this point, but vonAppen took a long look at both Chad Shrout and Eric Hannum at the end of yesterday's practice.
Shrout probably has more range than Hannum on field goals, but his accuracy is lacking. He hooked several to the left from different points of the field. Hannum came up short on one, but made several others as players yelled and screamed from the sidelines to simulate game conditions.
"We're taking a look at every position this week, not just the kicking game," vonAppen said. "You might have noticed, we didn't do that well in our place-kicking against Arizona. So we want to put these guys together and see what happens."
Shrout said his leg felt a little weary after the extensive practice. The junior had 12 punts in the Arizona game. He averaged 36.2 yards a punt, nearly 10 yards less than last year.
"It's no big deal, I just shanked a couple," Shrout said of his performance against Arizona. "I'll be fine next week. I'm looking forward to kicking at Utah because of the altitude."
Hannum said he welcomed the competition from Shrout.
"It's only going to make me better," Hannum said. "I was disappointed with my performance in the Arizona game."
Paul Arnett
She likes Hawaii. She likes Hawaii Pacific. She likes her coach. Former JUCO volleyball
standout gives HPU
high hopesThere isn't much Hai Yan Wang doesn't like. Except volleyball. She loves that.
And the game has loved her back.
In her two years at the College of Southern Idaho, she helped the Golden Eagles to consecutive national championships and a 121-1 two-year record. She was the national junior college player of the year last season, putting up numbers many players don't reach after four years: 627 kills, 118 service aces, 370 digs and 173 total blocks.
The most amazing thing? She was the setter for Southern Idaho.
She's playing middle blocker for Hawaii Pacific this season, the school's first in NCAA Division II. The 6-foot-2 Wang, from Beijing, China, could return the Sea Warriors to national prominence for the first time since they won the NAIA championship in 1990.
"I'm extremely happy that she decided to come here and play for us," said HPU coach Tita Ahuna, whose team is 5-0 after winning the Hawaiian Style Classic in Hilo last weekend. "She had her choice of schools. She could have gone anywhere she wanted to go.
"How did we get her? I was at the right place at the right time and met the right people. Hai Yan is a fantastic setter, but the team needs her in the middle. And she's a team player."
A dominating one at that. She had 22 kills, 14 digs and three blocks in Saturday's title match against UC Riverside en route to tournament MVP.
"We have a good team and good players," Wang, 27, said. "I like to set, but I am happy to do what my coach wants."
"Hai Yan is a very smart player, definitely player-of-the-year material," said Ahuna, in her third season as coach at HPU. "She's an asset to the team as a person and a player with her maturity. I don't have to say much about her. Her stats pretty much say it all.
"I hope this makes us a (national title) contender, but she can't do it alone. There are five other players out there that need to carry the load, too."
SEASIDERS NO. 1: It didn't take long for Brigham Young-Hawaii to get noticed by the NCAA Division II pollsters.
The Seasiders, the four-time defending NAIA champions, won the Premier Challenge in Colorado last week. BYU-Hawaii beat two Top-11 teams, including No. 3 Regis, in straight sets for the title.
Yesterday, the Seasiders received 22 of 24 first-place votes to earn the No. 1 spot. They were ranked fourth in the preseason poll.
"It's a nice recognition, but we have a ways to go," BYU-Hawaii coach Wilfred Navalta said.
The Seasiders open their home season tomorrow with a Pacific West Conference match against Chaminade. BYU-Hawaii has won its last 40 matches.
Hawaii-Hilo, which hosted the Hawaiian Style Classic, was ranked 24th yesterday. The Vulcans (3-4), No. 20 in the preseason, finished fourth in the Classic.
CROSS COUNTRY OPENS: Hawaii's four Division II schools meet for the first time in the Chaminade Invitational cross country meet Saturday. Races begin at 7 a.m. at the Hawaii Loa Campus of Hawaii Pacific.
VULCAN TRAINER: Mike Garcia has joined the athletic staff at Hawaii-Hilo as an assistant trainer.
Garcia recently received his masters degree in sports medicine from UNLV.
By Cindy Luis