Warriors Good health is something to appreciate, as Hawaii volleyball senior Tony Ching will tell you.
have healthy,
happy Ching
Hawaii opens the annual
Outrigger Classic tomorrow,
playing Penn StateBy Grace Wen
gwen@starbulletin.com
The 6-foot-2 outside hitter spent the better part of last season battling and recovering from shoulder injuries. Ching missed 12 of Hawaii's 32 matches last year because of injury, illness and suspension. He struggled to find any kind of playing rhythm before giving a glimpse of the brilliance he's capable of in last season's NCAA title match.
Who: Hawaii, Penn State, Ball State, Shanghai Oriental (China) Outrigger Classic
Where: Stan Sheriff Center
When: Tomorrow through Saturday
TV: Live, KFVE
Radio: Live, 1420-AM
Ching had the kind of final performance that most players only dream about. He hit over .500 with 17 kills and sucked up nine digs.
"It felt good to be on a nationwide stage and be able to play the way I did," Ching said. "It helped my confidence a lot. The chemistry I have with Costas (Theocharidis) and Eyal (Zimet) is good, too. We've been here for four years. We're really good friends. Now, more so than before, they look at me as a peer instead of a young kid and that made me a lot more confident.
"I'm playing the best I've played since I've been here so far but I expect more from myself. I think I can play a lot better."
It might be tough.
If Hawaii's first two matches were any indication, it doesn't look as though Ching is headed toward any drop off. He leads the top-ranked Warriors in digs (2.43 per game) and is second on the squad in hitting efficiency (.511) with 3.86 kills.
"We're looking at a growth curve here," Hawaii coach Mike Wilton said. "He's a lot more confident in his game and a lot more competent. He's just bringing a lot to the table.
"He just upgraded his game. He's already complementing Costas well. Maybe the championship match was a realization kind of thing. He's been a steady performer all throughout fall camp. He's got a real good serve and he's gotten more consistent with it. I don't know if passing is one of his favorite things but we need him to do that."
Ching missed last year's Outrigger tournament but isn't necessarily intent on proving himself because of it.
"I'm just excited to play. This is my last year," Ching said. "It was hard to sit there last year and watch. This year I'm glad I get to participate. I feel good and I want to go out and play well."
The Warriors (2-0) need every aspect of his game in a difficult tournament field that includes two of last year's final four teams and an experienced international squad.
Shanghai Oriental and seventh-ranked Ball State open the ninth annual Outrigger Classic at the Stan Sheriff Center tomorrow at 5 p.m. Hawaii faces fourth-ranked Penn State at 7:30 p.m. in a rematch of last year's NCAA semifinal.
There will be familiarity on both sides of the court, as the Nittany Lions have 13 players back from last year. Penn State returns five starters but their biggest puka is hard to plug. Setter Jose Quinones, a two-time All-American, completed his eligibility last spring as the all-time Penn State assists leader. Quinones' ability to dish and attack the second ball will be tough to replace.
Junior Nate Matthews is slotted as the successor. He was Quinones' understudy for two years and performed decently before being sidelined with mononucleosis the last two weeks of the fall.
Matthews is fully recovered but the Nittany Lions have only been together a short time and haven't played any other matches this season. They are an experienced bunch, but that can work for you and against you.
"We've been in the gym for seven practices," Penn State coach Mark Pavlik said. "The good thing is we're experienced. The bad thing is we're experienced. It's a good thing when they know what's in front of them. It's a bad thing when they've been through it three or four years.
"With younger teams, there tends to be more of an enthusiasm level that's just contagious. This team has always been workmanlike. We don't have a lot of cheerleaders or guys that get real noisy. They take everything in stride."
Traditionally, the Nittany Lions haven't been able to go with the flow in the Outrigger. Penn State has been here every year and not had the best results (6-17 overall tournament record).
The Nittany Lions came here as the No. 1 team in the country last year and ended going 1-2 (losing to UCLA and Hawaii but defeating Lewis) as their ranking plummeted. But this volleyball spectacle isn't always about wins and losses.
"Is it nine (years) already?" Pavlik asked. "I was much younger when we started. It feels like 30 or 40 years younger.
"We come out and we see where the bar is set. That just gives us a great perspective in the training gym all year long. When we face hitters like Costas, it's much less forgiving in April or May then when we face an average EIVA (conference) team.
"We get away with things against those teams that we cannot get away with (against) Hawaii, Ball State, and UCLA. When you can't get away with something early, you train for it."
Note: The Warriors have rescheduled their championship banner raising ceremony for Saturday. It was originally slated for tomorrow but Hawaii coach Mike Wilton felt it would be improper to do so before matches against Penn State and Ball State, both 2002 final four participants.
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