Tuesday, October 2, 2001
[ WAHINE VOLLEYBALL ]
Wahine road trip THE SECOND STOP of the Hawaii volleyball team's road trip is tomorrow night at the University of Houston.
continues against
improving Cougars
Hawaii also visits Rice and
Tulsa for matches Thursday
and SaturdayBy Grace Wen
gwen@starbulletin.comHouston is a tune-up before two more Western Athletic Conference matches against Rice and Tulsa on Thursday and Saturday.
Hawaii (7-4, 1-0 WAC) rested on Sunday after Saturday's win against Louisiana Tech. The 13th-ranked Wahine practiced yesterday after arriving in Houston and will play three matches in four nights before returning home on Sunday.
The Cougars (5-7, 2-2 Conference USA) were not originally part of the schedule but were added in August.
"We needed to pick up a match," Hawaii coach Dave Shoji said. "It's a good competitive match for us. We need to play. We're in a situation where we've got to keep improving so anytime we get to play ... it's the chance to get better."
Improvement means that setter Margaret Vakasausau will continue to work on connecting with middle hitters Lauren Duggins and Nohea Tano.
Though the Wahine are getting good offensive production from outside hitters Kim Willoughby and Maja Gustin, the middles have yet to become more involved.
That could change since Shoji said that Tano will receive the starting nod again. The sophomore spiked a career-high nine kills against Santa Clara two weeks ago and started in Saturday night's match against Louisiana Tech. She could earn the starting role permanently if she continues to make herself available to the setter.
Shoji also said that backup setter Jennifer Carey could see some time as a hitter tomorrow.
"We're trying to play everybody, but our number one objective is to win the game," Shoji said. "(Houston) is a good team. If we're not playing our best volleyball, it will be a struggle.
"They've lost a bunch of five-game matches so I think they're a team just waiting to try to turn it around. They've been in every match, but they just can't seem to win the big ones. I'm hoping it's not Wednesday night."
The Cougars bear some resemblance to the Wahine and it's not just the two universities' initials.
Four of the Cougars (5-7, 2-2) five losses have been against opponents ranked in the top 25. And Houston relies mainly on outside-hitter Jennifer Wittenburg. The sixth-year senior averages 5.67 kills per game and sees the most sets of anyone on the team.
Note:
The Wahine dropped one spot in the AVCA coaches poll. Ohio State moved from No. 15 to No. 11 after upsetting Penn State in five games last week. The Buckeyes are on a roll, opening with a 16-0 record.
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