[UH VOLLEYBALL]
UH hopes to MALIBU, Calif. >> The bad taste is still there.
taste sweet victory
The Warriors are shooting for
their first MPSF title and an
automatic final 4 bidBy Grace Wen
gwen@starbulletin.comThe Hawaii volleyball team still remembers it, kind of like the way garlic can hit you the next day and sometimes even the day after that.
Hawaii's two conference losses to Pepperdine in March were the only back-to-back losses it suffered all season.
The Warriors have the chance to rid themselves of the lingering memory and claim their first Mountain Pacific Sports Federation championship today when second-ranked Hawaii plays No. 1 Pepperdine in the finals of the MPSF tournament.
"We came in here last time and both matches were a long four. And I think everybody left here with a bad taste in their mouth," Hawaii coach Mike Wilton said. "I think we're playing a lot better than before. My thinking is that giving it all we've got tomorrow night is not going to detract from anything if we go to the final four. You always owe it to yourself to give it your best effort."
This is the second year in a row Hawaii has reached the finals. But unlike last season, when the Warriors needed to beat UCLA to win the championship to reach the final four, Hawaii probably secured the at-large berth into the NCAA semifinals with its MPSF semifinal win over UC Santa Barbara on Thursday.
But as Wilton reminded his players yesterday in practice, winning today and getting the top seed for the final four is just as important. It could make all the difference for receiving the better draw to the title match.
The Warriors don't want to leave anything to chance and there are things they want to improve.
"I don't know if we qualified yet," outside hitter Costas Theocharidis said. "It's based on a human decision. You never know what's going to happen. The pressure is kind of off, but we're missing an MPSF championship.
"We have to play our game and win a championship. Hopefully we're going to serve better because they're a really good passing team. Their offense is really fast and it's really hard for us to block them. So if we serve well, we're going to force them to go to the outside.
With the middles we have, we can block them more. And we can dig them more. Everything is going to come down to serving and passing."
They'll be aided in the serving area by middle blocker Delano Thomas. The freshman missed the last series, but his absence proved to be a blessing in disguise. His effectiveness at serving and hitting provides one more unknown for Pepperdine to contemplate.
If Hawaii didn't play its best volleyball against the Waves, the fact was lost on coach Marv Dunphy.
"Hawaii has a real exciting team and a real good team," Dunphy said. "When we played them here, they were real good. We were fortunate to win. And they're going to be a handful for everybody they play."
The Warriors hope to live up to Dunphy's billing. They already know the Waves are powerful.
"They've got some guys that are pretty rangy, like (Sean) Rooney and the middle (Brad) Keenan," Wilton said. "Their setter is just doing a real nice job, locating really well and making the right sets. They've got no hitting weaknesses. The opposite can be suspect. He wasn't much the first night, the second night he went off.
"But we're a stronger team, too."
Final exams are over for Pepperdine students, and if Thursday night was any indication, the Waves should have another supportive crowd.
The Waves have been rolling over opponents in the fieldhouse all year, losing just once in 17 home contests.
Notes: Mike Wilton Jr. didn't get into either of BYU's matches against Hawaii, but he did get into the Cougars' last match briefly Thursday. Mike Wilton Sr. was proud, saying the younger Wilton passed nails and did well overall. ... Hawaii's bid to host next year's playoffs was brought up again at the league meeting yesterday. The MPSF will wait for a proposal from the new Hawaii athletic director before making a decision.
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