‘Grateful’ Ching leaves
hospital after 18 days
After 18 days in the hospital, former Hawaii volleyball player Tony Ching was ready to strike a deal, any deal, to get out.
Ching was released yesterday from the Queen's Medical Center but still has to return daily to have blood drawn and take shots to thin his blood. Those were just a few of the promises Ching made to gain his release.
The All-American feels fortunate considering the severity of his accident nearly three weeks ago. Ching was riding a scooter when he was struck by a car as he entered the intersection of Wilder Avenue and Alexander Street. He underwent several hours of brain surgery, suffered two broken legs, and had a partially collapsed lung. Ching was not wearing a helmet at the time of the accident.
He entered the Rehab Hospital of the Pacific 11 days ago but went right back to Queen's after a small blood clot in his leg reached his lungs. Though still weak from the accident, he was ready to go home.
"It's nice to be out of the hospital," said Ching yesterday after arriving at home. "I have to take shots, they're blood thinners. I'm not going to be able to do the stuff I'm normally able to do. I was tired of the hospital. Eighteen days was a long time of being bedridden. It's nice to get back to a comfortable environment."
Ching, 22, said that he lost more than 20 pounds, going from 207 to 183, during the ordeal though he was eating "normal food" during his hospital stay. He plans to rest at home and begin aqua therapy in a few months.
He has already asked Hawaii coach Mike Wilton for permission to train with the team this fall after he gets the full range of motion back in his legs.
"As soon as he's ready to go, we can use him as a fifth-year student assistant (coach)," Wilton said. "He can work out to his heart's content. We'll make sure we're helping the kid out."
Ching completed his eligibility last spring and needs one more year to complete his degree. He plans to play professionally next year after graduation.
"Everything else is healing quickly," Ching said yesterday. "I just have that scar. I got pretty lucky. They checked my speech and everything, that's all still intact.
"I'm a little quieter now. My personality is a little different. I got really lucky. I'm very grateful. I couldn't ask for a luckier situation. Most people if they go through it, it's a drastic (change to their lifestyle) after."
Lynn Ching, Tony's mother, says that she has seen the personality change in her son. Tony is more reserved and still has nightmares about the accident.
"I'm very happy and relieved to have him home. I'm designing a glass bubble for him and his brother," joked Lynn Ching, who will take a month off from work to care for Tony as he recovers. "He's healing really well. Both legs and the injury to his head, it's drying up. It looks like its healing.
"He's made it through the hardest part. He'll be frustrated. He's talked about how it's going to be, he's still setting goals. He's counting the minutes until he can move again."
When he does start moving, it won't be on a scooter.
"I'm never riding a mo-ped again," Ching said. "It crossed my mind. When you see the ground going by at 25 miles an hour, you feel kind of vulnerable."
Theocharidis receives academic honor: Costas Theocharidis added another award to his collection yesterday.
In addition to his second AVCA Player of the Year trophy for his efforts on the court, Theocharidis was recognized for his work in the classroom. The business major carries a 3.73 GPA and was selected as the Verizon Academic All-America Men's At-Large Team Member of the year for the University division.
The men's at-large team consists of the sports of fencing, golf, gymnastics, hockey, lacrosse, rifle, skiing, swimming, tennis, volleyball, water polo and wrestling.
The four-time, first-team All-American is the Warriors all-time kill leader (2,198), and has school records for aces (121) and kill attempts (4,510). Two other volleyball players received academic distinction. Art Kulans (George Mason) was named to the first team with a 3.99 GPA in accounting while Penn State's Zeljko Koljesar earned second team honors for a 3.65 GPA in computer science.
LaBarre and Podlewski return: Two former Warriors paid surprise visits to Wilton this week. After a short stint training with the U.S. national team, former all-conference libero Vernon Podlewski is back in Hawaii. Though Podlewski impressed national team coaches, there were two other liberos ahead of him. Podlewski, however, was invited to be a member of the World University Games team.
Maulia LaBarre returned early from a two-year mission in Russia. The Honolulu native was a backup 6-foot-8 middle blocker for a season before leaving on his mission. LaBarre will re-enroll in school and plans to join the Warriors in the fall.
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