DENNIS ODA / DODA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Hawaii opposite Pedro Azenha is second on the team in kills (159), aces (18) and points (189).
Playing with fire
Pedro Azenha has channeled
his intensity and accepted
his role as a team player
It's not Rio.
UCLA at Hawaii
When: Today and Saturday, 7 p.m.
Where: Stan Sheriff Center
TV: Live both nights, KFVE (Ch. 5)
Radio: Live both nights, KKEA 1420-AM
Tickets: $3-$14
He doesn't samba ... not well, he says.
But that hasn't stopped Pedro Azenha from thinking about extending the Carnival season through this weekend. The Brazilian would like nothing better than to be celebrating Saturday after two wins over No. 2 UCLA (12-2, 7-2 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation).
The first chance comes tonight for the sophomore opposite and the top-ranked Hawaii men's volleyball team. Azenha, who didn't make the trip when the Warriors beat the Bruins twice last year, can't wait.
"Everyone is talking about them and I know there will be a lot of people here," said Azenha, who was raised in Sao Paulo. "Everyone talks about the rivalry. I've heard the stories. That's what makes it fun.
"We've beaten them four times in a row. I hope we continue to beat them."
The Warriors (10-2, 7-1) have beaten up on most of their opponents this year, with seven of their 10 victories coming in sweeps. Some of the success is due to Azenha, who went from part-time player to quitting the team last season to being a major offensive weapon this year.
Despite missing two matches with a sprained ankle, Azenha is second on the team in kills (159), aces (18) and points (kills plus aces plus blocks, with 189). His career-high 33 kills against Lewis helped him earn the MVP trophy at last month's Outrigger Hotels Invitational; his five service aces helped the Warriors sweep Pacific on Feb. 16.
"Volleyball is all about serve and pass," Azenha said. "Whoever serves and passes better wins matches. I love serving; it's always been one of my best skills.
"The first attack in volleyball is the serve. It is the most important part of the game. Not even a really good passer can pass the ball if it's a really good serve."
His serve is not the only fiery thing about Azenha. His temperament is both inspiring and distracting.
"He's a little bit too fiery sometimes," associate head coach Tino Reyes said. "He's got a lot of passion, but sometimes it gets in his way."
The short fuse was lit last season over a lack of playing time. Azenha was used to starting and being a star; he helped Brazil to the under-17 and under-20 world championships, and was a member of the Brazilian Junior National team from 1998 to 2001.
He quit the UH team, but a week later asked to be reinstated.
"I had some problems," he said. "I wasn't playing as much as I wanted. I wasn't happy. I was homesick.
"But my mom talked to me about it. This was the choice I made, to come for a better education. I've made more friends. It's been good."
"Pedro is capable of playing really good volleyball," Hawaii coach Mike Wilton said. "He's got a lot of offense, a good live arm and a real good serve. He's capable of being a really good volleyball player and being a consistently good volleyball player.
"For sure he has matured since last year."
Azenha has settled into his role as a team player. He still prefers it when the game comes to him but "we have a lot of great hitters, like Delano (junior Thomas), a very physical player who gets better every day," Azenha said. "We have great middle blockers who make my job easier.
GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM
Pedro Azenha says the top-ranked Warriors "have much room to improve. ... The goal is to be national champion."
"We have much room to improve. Even though we're No. 1 now, we can't be comfortable with that. The goal is not only to be here in May (in the final four). If we got here without winning, then it would be just as sad as if we don't make it at all. The goal is to be national champion. That is my goal. That is the goal of everyone on the team, even those who are not playing. That's what makes us strong."
Every day is just another clip in what could be a documentary about Warrior volleyball. Azenha aspires to be a television journalist like his mother, Roseli Galleti, a former news anchor turned director/producer.
"Of course I want to play (professionally), but I would like to do sports journalism," said Azenha, a broadcast-journalism major. "I had a two-week (television) internship at home over the summer and I saw how everything works. What I'd like to do is sports documentaries about sports all over the world. I like to travel and I like all sports, even ones I don't play.
"We had a really good time in China (last summer). We have a lot of stories, like when we did karaoke with Chinese couples, singing Madonna songs and dancing. We have video."
In Brazil, summer vacation ends in December with the school year starting in January.
"But what we say is the year really starts after Carnival," Azenha said of the five-day celebration before Lent begins. "It's a big, crazy party with dancing and parades. My mother called me from Rio this week. She's having a lot of fun."
Azenha hopes he can say the same thing when he calls her back after Sunday.
