Series has serious
playoff implicationsHawaii hopes to host,
but UC Irvine just
wants the last spot
So much to gain. So much to lose.
UC Irvine at Hawaii
When: Tomorrow and Saturday, 7 p.m.
Where: Stan Sheriff Center
TV: Live, KFVE (channel 5)
Radio: Live, KKEA 1420-AM
Tickets: $3-$14
The playoff futures of both the Hawaii and UC Irvine men's volleyball teams are riding on the outcome of this week's series. The No. 6 Warriors still have hopes of hosting a first-round match in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Tournament; the No. 10 Anteaters are hoping to still be playing on April 24.
"Survivor: All-Stars" has nothing on the battles that are scheduled to take place tomorrow and Saturday at the Stan Sheriff Center. Hawaii wants to move up to the No. 4 seed; UC Irvine would be happy with being No. 8.
"I feel we're much better than our record, but we've put ourselves in a tough position to make the playoffs," UC Irvine coach John Speraw said. "We need to win four and we don't play any easy teams.
"Hawaii is a very physical team with a ton of offensive weapons and they can serve the ball very well. To say that there was only one player or one phase of their game on which we need to focus would be, unfortunately, too simple. This may be especially true with the increased involvement of their bench over the last few weeks. Now you have to prepare of Hawaii's depth in addition to everything else."
Watching film of the Warriors was almost a waste of time, given the number of lineups Hawaii has used this season. Even Warrior coach Mike Wilton is unsure who will be starting against the Anteaters ... and in what position.
He has a number of options and it will come down to what he calls the conglomerate of all of the practices this week. One big unknown is who will keep senior Josh Stanhiser company in the middle, Mauli'a LaBarre (ankle injury) or Dio Dante (broken pinkie finger).
Sophomore outside hitter Jose Delgado didn't suit up for Saturday's match against Long Beach State but, based on this week's practices, may be back in the playing mix. Sophomore Matt Bender has played well, well enough to be named the MPSF Player of the Week yesterday as well as replace Pedro Azenha at opposite.
Azenha has moved over to the left side, where he has gone against Delano Thomas in a matchup pitting two explosive, dominating hitters.
Whoever the Warriors put on the court will face an Anteater team looking for momentum for next year and try to regain the success of last season. Last year, UCI opened 10-0 and was ranked No. 1 for the first time in school history.
That winning streak was snapped by then-No. 2 Hawaii in Irvine. The next night, UCI earned a split of the series, defeating the Warriors for only the second time in 24 meetings.
This season, the Anteaters have struggled with injuries. Sophomore middle Nic Vislay has been sidelined with knee problems and backup freshman setter Brian Thornton was lost for the year with mononucleosis.
Four freshmen played key roles in last week's win at USC, including Jayson Jablonsky, who replaced senior All-American Jimmy Pelzel on the outside in Game 3. The Anteater setter is freshman Brett Reid, who had three service aces against the Trojans.
"There's no question that the two things we need to do this week are continue to improve our offense and have our outside hitters play with some consistency," Speraw said.
UCI is battling Stanford for the final playoff spot and an anticipated trip to play at No. 1 BYU.
"That's fine," Speraw said of facing the Cougars. "It means we'd still be playing."
Note: Former UH All-American Mark Presho is on the UCI staff as a volunteer assistant but won't make the trip to Hawaii this week ... Redshirting for the Anteaters is Iolani graduate Chad Miller.
