The plan—always—was to return. To again be a Warrior.

But was it realistic? Was it worth it?

He hadn't played a collegiate volleyball match since 2007. A bulging disc in his back helped sideline him for all of 2008. Last year, he wasn't even on the roster.

What was Ernie Vidinha thinking when he walked back into the gym as Hawaii opened camp last fall?

That he could help.

“;The team had been struggling and it was sad to see that a program that had always been pretty good was at a low point,”; Vidinha said. “;It sparked me to come out again. I thought I could give them a boost, help somehow.”;

The 6-foot-4 senior outside hitter has done that in many ways, from his court sense to his ball-control skills to his passion for the sport. Vidinha has played a key role in Hawaii's run to a Mountain Pacific Sports Federation playoff berth, the Warriors' first since Vidinha's freshman year.

“;Not only has he given us much-needed depth at outside hitter, he's come in and played well whenever he's been called upon,”; first-year Hawaii coach Charlie Wade said. “;We said from Day 1 that we wanted more local guys on the team, but that's not why he made it. He's steady, absolutely has a high volleyball IQ, knows the game.

“;In fall, we had 33 guys in the gym and, for a while, I didn't know who anybody was. He was one of the guys it made sense to have. It was the perfect storm, having a guy like that on a team like this.”;

The 2005 Kamehameha Schools graduate had the “;local”; work ethic Wade had come to admire in his 11 years with the Rainbow Wahine program.

“;It's that mentality where you show up every day, work hard, do your best and, if the coach doesn't put you in, you come back the next day and work harder,”; Wade said. “;I think Ernie had doubts early about how his body would hold up, but it has. In the last month or two, he's helped us win some significant matches. That has got to be fun for him.”;

It's more than that. Something that had been missing was restored.

“;His whole life was volleyball,”; Vidinha's mother, Denise, said. “;It wasn't just the injury—and he was so hurt—it was like he lost his life. It was hard for us to watch everything he went through, physical therapy, shiatsu, acupuncture. We didn't expect it to happen but it has. Senior night was so special for him. He's doing what he loves.”;

It took a lot of hard work in the gym and at physical therapy to make it possible. Pono Ma'a, Vidinha's coach at Kamehameha, wasn't surprised when Vidinha made the UH team nor about his comeback.

“;He's just a hard-working kid,”; said Ma'a, an all-conference player for the Warriors in the 1980s. “;I moved him from middle to outside his senior year because I thought he could go on and play in college. I'm glad to see he's back and that the team is, too.”;

Hawaii's last postseason match was in 2007, a five-set loss at UC Irvine. It was also Vidinha's last match for the Warriors until a brief appearance in a 3-0 loss at Stanford Jan. 15.

Hawaii regrouped from an 0-2 start in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation to finish tied for fourth with Pepperdine. The Warriors host the Waves tomorrow in their first home playoff match since 2006, Vidinha's redshirt freshman year.

“;I feel so lucky that I was able to come back,”; Vidinha said. “;Volleyball is such a part of the culture here. Growing up, watching (Hawaii), coming to the games, this atmosphere inspired me to play.

“;I've had so much support from my family. There's going to be a pretty big group Saturday. It will be senior night all over again. Can we win? Our last memory of Pepperdine is that we beat them pretty good that second night. The way this league is, anything is possible.”;

Vidinha is proof.

He graduates next semester with a kinesiology degree. He wants to become a physical therapist for many of the same reasons he worked so hard at getting one last volleyball season:

“;I want to give back,”; he said. “;I want to help.”;

Umlauft wins freshman honor

Hawaii freshman opposite Jonas Umlauft was named freshman of the year in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation yesterday, the third Warrior to be so honored. Umlauft led the MPSF in kills (5.30 kps) and points (5.94 pps), had double-figure kills in all 27 matches, and set the UH rally-scoring record for a single match with 37 kills in a win over UC Irvine.

“;It is always nice to be honored, but it's not why I came (to UH),”; said Umlauft, also on the second team and the all-freshmen teams. “;I came to help the team. The season has gone well, but we haven't reached the most important thing.”;

Hawaii prep products were well represented, led by Stanford sophomore hitter Brad Lawson ('Iolani '08), the player of the year. Lawson led the top-ranked Cardinal in kills and aces.

Joining Lawson on the first team is Stanford senior setter Kawika Shoji ('Iolani '06). Shoji's brother Erik (Punahou '08), a sophomore libero for the Cardinal, is on the second team, as is BYU sophomore middle Futi Tavana (Kauai '05).

USC junior setter Riley McKibbin (Punahou '07) is an honorable mention and his brother Maddison (Punahou '09), a hitter for the Trojans, was picked to the all-freshmen team.

Stanford's John Kosty is the coach of the year.