Comments on: Final 4 set

By: jmy

jmy — Tue, 17 Dec 2013 05:12:16 +0000

36. UW has a 5-8 starting outside hitter…I think UW will need more than Vansant to beat Penn State…Nittany Lions are good all the way around & McClendon has been pretty much unstoppable this season…

By: Cindy Luis

Cindy Luis — Tue, 17 Dec 2013 01:08:06 +0000

If you ever came to practice, you would know how involved dave is physically with the team. and that it isn’t the assistants doing all of the heavy lifting.
as for the absence of a consistent middle attack, a lot if predicated on the passing.
they ended up splitting their series with CSUN and UCSB so that’s a wash. And the Wahine beat them the second time they played, so it means the right adjustments were made.
as for 04, i guess you could call them newbies. HIttle and sanders were freshmen, Prince a junior transfer. but Boogard had been in the program and contributed before, as did Watanabe and Arnott.

By: blufan

blufan — Mon, 16 Dec 2013 22:06:49 +0000

@Cindy: Shoji still has what it takes but his assistants will have to buckle down. Now-days the assistants do most of the heavy lifting, which recently was found wanting (absence of a consistent middle attack in 5 losses, ineffective blocking schemes against Santa Barbara, UCUN, and BYU, predictable setting to the outside hitters, etc.) The talent is there and next year Hawaii will again win the conference and go to the NCAA tournament. Notably Taylor Higgins has the potential to be another Kanoe Kamana’o (recall 2004 when Kanoe took 5 newbies with her to a 30-0 regular season record).

GO BOWS! GO WAHINE!

By: Cubicle1126

Cubicle1126 — Mon, 16 Dec 2013 21:59:57 +0000

shoji and the tradition he’s built at hawaii have been the DRAW to get what quality recruits they’ve been able to get. hawaii still gets good recruits, probably at the same pace they’ve always done. maybe 1 or 2 stud players, surrounded by great role players. that’s been the norm for shoji and his teams. i think that still holds up today.

the problem is that hawaii can’t do what teams like penn st, texas, stanford, and usc (etc.) are doing. putting together these ridiculous recruiting classes. they’re not just recruiting 1-2 stud players, they’re putting together an entire recruiting class of stud players, and doing it every 2-3 recruiting cycles. that’s multiple top 10 recruits in a given year. these teams have top 10 recruits riding the bench in some cases. that would never happen at hawaii!

the other problem is that if shoji (with his reputation and tradition) can’t put together these kinds of recruiting classes, in order to compete with these teams … then i would think a successor (with less of a reputation or draw for recruit) would be hard-pressed to do so. maybe i’ll be proven wrong when that time comes (and i hope i am). new blood could re-invigorate recruiting, but it’d be a huge challenge for whoever takes over the reins.

By: Cindy Luis

Cindy Luis — Mon, 16 Dec 2013 20:59:41 +0000

34. UH’s middles were 6-4, 6-1, 6-1. starting hitters were 6-3, 6-2, 6-0

By: Cindy Luis

Cindy Luis — Mon, 16 Dec 2013 20:52:19 +0000

38. and how many times did Penn State get to the final four via a cakewalk. Wisconsin’s draw wasn’t at tough at UH’s for sure.
as for UH-USC … don’t get it. UH beat USC at USC two years in a row, lost in 5 to USC in Hawaii
You don’t know what the outcome would have been had the Wahine faced the Women of Troy.
It’s why they play the game.

By: Warriorfan

Warriorfan — Mon, 16 Dec 2013 13:20:31 +0000

Ok then uw beat usc with a 5’8 outside hitter too.

By: Volleyball fan

Volleyball fan — Mon, 16 Dec 2013 11:08:21 +0000

Wisconsin wouldn’t have made it to the Final Four if it was sent to the same bracket as Penn State. Wisconsin simply got a lucky draw, but Longhorns will crush the Badgers just as they did to the Cornhuskers.

I also agree that Hawaii was spared an even more humiliating defeat against the highly talented Trojans. I have no regrets there.

By: Warriorfan

Warriorfan — Mon, 16 Dec 2013 07:58:34 +0000

and Wisconsin starts a barely 6 foot middle as well. and 6 foot opposite.

By: Warriorfan

Warriorfan — Mon, 16 Dec 2013 07:54:03 +0000

.34
Wisconsin is in the final four with a 5′ 7 starting outside hitter!