Wahine open practice
Walked over to The Pav (sports pavilion) couple of blocks from the hotel.
90 minutes per ncaa regulation.
As for OCSports, was told they couldn’t release the info until today so you’ll hear more later. something about the contract wording.
COMMENTS
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Have you had much opportunity to see any USC matches this season? If so, any thoughts?
1. none at all.
Cindy, will you be checking out the USC and Minnesota open practices? If so, would appreciate your impressions.
[Just returned from a semester on the mainland, and if I knew the Wahine were going to Gophersville, I would have stayed underground for another week!]
So the Wahine went from being chosen #6 in the AVCA Coaches Preseason Poll to — at their lowest point — the ignominious possibility of being the Big West’s bridesmaid and being left out of the brides-only postseason completely!
But it’s all about elevating your play when it counts and recognizing those subtle Mo shifts when they happen. And that the Bows did, and here they are, ready to make another postseason run. First up: the Khalia Lanier-led USC of the Pac-12.
BTW (by the way) 1: The Pac-12 had a NCAA record 10 teams in last year’s tournament. (None made it to the Final Four.) This year it ties the 14-team Big Ten with the most league teams in the tournament: 8. Over the last decade, only one Pac-12 team made it to the top: UCLA in 2011. Washington won this year’s Pac-12 conference (UCLA and Stanford tied for 2nd), but the NCAA chose Stanford (led by terrorists-at-the-net Inky Ajanaku and Merete Lutz) as the highest seed of the Pac-12 teams.
BTW 2: Not dissing Texas but I think Kansas got the biggest seeding slap in the face this year. The Jayhawks won the 9-team Big 12 title for the first time ever, yet were seeded behind 2nd-in-the-Big 12 Texas. Thus, in 1 of the 4 regional finals if seeds hold — and as has been pointed out on VT over and over again –, it will be Kansas playing the Longhorns on UT’s homecourt!
Finally: At the start of the season, I expected Nikki Taylor and Emily Maglio to be Hawaii’s AA candidates. It depends on how deep the Wahine go at The Dance but Taylor deserves First-Team and Maglio Third-Team consideration. Sharpshooter Annie Mitchem doesn’t have enough matches under her belt but fortunately for the Bows she’s now making the “beast” impact she was expected to from the get-go.
For me, the X factor is Maglio. If she plays as smart as middle Olivia Magill played in the first 3 rounds last year, the Wahine will be the X factor/dark horse of the tournament!
If I could speak to the Wahine during the halftime break, I would tell them to remember this is 2016 – the Year of the Unpredictable. Think Cleveland Cavs, Game 7 on June 19, 2016. Think Chicago Cubs, Game 7 on Nov 2, 2016. Think Brexit (British Exit) in June 2016. Think Trump on Nov 7, 2016. (Scratch that last thought.)
And this is also the year of Fantastic Beasts! And we know where to find them. Wahine, you are beasts! Fantastic beasts! Go Wahine!
I think and hope that the wahine should be able to handle USC and it will probably go either a closely scored sweep or four sets.
Gotta love Nikki’s positive and confident interview played on the news last night. So glad to be in the “show”! She basically said, this is where they sent us, Wahine volleyball usually get the short straw anyway so let’s go and play!
Hey, win tomorrow against USC and that’s one nail against the NCAA committee! Win again vs the Gophers and tell the NCAA to stuff it! Go get um Wahine!
Tomorrow’s match should be a good one. Whomever faces the probable opponent Minnesota will be facing an excellent team. But regarding their home winning streak…. Historically, the Wahine ended two home winning streaks in the tournament: Texas A&M last year, and several years ago, when Kim, Lily, & Co. ended Nebraska’s much longer streak.
luv what you wrote orbital ^
also agree, i would totally go to the SSC if they televised the match against the gooophers on the jumbo tron… !
glad OC sports is going to televise tomorrow’s match !
go BOWS – i believe USC will be tough, but they can take them !
also believe, they would need to continue to serve tuff against the gophers and keep them out of system.
thank you Cindy for all that you do!
The Wahine will not be denied this year!
This is such a precarious year for the favorites. This bracket has teams with talent. Outcome could have more relevance with passion rather than the elemental XXXs and OOOs.
I too love Nikki Taylor’s attitude, “what the hell, lets roll and kick butt”. NOW rather than Later! Nikki would say with unabated determination.
The wahine need a little fire placed on the seat of their shorts to invoke passion and fire. In Long Beach State 1– we saw a limp version of the wahine and in LBS 2– we saw the polar opposite. Taylor’s cry could be the spark that lights that passion.
USC has never lost a opening match in the NCAAs. And they come into Minnesota limping from their last 4 conference matches. They are wounded but dangerous.
So Shoji must do what coaches do when an opponent is bleeding, go for the throat.
That should answer the question made by a curious poster posed in terms about whether the wahine will be tough at the service line. Play safe or play to kill.
I believe Nikki Taylor will answer that on her first serve. Go bows!
#4 Love your energy! Yeah, Maglio is the key element. Once an opponent shuts down our MHs in set one, our middles tend to disappear for the rest of the match. It happen in the first Beach match in Long Beach. IMO, USC will likely try to neutralize Emily immediately. Norene will need to be relentlessly coming back to set the MHs to keep the middle attack threat real so as to hold USC middles.
At the end of the day, it is simply a serve and receive game. Whoever does it better will typically win. Let’s relentlessly serve the Trojans tough.
I like how Penn State @ seed #16 gets an easier road to the final four than #2 Minnesota does…Texas has such a cake walk too. I mean they will have to get through BYU but that’s pretty much it.
In the UH Athletic Department’s travel video on YouTube it appears that Burns is wearing cutoff tights and Mags is in shorts. Those girls from our northern neighbor are at home in the cold.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0Km1Vajge8
Purdue about to sweep Iowa State…
Purdue sweeps, UNI-Creighton going to 5
Creighton could have swept, up 24-22 in the third, then lost 24-26. Just like Nebraska against Minnesota. Creighton still has a shot to win, tho.
16. They did.
OC16 officially has first round game scheduled for tomorrow at 1230.
Geez, still 20 hours, 54 minutes, & 14 seconds left til match time. How am I going to sleep tonight?
Good luck Wahine. Will us Mainlanders be able to watch online for free like they had during the season?
The PAC-12 is the 3rd ranked conference in terms of RPI and the Big Ten is No. 1. The Big West is No. 13. USC and Minnesota play tough teams a lot. Wahine face not many tough teams in the Big West, so this may affect them in the tournament, although they played well last year in the tournament.
20 Believe the Big West is No. 7 in terms of RPI. think it’s the Big Sky is 13
18. we’ve also said it was at 430 p.m. The bracket that the NCAA puts out uses EST which says 530
13 Despite being sick, the UH SID is doing a nice job. her forte is video
6. believe that is old video from Monday. TV often holds on to stuff to run closer to days of things.
3. didn’t stay for any other practice. I had to write. Did speak to Haley in person, had a phone interview earlier in the week with him and the UND coaches.
as for the seeding. the coaches know that Penn State and Texas get a cake walk every year. It would take someone of McCutcheon’s stature to make an issue of it. Rose isn’t going to.
The Big West commissar apparently did send a letter to the selection committee questioning the process since the committee made this huge stand about winning the conferences, last 10 and RPI were big things. Everyone here is taking issue with how Penn State got seeded.
IMHO, if they had just seeded San Diego at 16, sent Hawaii and SC there with some other team, it would have been fairer.
Top 25 from Thursday
3) Wisconsin def. Howard 25-11, 25-18, 25-10
4) Kansas def. Samford 25-19, 25-21, 25-17
17) Michigan def. American 25-13, 25-23, 25-12
18) Missouri def. Northern Illinois 25-16, 25-13, 25-20
19) Oregon def. Miami-OH 25-22, 25-17, 22-25, 25-19
21) Creighton def. Northern Iowa 25-16, 25-20, 24-26, 14-25, 15-12
25) Washington State def. Marquette 25-21, 22-25, 25-19, 25-20
35) Purdue def. 27) Iowa State 26-24, 25-21, 25-13
whatever.
dominate, crush, and destroy.
and serve tough anyways.
thats the way of it na wahine. go bows!
This is going to be a great weekend. Hawaii is ready for it.
I would love to see Mitchem do some step outs when she’s hitting from the right during that one rotation. And I hope Dave keeps her in there at times in the back row for the pipe. Now is the time of the year where you play your whole hand. No holding back.
I know we will miss Olivia’s blocking, but I really do believe this team is ready. Once we get past this weekend of death, teams will be shaking in their boots when they have to go through us. I’m so stinking excited.
“Swing Annie”, What a great article Cindy! Damon Runyon class. I am almost afraid to watch but I will. Go Bows!!!
#26 Totally – love watching Mitchem return to her terminator status when Annie was the JUCO National Player of the Year. Congrats for a great year and everyone is so happy for you.
This weekend will be a toe-to-toe fight on every play for every single point. Lets show them wahine volleyball at its best! Go Bows!
yes! unleash the Phoenix within Annie, Nikki and the whole team!!
feel the wrath!
26. thank you. Just met the mom in the hotel lobby. Annie looks so much like her. Pretty lady. She had booked to come to senior night but son was dealing with his chemo and she stayed to take care of him.
http://hawaiiwarriorworld.com/?p=40504