Wahine have a dream: Bring home a national title

Big swings, bigger dreams.

No. 3 Hawaii headed out Tuesday night for Gulf Shores, Ala., with one goal in mind: Bring home its first team championship in sand volleyball.

The SandBows (18-3) are seeded fourth in the six-team tournament that begins Friday. First up (3 a.m. Hawaii time) is No. 6 Florida International 14-2); the Golden Panthers are seeded fifth in the double-elimination event that includes top-ranked USC, No. 2 Pepperdine, No. 4 Florida State and unranked Stetson.

Junior Brittany Tiegs, paired with senior Karissa Cook at No. 1, is the only Rainbow Wahine who is familiar with the venue. Two seasons ago, she was an All-American for the Florida State team that finished third in the inaugural tournament.

"From what I remember, nice beach with winds, good sand, almost like what they’re putting in here (at the new UH campus courts)," said Tiegs, who has gone 28-4 with Cook. "The sand is not super hard, kind of jumpy, which is good for shorter players.

"It is a little different, going back playing for another school, but it’s very exciting that we are going."

And that she will be, relatively, close to home. Tiegs is from Stuart, Fla., on the Atlantic side of the state, and about a nine-hour drive from Gulf Shores.

The six-hour time difference is somewhat of a concern to Hawaii, which didn’t travel beyond California during four mainland trips this season. But head coach Scott Wong, who traveled extensively as an AVP player, feels the team will adjust.

"That will be the battle, the biggest challenge for us to go through six time zones," he said. "I’ve done it and it does take a little while to get used to.

"And we’re playing a tough team right out of the gate. So do we get a little fatigued from that or do we get into a little rhythm from that. We’ve traveled well this season. All we have to do is be good for two days right now. Friday and Saturday is the season and our focus."

Getting to Alabama was the focus from Day 1 for Hawaii, the at-large team from the West region. The SandBows’ only losses were to USC (3-2) and to Pepperdine (5-0 twice); the Women of Troy and the Waves split their two matches this season.

At some point this week, Hawaii likely will face Pepperdine, which won the inaugural championship in 2012 and lost to Long Beach State in last year’s final when it forfeited a match due to injury. Waves coach Nina Matthies said she saw tremendous growth from the first time her team played Hawaii (March 15) and the second (April 12).

"Hawaii has improved in leaps and bounds, their entire team is playing well," said Matthies, a former Pepperdine indoor coach and longtime pro beach standout. "It’s been so nice to see everyone improve in that it’s only making our sport of sand volleyball better and promoting the growth around the country."

Matthies said she likes the venue, but is hoping for better weather conditions than last May, when it was cold, windy and rainy.

"It’s in a beautiful area, a different feel than Hawaii or California," she said. "I love the venue, the city and fans have really embraced and supported our sport. Hopefully, the weather will cooperate."

Wong remembers perfect conditions when he was there in 2012 with two at-large pairs, Elizabeth Kaaihue Stolzman-Emily Hartong and Jane Croson-Ashley Lee. Having the entire team not just two pairs compete was the realistic goal, said Cook.

"It wasn’t a dream that was outlandish," said Cook, who transferred after four indoor seasons at Stanford. "I think we knew all along we could do it. And we worked hard to make it happen.

"I’m sure FIU will be great, but (to get to the title match) we’ll have to go through SC. We were so close the last time against them. It’s a matter of who is on that day."

The 3-2 loss to the Women of Troy at Queen’s Beach on March 19 came down to the final match. USC’s Kirby Burnham-Sara Hughes outlasted Tiegs-Cook 21-18, 22-24, 15-12.

"We know what to expect from them and we’ll have to play our hearts out," said Tiegs, who redshirted last season after her FSU transfer. "We’ve improved since (March 19) and it’s ridiculous how much our team has grown in the two years I’ve been here. It’s everything, the coaching, the recruiting and all the girls stepping up their play."

Hawaii is traveling 14. While the top three pairs are set in Tiegs-Cook (28-4), Katie Spieler-Nikki Taylor (30-8) and Ali Longo-Ginger Long (26-9), Wong said there is some wiggle room in the Nos. 4 and 5 spots and isn’t sure who he will play during the team portion.

The team final is Saturday afternoon.

The pairs tournament also starts Friday with the 10 at-large "Best of the Rest" duos; the top two advance to Sunday’s 16-team single-elimination bracket. The top six pairs from the team final and the top two duos from each of the losing semifinalists comprise the rest of the pairs field.