‘Soft opening’ shows Wahine are ready

The Teraflex was down.

The stands were out.

The fans were in the seats, although the crowd size was more like those at Big West away matches than what normally fills the Stan Sheriff Center.

Still, Saturday’s Green-White scrimmage was as close to a game situation as Hawaii had seen in its two weeks of preseason volleyball practice.

The "soft opening" for the Rainbow Wahine marked the end of double-day sessions. Monday not only is a return to school but a return to the single morning practice that kicks off the first game week of the season, coach Dave Shoji’s 40th.

Hawaii heads into Friday’s 7:30 p.m. opener with Ohio with a better idea of who will start against the Bobcats. As some 300 fans saw in the last of the three sets played Saturday, that likely lineup will be stacked with returning players but not many who started in 2013.

"I think we’re pretty close but haven’t really made that final decision," Shoji said. "Are we ready for Friday? We’re close on that, too. We’re playing good defense, we’re going to be good in the middle.

"It was nice to play for a lot of people. We had no idea how many people would be here. It was a good dress rehearsal for next Friday."

Previous scrimmages had been open only to booster club members, family and friends. Saturday’s event was open to the public as part of the Fan Appreciation Pa‘ina that included a football scrimmage on the nearby T.C. Ching Field.

The Wahine players enjoyed playing in front a crowd.

"It was different having people here, but it was good," sophomore setter Tayler Higgins said. "The new girls could see what game day is going to be like. It brought back a lot of memories from last year.

"Overall, I think it went well. Everyone went hard. We still need to work on some things with certain hitters and our communication. But it was good."

Higgins likely will get the start Friday, as will middle blockers Kalei Adolpho, a senior, and Olivia Magill, a junior transfer from Arizona. Magill was impressive with scrimmage highs of 13 kills and a .310 hitting percentage.

"At first, there was a little bit of jitters," Magill said. "But we got more comfortable and got over it and we started playing how we do in practice. It was fun when the fans were appreciative of a long rally and cheered for us."

With sophomore hitter Nikki Taylor out indefinitely (sprained elbow), Hawaii’s game plan has changed. Magill is expected to play a key role and "we’ll be trying to get her the ball a lot," Shoji said.

"She’s physical, can elevate and go over the block."

Another new face that likely will work her way into the lineup quickly is freshman hitter Kalei Greeley. The 6-foot-2 Greeley, from Riverside, Calif., was second in kills when playing on the side with mostly newcomers.

"Kalei looked really good today, she’s ready to play and she’s going to play this weekend," Shoji said. "She’s been slowed by an ankle injury (rolled left ankle in practice last Monday) and a sore shoulder, but she looked sharp today."

Hawaii’s other outside hitters include junior Tai Manu-Olevao, who started 27 matches last year; junior Ginger Long, a reserve in 19 matches; Keani Passi, the national junior college player of the year in 2012 out of Southern Idaho; and freshman Megan Huff. Long put down nine kills, Manu-Olevao eight and Passi seven Saturday.

Manu-Olevao will sit out Sunday’s match with San Diego State due to religious beliefs, one of three Sunday matches this season. With Taylor also out, the Wahine will be down to four outside hitters for the three spots against the Aztecs — Long, Passi, Greeley and Huff.

Senior Sarah Mendoza and freshman Savannah Kahakai are 1-2 at defensive specialist, with Mendoza likely to get the nod as starting libero Friday. The Chevron Invitational begins with the 5 p.m. match between Arizona State and San Diego State.

Note

The scrimmage format saw various lineups, with setters Higgins and freshman Kendra Koelsch changing sides each set. The side that included mostly freshmen also used volunteer coach James Ka sparingly as an outside hitter. His kill late in Set 3 highlighted a 5-1 closing run that saw his team rally for a 26-24 win. … Season-ticket sales are at their highest since 2008’s 3,799, with 3,793 sold through Friday.