UH’s Joe Worsley understands his role in preparing for the NCAA tourney

COLUMBUS, Ohio >> The thing about recruiting a coach’s child is that the recruiting coach knows exactly what he or she is getting.

That player has grown up in the gym; knows all about the hard work and sacrifices it takes to be successful; knows that the game isn’t left behind on the court but is along for the ride home … accompanied by talking and analysis and more talking.

Lots more talking.

That player has been taught the fundamentals, likely can recite by heart every pep talk ever given in movies ranging from “Knute Rockne, All American” to “Hoosiers” to “Coach Carter” to “Space Jam.” And will be another coach, either on the floor or on the sidelines, one who knows it’s “Team First.”

For Hawaii, that player is Joe Worsley. The sophomore reserve setter — son of longtime volleyball coach Roger — knows his role in helping the fourth-seeded Rainbow Warriors prepare for Tuesday’s NCAA men’s volleyball tournament play-in match with fifth-seeded Penn State.

The 19-year-old knows he has to be ready to do whatever is asked, even if it’s as a serving sub late in a set or starting in a match that Hawaii could almost guarantee would be a short night. As Worsley did when starting in place of senior Jennings Franciskovic twice against Grand View and once at Lindenwood.

“My role is to make sure, as a team, we’re all getting better, whoever is on the court,” said Worsley, who has played in all 31 matches for the Warriors (26-5). “It’s for the future for those of us who will be back next year. But right now, it’s for this week.

“We want to be playing our best at this time of the season.”

That the Warriors are in contention for the national title this week at St. John Arena is, in part, due to Worsley. He epitomizes what Hawaii has preached all season: unselfishness.

“If guys are worried about how much playing time they get, we’re not going to be as successful as we want to be,” Worsley said.

“He’s just a really good volleyball player and he makes us better every day,” Hawaii coach Charlie Wade said. “Our ‘B’ side is playing at such a high level, pushing the other side every day.

“We’re lucky to have him.”

The 6-foot Worsley was recruited by a number of top schools as a libero. The exception was Hawaii.

He had been a setter almost exclusively since age 9, a position where he led Campolindo High to four sectional and three regional titles in California, and his club team to two junior national championships.

But size matters at the collegiate level and many felt that Worsley would be better served continuing the path he was on with the U.S. youth national team … as a libero.

“Everyone else was saying to him that you would be THE libero but could be ‘a’ setter,” Wade said. “I said I’d be willing to have him be THE setter. He proved that last year when we won matches with him setting.

“I watched him in high school, his location was really good, he got good matchups and he understood the game.”

Some of that IQ came from growing up around the game and around his father. Roger, a longtime coach, co-founder and co-director of Pacific Rim Volleyball Academy, and former technical assistant for the Rainbow Wahine in 2000.

The Worsley family has deep roots in the islands. Roger Worsley was born in Honolulu, his father went to law school at the University of Hawaii, and his mother’s side goes back several generations on Oahu.

Joe Worsley has vivid memories of when his father was on the Wahine coaching staff, of how his mother Christine would take him and younger brother Gage into the upper level of the Stan Sheriff Center and let her sons run off some energy. The mental snapshots include hanging with two other sons of a coach — Kawika and Erik Shoji, sons of now-retired Wahine coach Dave — booster potlucks, pregame team meals and the fans … all of those memories playing into his decision to play for the Warriors.

“Hawaii was my first recruiting trip and I said I wouldn’t choose until after I finished all the visits,” said Worsley, who made visits to Ohio State, UCLA and Pepperdine. “I came to a Wahine game against UCLA and I saw all the fans and how they loved the sport, too. It wasn’t until I went to the other schools that I realized how different it was here.”

And, now, five time zones away, Worsley and Hawaii are here, at Ohio State. And, as the Warriors say, they “get chance.”

“If you’re in the tournament, you can win,” Worsley said. “Every team is a contender. But this team specifically, absolutely, has the talent to win it.

“It will take an entire team effort, especially with the road cut out for us (the bracket). We’ll have to bring it. We’ve been planning on this since the end of last year. We’ve had our eyes on this week. Absolutely, we can win this.”

It is no surprise that Worsley, a psychology major, knows where he’ll be later in life. In a gym as a coach.

Note

Worsley will be joined by brother Gage, Hawaii’s only signee for next season, and highly touted libero. “It’s going to be the best years of my life,”Joe Worsley said. “I’m super stoked that we’ll be playing together again.” It will be the first time since Victor and Brian Poppinga played together in 1988 that the Warriors will have two brothers on the same roster.