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If wishes come true, the University of Hawaii men’s volleyball team will start where it left off nine months ago.
The past March, the Rainbow Warriors prepared for a Big West road match against Cal State Northridge. But the coronavirus outbreak forced the cancellation of that two-match series and eventually the rest of the season.
Of the 2021 season, head coach Charlie Wade noted, the “first match figures to be, ironically, the exact same place (Northridge) where the (2020) season ended, that same weekend in March.”
Tentative plans call for a league-only regular season for Big West teams, with a round-robin of three-match series. Only the first two matches of a series would count toward the standings — and the Big West tournament’s seedings. “If you’re only playing league games, you want to max it out,” Wade said of expanding series from the usual two matches to three.
Wade said players would welcome playing on three consecutive nights.
“The players always would rather play games than practice,” Wade said. “We try to make our practices harder than the game, so the games should be a little easier. And as a coach, you’ve got to manage. … If you only have one guy who can score and you have to set him every time three nights in a row, yeah, you’re at a disadvantage on that third night. But that third night is nonconference. We don’t have any problem playing three nights in a row. We do that in tournaments. Theoretically you have to do that in the Big West tournament and the NCAA Tournament. It’s not that bad to get into that mind-set.”
After five weeks of training in November and early December, the Warriors took a break for final exams. The past Friday and Sunday, the Warriors took the antigen COVID-19 test to re-establish the “bubble.” Monday was the first practice of training camp. Wade said four players were set to arrive on Wednesday. Outside hitter Filip Humler and setter Jakob Thelle — both of whom have been in Europe since March — are scheduled to return next week. Starting today, the Warriors will undergo the molecular (PCR) tests once a week. COVID-19 testing will expand to three times a week as the season nears.
Because the 2020 season was cut short, the NCAA granted a do-over, meaning each player will retain the same class standing in 2021. Three All-Americans — outside hitter Colton Cowell, middle Patrick Gasman and opposite Rado Parapunov — are back for their second senior season. Wade said there will be three third-year freshmen and a fourth-year sophomore. Cowell, Gasman and Parapunov are in grad school. “We have third-year freshmen going like, ‘I can slow down and get a master’s or I can speed up and get a PhD,” Wade said. “We have more people who are going to walk out of here with a graduate degree in the next three or four years than in the history of the program combined.”
Some observations from Wade:
>> Cowell, at 6 feet 1, is poised for an MVP-caliber season. Cowell, who can touch 11 feet 7, can consistently launch above-the-antenna-level shots. His serve can reach 70 mph. And Cowell is the league’s best serve-receiver. “There aren’t many people on the planet who can pass like him,” Wade said. “Colton is in the best shape of his life. He’s playing at a higher level that we’ve ever seen.”
>> In the competition for the the second middle position opposite Gasman, Max Rosenfeld made large gains in fall training. “He was on the floor when we beat Lewis and BYU last year,” Wade said. “He’s good. He’s really worked hard. He’s in his fourth year and he still has three years of eligibility. He’s playing at a really high level. He’s crushing serves.”
Alaka‘i Todd is a third-year freshman who grew an inch, up to 6-9, and is capable of touching 11-8.
>> There are several contenders for the second left-side spot. Humler, who started last season, should not need much time to regain form after he arrives next week. Wade praised Chaz Galloway and Devon Johnson, and offered that Spyros Chakas is “closer to starting than not. He’s really impressive.” Punahou graduate Kana‘i Akana has transferred from BYU.
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