Punahou alumnus Ryan Wilcox makes waves in his return to Hawaii

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UC Santa Barbara outside hitter Ryan Wilcox put down a kill against UC San Diego setter Blake Crisp (23) and middle blocker Shane Benetz (16) on Saturday.

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JAMM AQUINO / JAQUINO@STARADVERTISER.COM

UC Santa Barbara outside hitter Ryan Wilcox put down a kill against UC San Diego setter Blake Crisp (23) and middle blocker Shane Benetz (16) on Saturday.

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UC Santa Barbara outside hitter Ryan Wilcox (9), middle, reacts after being named tournament MVP in the 2021 Big West Conference men’s volleyball tournament championship on Saturday, April 24, 2021, at Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu. UC Santa Barbara won in four sets to capture the 2021 Big West Conference title.

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Over two nights back home, Ryan Wilcox created memories for a lifetime.

Wilcox grew up watching volleyball matches in the Stan Sheriff Center through his All-State career at Punahou and made his second trip back to Manoa with UC Santa Barbara last week for the Big West tournament.

He’ll have a couple of prized souvenirs to commemorate his latest visit after helping lead the Gauchos to their first Big West tournament title and first NCAA tournament berth in 10 years while earning tournament MVP honors.

“I’ve been coming to the Stan Sheriff and watching volleyball games since I heard about volleyball when I was maybe 9 or 10 years old,” Wilcox said after the Gauchos outlasted UC San Diego in the tournament final on Saturday in the facility now known as SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center.

“Even with no fans it’s an amazing place and just all the history that’s happened in this arena and to be able to win the Big West Conference, it just means so much to me.”

Wilcox, a sophomore outside hitter, recorded 16 kills while hitting .324 and fired three aces in a four-set win over Long Beach State in a semifinal match last Friday. He followed with 12 kills and an ace in the championship match against UC San Diego to help the Gauchos secure the Big West’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.

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“Ryan is an all-around player and he seems to play his best in the biggest matches,” UCSB coach Rick McLaughlin said. “He doesn’t only do this when we come to Hawaii. We can always count on him for a big ace at a critical time, just like he did tonight.

“We knew what we were getting with Ryan when we recruited him. … He’s just a pleasure to coach. Something about these Hawaii guys is that they really understand the whole game of volleyball.”

Wilcox, the 2019 Big West Freshman of the Year, was on the service line for the final two points of the Gauchos’ four-set win over UC San Diego. UCSB will make its first NCAA tournament appearance since 2011 on May 4 when the Gauchos face Pepperdine in an opening round match in Columbus, Ohio. The winner will face top-seeded Hawaii on May 6.

The Gauchos’ chances of travelling to Ohio State appeared tenuous at best after dropping the first set to UCSD and facing a 23-20 deficit in the second set. The Gauchos rallied and tied the set on a call reversed after a successful challenge and went on to a 27-25 win to even the match.

UCSB managed to fend off UCSD over two more tightly contested sets to celebrate the tournament title in the empty arena.

“I think that’s the match right there,” McLaughlin said of the second-set comeback. “If we don’t pull that out and go down 2-0, it’s almost impossible to come back. Getting that run of three points and getting the call that we needed reversed, that was huge. That was everything.”