Following a five-set comeback victory, the ceremonial duty of finalizing Hawaii’s place in the NCAA men’s volleyball final was granted to one of the staffers who helped keep the Rainbow Warriors primed for the rigors of a championship run.

Michael Tang, a graduate assistant athletic trainer, had received the assignment of affixing the “Hawaii” sticker on the bracket displayed in Pauley Pavilion two days before the semifinal win over Ball State.

After the Warriors’ sweep against North Greenville in the tournament’s opening round, “(UH opposite Dimitrios Mouchlias) said, ‘You have a task in two days,’ and I didn’t think much of it,” Tang recalled.

“We won against Ball State and Dimi was like, ‘Here’s the sticker, go do your task.’ That was actually a really cool moment.”

Another two days later, Tang capped his two-year stint as part of UH’s training staff by watching the Warriors celebrate their second straight national championship.

The attitude of “when, not if” in the Warriors’ march to the final match of the collegiate men’s volleyball season had been ingrained since the defending national champions reported for their first session with assistant strength and conditioning coordinator Josh Elms back in August.

The efforts of Tang and Elms came into focus just over eight months later as the Warriors found another gear to rally past Ball State in the NCAA semifinals, then swept past Long Beach State in the title match.

“We plan for the national championship game and we work backwards from there,” Elms said of preparing for the 32-match grind. “Just constantly preaching that when we get to that point — not if — we want to be the team that’s the most physically prepared, we want to be the strongest, we want to be the most explosive.

“The approach is always with the big picture of winning the national championship.”

UH setter Jakob Thelle’s dynamic skill set remained a centerpiece of the Warriors’ attack — whether in running the offense, hitting on the second touch or firing from the service line — despite playing through an aching knee over the last month of the season.

“I played on a pretty fat knee and I got a lot of good help from our trainer, Michael Tang,” Thelle said after the team’s downtown rally to celebrate the title. “Without him, I wouldn’t be on the court.”

Thelle injured his knee in the week leading into UH’s series at Long Beach State in early April. He went the distance in two four-set losses, the only hint of his injury coming when he didn’t bounce back up immediately after laying out for a ball late in the series finale.

“I’m watching those matches and I’m not sure he could finish any of the eight sets that we played. But he just kept going,” UH coach Charlie Wade said.

“Going forward, it was pretty much a daily thing. We had to do some load management to figure out how to get him in the best shape to play on the weekend.”

Tang, who was assigned to the men’s volleyball team in January, credited a collective effort with team doctors to come up with a treatment plan and Elms modified workouts to maintain Thelle’s conditioning.

Despite the injury, Elms said, Thelle didn’t miss a weight-room session. While Thelle didn’t lift as heavy and squats were ruled out, “we found ways to work the muscles in his legs and just get more creative,” said Elms, a former UH pitcher.

“Honestly, I think he showed everybody just how tough he actually is, because there are a lot of people who would not have played through the swelling and the pain he was feeling,” Elms said.

“He’s not going to sit there and worry about, ‘I can’t do this, I can’t do that.’ It’s ‘What can I do to get better?’”

Outside hitter Chaz Galloway and middle blocker Cole Hogland had missed time during the season due to injuries but returned to the starting lineup ahead of schedule as the Warriors surged to the title repeat.

“Being able to see them accomplish that after coming in to do treatment and rehab almost every single day to get to that point is pretty satisfying,” said Tang, who will spend the rest of 2022 as a seasonal athletic training intern with the Kansas City Chiefs.

While Tang transitions into the next phase of his career, the returning Warriors have already shifted their focus to a run toward a third title, with some getting back into the weight room shortly upon returning from Los Angeles.

“It’s awesome to be part of a team that’s really driven,” Elms said, “that wants to not only be good but be great, and wants to improve and constantly get better.”

Reach Jason Kaneshiro at jkaneshiro@staradvertiser.com