Charlie Wade planned out Hawaii’s fall schedule with late April in mind.
With UC Irvine slated to visit Honolulu for its regular-season series with the Rainbow Warriors, the UH head coach made sure to include a visit to the Bren Events Center — site of this week’s Big West Men’s Volleyball Championship — in the itinerary for their fall exhibition tour in Southern California in November.
“One hundred percent,” Wade said of UCI’s turn as tournament host playing a role in crafting the fall trip, “to get guys on the floor and in the gym and get a sense of what it looks like visually.”
“It’s hard to quantify (the impact), but it certainly doesn’t hurt, and any little 1% we’ll take.”
The top-ranked and top-seeded Warriors are scheduled to arrive in Irvine, Calif., today, bringing with them familiarity with their surroundings along with ample experience playing under tournament pressure as two-time defending national champions.
The Warriors returned to practice coming off a festive weekend with an emotional senior night on Saturday, the team banquet on Sunday, and the UH athletic department’s H Awards ceremony on Monday. UH setter Jakob Thelle received the Jack Bonham Award, which recognizes the school’s top male and female student-athletes, along with Rainbow Wahine water polo standout Emma van Rossum.
“It’s an exciting time of year, but we’re pretty familiar with the routine,” Wade said. “We benefit from always being in a postseason atmosphere and dealing with the media and more crowds. It’s just a part of our daily life.”
The Warriors earned a bye in Thursday’s opening round and enter the week focused on a semifinal matchup with fourth-seeded UC Santa Barbara or fifth-seeded UC San Diego at 2 p.m. Friday.
“We talk about our level of engagement,” Wade said of staying mindful of the moment. “Everybody knows it, but it’s still something you want to focus on. … We bring it up and just monitor your own body language, your own energy, and make sure it’s where it needs to be.”
UH swept the series with the Gauchos and Tritons in a regular season that created a chasm in the standings between the top three seeds — UH, Long Beach State and UC Irvine — and the bottom three teams — UCSB, UCSD and Cal State Northridge. The upper half all rank in the top five of this week’s NVA/AVCA Coaches poll, while the next three appear well in the 20s in the NCAA RPI.
“There was a big difference in the win-loss record,” Wade said, “But you get on the court …
“Santa Barbara and San Diego were in tight matches with the leaders in the league. That winner’s going to be good. As we suspected, (UCSB is) playing their best volleyball of the year. San Diego was just here and they were a load at home, let alone on a neutral site.”
UH hosted the last two Big West Tournaments in SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center and emerged with the title last year on the way to a second straight national championship.
Wade was complimentary of the 5,000-seat Bren Events Center, which, like the Sheriff Center, features a Taraflex playing surface for volleyball.
“Nice wide open spaces, really nice volleyball facility,” Wade said “So it’s one of the best for sure.”
UC Irvine went 8-4 at home this season and will face Cal State Northridge on Thursday, with the winner advancing to take on second-seeded Long Beach State. While the Anteaters will be in their home arena, UCI coach David Kniffin called Bren “the most neutral of the facilities in the Big West.”
“There’s really no competitive advantage to hosting because it’s such a friendly facility,” Kniffin said. “There’s no bad seat in the house and it’s also an easy place to play. So I think you’re going to see the best possible volleyball from all teams participating.”
Outrigger Big West Men’s Volleyball Championship
At Bren Events Center; Irvine, Calif.
Thursday — first round
No. 4 UC Santa Barbara vs. No. 5 UC San Diego, 2 p.m.
No. 3 UC Irvine vs. No. 6 Cal State Northridge, 4:30 p.m.
Friday — semifinals
No. 1 Hawaii vs. UCSB/UCSD winner, 2 p.m.
No. 2 Long Beach State vs. UCI/CSUN winner, 4:30 p.m.
Saturday — Championship, 4:30 p.m.
>> TV: Spectrum Sports (Thursday and Friday), ESPNU (Saturday)
>> Radio: UH matches on 1420-AM / 92.7-FM
