Alaka‘’i Todd won’t go so far as to say it’s the best homecourt advantage in volleyball. But it’s easy to see his appreciation as the sixth-year senior gazes around the 10,300-seat arena for one of the final times of his University of Hawaii volleyball career.
Since Todd’s first season on the UH roster in 2019, the Warriors have won 83 of their 89 matches at the Stan Sheriff Center.
This is his first year as a regular starter, but he’s been a part of two national championship teams and two others that made it to the final.
Now, even though it’s down to one-and-done at The Stanley, Todd is confident this week as the Warriors host the Big West Tournament. They need to win three nights in a row to advance to their fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament.
“I think my favorite (home court) memory is going to be this week,” Todd said Tuesday.
The old adage is that everyone needs to do their part when a star player is injured, like when the Warriors lost Spyros Chakas to injury March 10, as UH was on its way to its 16th victory in a row — which happened to be against UC Irvine, one of the teams the Warriors would have to get past this week.
In this case, everyone includes the fans.
Hawaii is 22-6 (17-2 at home), but just 5-5 after Chakas’ injury. They’re 3-1 at home, including their last two regular-season matches against UC Santa Barbara.
A big senior night crowd helped the Warriors get past the Gauchos in five sets three weekends ago. UH hosts UCSB again Thursday, the No. 3 and No. 6 seeds in the opening round of the tournament. Winner plays second-seeded UC Irvine on Friday; loser goes, or stays, home.
“In a year like this we need all the help we can get,” Warriors coach Charlie Wade said. “And several thousand of our closest friends, we’re looking forward to playing in front of them.”
Ten thousand fans can’t replace any player. But they can inspire a team to greater heights than anyone imagined.
“It really is such a blessing for us,” Wade said. “Really appreciate we live in a community that’s willing to support these kinds of events and bring the Big West championship here. That’s awesome.”
For the Warriors to take full advantage of the opportunity, they needed to beat No. 4-ranked UC Irvine, which UH split with on the road, April 5 and 6. But then the Warriors ended the regular season Saturday being swept by UC San Diego.
Concerns thought to be addressed were concerns again.
“Our league has proven again and again each week that you can’t take any night off,” Wade said.
That could be said about the loss at San Diego, even though the question was about the Warriors’ narrow escape from the Gauchos on senior night.
The Big West is held in such high regard that even a team with a losing record, No. 4 seed Cal State Northridge, is ranked 14th in the nation in the coaches poll. Teams from the Big West and MPSF hold the top seven spots in the poll, including Hawaii at No. 5.
It’s a reminder that before the Warriors concern themselves with a potential date with No. 1 Long Beach State on Saturday, they need to deal with the Anteaters on Friday. And to earn that right, they must take care of business against the feisty Gauchos on Thursday.
It’s obvious they aren’t the same team without their leading man. And in the 10 matches since losing Chakas, the Warriors have not rebuilt, better and stronger. But they’ve also not fallen completely apart — that is, if Saturday’s loss is only an aberration.
“It certainly wouldn’t surprise you — any result,” the UH coach said.
When he said that, Wade wasn’t calling an improbable shot for his own depleted team, but just stating a fact about the talent in the Big West, which has produced the winning team of four of the past five national championships — with players on the UH squads that did it in 2021 and 2022 still on the court this week.
One thing is clear: If the Warriors are to pull off the unlikely, they’re at the most likely place for it.
