In the Beginning...
By Dennis Oda, Star-Bulletin
Newcomers Andre Breuer, left, and Dejan Miladinovic, center, join senior captain Naveh Milo in the rotation for the Rainbows this season.
Four teams with legitimate shots at reaching the NCAA final four start the volleyball season where each hopes it will be when it ends
By Cindy Luis
Star-BulletinTHE goal - not just A goal - is to be the one team that finishes its season with a victory. This year, that final match is in the Special Events Arena on May 2.
This week, four men's volleyball teams that have a legitimate shot at walking away with the NCAA title five months from now get an early trial run. The fourth Outrigger Hotels Invitational reunites the three final four teams that did not win the 1997 championship - UCLA, Penn State and Ball State - along with host Hawaii.
It's early, but the outcome of the three-night round-robin event will be a good indication of how far along each team is. And, especially, how far each team needs to go.
"I don't know if we're favored in this," said Hawaii coach Mike Wilton. "I think UCLA is probably the favorite. But it's so early. You just don't know until you play."
A look at the four teams with last season's record in parenthesis:
HAWAII (18-11): The Rainbows hope to start the season the same way they hope to end it: with a victory at home.
Wilton recruited with that in mind, bringing in 12 new players, including foreign players with a wealth of international experience. The newcomers should more than make up for the loss of the graduating class that included all-Americans Jason Ring and Aaron Wilton, UH career assist leader Curt Vaughan and Rick Tune, one of the country's leading blockers.
Five of the recruits could start tomorrow, including two who joined the team last week: hard-hitting Chris Kosty, a 6-3 junior swing hitter from Golden West (Calif.) and Puerto Rican junior national team setter Jorge Perez, a 6-foot freshman.
At opposite is expected to be Jorge Alifonso, 6-2 freshman from Puerto Rico. Blockers Andre Breuer, a 6-9 sophomore from Germany, and Dejan Miladinovic, a 6-7 freshman from Serbia, are expected to put up a huge wall in the middle.
"Changing teammates ... that's how it goes in sports," said senior captain Naveh Milo, who may be the lone returning starter in tomorrow's lineup. "The new players come from a very high level of volleyball and they understand how big volleyball is here."
"The goal is the final four," said Breuer, impressive in three preseason wins over Pepperdine. "If we play good, we will reach the final four. And, with it here, it will be such a big advantage for us."
The Rainbows have won this tournament the past two years, including last season when they, Penn State and UCLA all finished with 2-1 records. The tiebreaker gave Hawaii the title with a win over the Nittany Lions, the only loss Penn State would suffer until the NCAA semifinal match against UCLA.
Penn State lost possibly the greatest player in the program's history to graduation. Middle blocker Ivan Contreras finished his senior year as the National Player of the Year.
Also gone from the Lions' bench is senior hitter Jason Kepner, a second-team all-American. But they return three starters from the NCAA semifinal team that lost to UCLA in five: senior Sergio Pampena, a 6-5 middle; senior setter Dan Pollock; and junior hitter Tony Mazzullo.
Penn State has advanced to the final four the past seven years, and 10 of the last 13 years. The Lions' won it all in 1994 and finished second in 1995, both times against UCLA.
In the Invitational, Penn State is 3-5. The Lions were third in 1995 and second last season.
Penn State handed UCLA its first-ever defeat in a season opener in last year's Invitational. The Bruins would eventually lose for only the fourth time in 20 NCAA final four championship matches when falling in five to Stanford.
That is scary news for UCLA opponents.
In Al Scates' previous 35 seasons, his team has come back to win the national title every year following a second-place finish.
The Bruins, ranked second in the Volleyball magazine poll, have a good returning nucleus to keep their streak going. Back are 6-5 setter Brandon Taliaferro and 6-10 middle Adam Naeve, both of whom were named second-team All-Americans as freshmen last year.
UCLA lost three-time All-American blocker Paul Nihipali, the MVP of the 1997 Invitational, as well as defensive specialist Trong Nguyen. But the Bruins have plenty of experienced firepower in senior hitter Tom Stillwell, who led the country in blocks per game (1.89) and junior hitter Fred Robins of Waimanalo, who is beginning his third season as a starter.
UCLA won the inaugural Invitational in 1995, and finished second in 1996 when falling to Hawaii in a 3-hour thriller considered one of the best collegiate matches ever played. On a tiebreaker, the Bruins were third last year.
Ball State returns just two starters from the team that won its 20th Midwest Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (MIVA) title. The biggest loss is two-time all-American setter Eduardo Ferraz, who graduated with the second-highest total of career assists in NCAA history.
"We have only two starters back," said coach Don Shondell, who is beginning his 34th season.
"But the two (Jason Fehr and David Bik) are extremely talented.
"We also return a setter in Mitch Sadowsky, who has some experience. And we have a bunch of newcomers who I think could very well be the greatest recruiting class we've ever had."
Shondell is expecting great seasons from his two seniors. In 1997, Fehr, a 6-foot-5 hitter, became only the fourth Cardinal to surpass 500 kills in a single season (562). Bik, a 6-7 blocker, ranked eighth nationally in hitting percentage (.423) and 11th in blocks per game (1.61).
Expected to round out the starting lineup are 6-4 senior hitter Adam Havice, a reserve last season who played in 33 matches, 6-4 sophomore hitter Brian Hughes and 6-7 middle sophomore Warren McCrea.
Pushing for starting spots are 6-8 freshman middle Doug Market, and 6-7 middle Pat Damm, a junior transfer from Lewis.
Ball State competed in this event in 1996, finishing third. In 1995, the Cardinals defeated Hawaii for third place in the NCAA final four, the last time a third-place match was held.
The facts
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