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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Sunday, August 19, 2001

Ferd Lewis
Wahine can make opening statement

By Ferd Lewis
Advertiser Columnist

Eight months ago Nebraska ended a season for the University of Hawai'i Wahine volleyball team with a thud.

Friday, the Cornhuskers present an opportunity for the Wahine to open one with a bang.

If the Wahine are tired of hearing people talk about who is missing from their lineup rather than who is on hand, then Friday's season opener with Nebraska is the perfect opportunity to do something about it.

If the Wahine have had it up to their pony tails with people already turning thumbs down on their final four prospects, then the State Farm Classic in Stockton, Calif., is the place to make a statement about it.

No longer is the looming meeting with No. 1-ranked Nebraska simply about revenge for what took place in the NCAA Championships in Richmond, Va.

Indeed, if the Wahine ever looked at the schedule over the winter with the thought of a payback in mind, they have surely moved past it now.

The focus now is all about this season. Specifically, how well the Wahine play the hand that has been dealt them from a preseason that has seen both their roster and star power shrink.

We're told the Wahine have taken their mission both to heart and to exhaustion in the practice gym, taking out their frustration on the nearest leather Spaulding TF-4000 volleyball and putting their hopes in the hard work and long hours of two-a-day practices.

Nebraska, then, becomes the Wahines' best chance to refute all the dire predictions right off the bat. It is a 24-karat opportunity to come out and shout, "We told you so!"

Short of the NCAA Tournament in December, this is the best chance the Wahine will have to make their mark. And, what an exclamation point it would put on the unfolding season if they could take out a Nebraska team that has visions of laying claim not only to back-to-back national championships but to the title of the best NCAA women's team ever.

The Cornhuskers went 34-0 en route to their national championship and have the NCAA record of 44 consecutive victories in their sights. The fifth-ranked Wahine could be the highest-ranked opponent Nebraska sees in the stretch leading up to a shot at the record.

The Wahine can draw inspiration here from a history that has seen UH teams end two of the four longest winning streaks in NCAA history, halting Long Beach State's run at 42 in 1999 and Florida's roll at 37 in 1996.

But the Cornhuskers figure to be the tallest order of all — literally and figuratively. With a lineup that averages 6-foot-2, and features three All-Americans and a second-team selection, the only thing taller is their list of accolades.

This Nebraska team is, with one significant addition — 1999 national player of the year Nancy Metcalf, who sat out last year to try out for the Olympic team — the same one that recorded 23 blocks in a four-game victory over UH in the national semifinals. Meanwhile, it is a UH team that, as the Wahine have been reminded at every turn, is minus Veronica Lima, Lily Kahumoku and Jessica Sudduth.

Of course, if the Wahine can knock off Big Red, it will be Veronica Who? and Lily What? The talk will turn to who they do have and the only question will be how to get tickets for San Diego and the final four.