BYUH looks for consistency in NCAA II volleyball playoffs
By Brandon Masuoka
Advertiser Staff Writer
After winning two ragged postseason matches, the third-ranked Brigham Young-Hawai'i women's volleyball team has clawed its way into the NCAA Division II quarterfinals.
"We definitely haven't peaked yet," BYUH coach Wilfred Navalta said. "I don't know if that's good or bad because we're still struggling. We haven't come close to peaking where we control a lot of situations."
The Seasiders defeated Cal State-Los Angeles, 30-24, 30-20, 30-17, in the semifinals of the NCAA Pacific Region Tournament last Friday, and followed that by beating Cal State-San Bernardino, 30-19, 21-30, 30-26, 30-25, in Saturday's final.
BYUH (24-2) will now play 25th-ranked New Haven, Conn. (34-5) on Dec. 5 in the Elite Eight in Canyon, Texas. New Haven, led by AVCA Northeast Region Coach of the Year Robin Salters, has a school-record 29-match winning streak; BYUH has a seven-match winning streak.
The Seasiders have struggled in three consecutive matches dating to its five-game victory over HPU on Nov. 16. Navalta said he hopes to reverse that trend against New Haven with some quality practices this week.
"I'm just trying to find some answers," Navalta said. "Against Cal State-Los Angeles we did not have a good match. Against San Bernardino, we were up and down. We had some big leads and just kind of waited around, and waited for San Bernardino to make mistakes. They got some momentum and came right back at us."
Navalta said he extended practice 30 to 45 minutes on Tuesday to help his team re-focus for New Haven.
"I tried to bring them back to reality," Navalta said. "If we want any chance of winning the nationals, we have to be consistent in our practices."
Navalta, whose Seasiders last won the national title in 1999, said one of the keys to winning the nationals is luck. He said rally scoring makes every game important.
"With rally scoring, anything can happen," Navalta said. "But if we stay focused, work hard, keep our concentration, and give our best effort, then we'll be hard to beat."
The quarterfinals of the NCAA Division II Women's Volleyball Championship features fourth-ranked Grand Valley (Mich.) State (31-2), Edinboro, Pa. (26-8), 10th-ranked Truman, Mo. (26-8), top-ranked West Texas A&M (35-2), second-ranked Northern Colorado (31-2), seventh-ranked Tampa, Fla. (27-6), New Haven and BYUH.
BYUH's bracket features New Haven, Northern Colorado and Tampa. Tampa knocked off defending champion Barry, while Northern Colorado defeated last year's runner-up, South Dakota State.
The semifinals are on Dec. 6 followed by the final on Dec. 7.
• Seasiders back on top: The Brigham Young-Hawai'i women's volleyball team, which was unranked in the preseason, won the six-team Pacific West Conference. The Seasiders finished the regular season 22-2 overall and 9-1 in the PacWest.
Defending conference champion Hawai'i Pacific (14-9, 6-4) finished second, followed by Chaminade (15-7, 6-4), Western New Mexico (19-13, 3-7), Montana State-Billings (9-18, 3-7) and Hawai'i-Hilo (8-18, 3-7).
BASKETBALL
• Noisemakers silenced: Chaminade and Virginia fans were asked by a game official to stop pounding artificial noisemakers similar to ThunderStix during Monday's basketball game in the EA Sports Maui Invitational.
The noisemakers, made popular by the Anaheim Angels during the World Series, are banned at basketball games by the NCAA.
The official warned fans that their team would be assessed a technical foul if they continued to pound away during the game.
"I'll be honest with you, I don't have any idea whose idea that was," Chaminade head coach Aaron Griess said of the noisemakers. "I didn't have anything to do with it. Don't blame me."
The next day, signs were posted at tournament entrances warning fans not to use artificial noisemakers during the game.
VOLLEYBALL
Last week's results
UC-San Diego def. Chaminade, 30-19, 30-23, 30-17
BYUH def. Cal State-Los Angeles, 30-24, 30-20, 30-17
BYUH def. Cal State-San Bernardino, 30-19, 21-30, 30-26, 30-25
Upcoming schedule
Dec. 5-7
NCAA Elite Eight Volleyball Tournament in Canyon, Texas
BASKETBALL
This week's schedule and results
Sunday's result
Hawai'i-Hilo 75, Oakland City 73
Monday's results
BYUH 103, Oakland City 75
Hawai'i Pacific 83, St. Mary's (TX) 78
Virginia 86, Chaminade 72
Tuesday's results
Arizona State 101, Chaminade 72
Southern Colorado 70, Western New Mexico 66
Yesterday's results
Hawai'i Pacific vs. Carleton
Chaminade vs. Massachusetts
Montana State-Billings at St. Martin's
Tomorrow's games
BYUH vs. Western Washington
Hawai'i-Hilo vs. Drake
Western New Mexico at Coca Cola Classic
Saturday's games
BYUH vs. St. Martin's
Chaminade vs. Carleton
Hawai'i-Hilo vs. Vermont
Montana State-Billings vs. Minot State
Western New Mexico at Coca Cola Classic
