Georgia Tech tested Rainbows' resolve
| • | Ferd Lewis: Dallas not just a destination but a chance to fulfill destiny |
By Ann Miller
Advertiser Staff Writer
In the middle of the second game of Friday's NCAA Regional semifinal between Hawai'i and Illinois, the Rainbow Wahine were rolling to their 34th consecutive volleyball victory so easily a fan joked that coach Dave Shoji should "put in the second team already."
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The mood was dramatically different in Saturday's regional final against Georgia Tech.
Kim Willoughby, right, has the appropriate head wear in hand as she and Lily Kahumoku say their aloha after clinching a trip to the final four in Dallas.
When the Rambling Wreck finally ran out of gas, falling in four volatile games (32-34, 33-31, 30-24, 30-25), Hawai'i was running on fumes — the Rainbows and the 8,848 in Stan Sheriff Center.
"It was well-played," said Shoji, who admitted to being drained. "I think everyone was just entertained and everyone's emotions were really into the match. I honestly think if we'd lost, everybody would have been OK with it. We didn't play poorly. We played great and we still could have lost."
Tech, with its high-tech attack and relentlessness, was intensely entertaining. It forced the second-ranked Rainbow Wahine to re-discover the depth of their desire and talent, and re-claim what they see as "their place" in the final four.
The 'Bows play third-ranked Florida in one semifinal Thursday at Reunion Arena in Dallas. Top-ranked Southern California takes on 14th-ranked Minnesota in the other.
Hawai'i admitted to "relief" at being there after grinding down the Rambling Wreck. Karin Lundqvist, who has seamlessly filled the void left by Maja Gustin's injury in this postseason, said it was "nerve wracking" to watch from the bench when she came out in the back row.
• Where: Reunion Arena, Dallas • When:
"When you're on the outside, you realized how really tight it was and you could see how good Georgia Tech was playing," Lundqvist said. "They were fighting really hard. It was an amazing feeling to win."
Final Four
The teams came in leading the country in kills and assists. They are among the top five in hitting percentage, and all but identical down the statistical line.
Saturday night, they could not stop one another. Tech's offense made the 'Bows dizzy, but the Yellow Jackets never slowed UH All-Americans Kim Willoughby and Lily Kahumoku, with Nohea Tano finishing them off in the final game.
It made for brilliant volleyball and a wonderful warmup to the final week for Hawai'i's seven seniors.
"We were not having our own way, but we still had enough to win," Shoji said. "We just dug down deep and made the plays.
"To have to grind out a win like that was just tremendous," he added. "I wasn't sure how long we could keep grinding. I was hoping they (the Yellow Jackets) couldn't keep it up, but they did. It was like (the 1999 regional loss to) Texas A&M all over. That's why I'm so proud of my team, because it hung in there and hung in there, and got a couple breaks and was able to outlast them."
Now Florida is the sole focus. This match has been anticipated since both teams lost to USC here in August. Each has won all 35 matches since, and the Gators are in the midst of an NCAA-record 103-game winning streak.
Each team is also down a starting middle blocker, though Gustin's sprained ankle is well enough that she could play at the final four. Florida lost second-team All-American Benavia Jenkins in October with a knee injury.
"We're going to have to play our best volleyball of the year, that's obvious," Shoji says. "Every step has been a little harder, and we know Florida is tougher than Georgia Tech. But it will be a different style. I like lining up and just having to beat a team straight up — your power against our power, your ballhandling against ours. Georgia Tech was a whole new game."
Now, the Rainbow Wahine are precisely where they said they would be back in August.
"What we need now is to have the confidence in each other that we do have," Lundqvist says. "And play with the joy that we do. If we're able to pull that off, everything will just flow. We're all on the same page. We know what we want. We're right where we want to be."
QUICK SETS: Hawai'i and Florida play in Thursday's second semifinal, scheduled to start at 4:30 p.m. HST. ESPN2 will show the match on a one-day delay basis at 10 a.m. Friday, but a local station might show the match live. ... Saturday's championship starts at 10:30 a.m. HST. It is scheduled to be shown live on ESPN2. ... The Rainbow Wahine Banquet will be Sunday, Jan. 18, at Hale Koa Hotel. It starts with cocktails at 5:30 p.m. and dinner at 6:30. Cost is $35 until the end of the year and $50 from Jan. 1-18. For reservations and information, call 735-8697.
Reach Ann Miller at amiller@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8043.
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