Final four sales slow
By Stephen Tsai
Advertiser Staff Writer
The University of Hawai'i is expected to fall short of its promise to sell at least 7,000 tickets for each night of this week's NCAA men's volleyball championship tournament at the Stan Sheriff Center.
SCHEDULE: Thursday—Penn State (23-6) vs. Long Beach State (27-6), 6 p.m.; Lewis (19-13) vs. Brigham Young (27-4), 8 p.m. Saturday—championship, 4 p.m. WHERE: Stan Sheriff Center. PARKING: $3. TICKETS: Packages—$28 (lower level), $24 (upper level), $16 (upper level/senior citizens), $6 (UH students, ages 4-18). Individual—$15 (lower level), $13 (upper level), $9 (upper level/senior citizens), $3 (UH students, ages 4-18). TELEVISION: ESPN2 will show 6 p.m. semifinal live, 8 p.m. semifinal tape-delayed at 8 a.m. on Friday, and the championship live. RADIO: None.
UH did not qualify for the final four, which features Brigham Young, Long Beach State, Penn State and defending national champion Lewis (of Illinois).
WHAT: NCAA men's volleyball final four.
UH coach Mike Wilton said he was told about 3,200 ticket packages were sold through last week. Packages for the semifinal matches Thursday and championship Saturday are priced from $28 for a reserved seat in the lower bowl to $6 for an upper-level seat for UH students or fans ages 4 through 18.
UH athletic director Herman Frazier said he did not know if the school was responsible for making up the difference between the pledge and the actual number of tickets sold. "It's something we'll try to work out," Frazier said.
Wilton said: "You'd like to have a huge crowd. I think there will be some good volleyball being played."
UH's guarantee of 7,000 per night appeared to be conservative. The 1998 NCAA final four was played in Hawai'i, and although UH did not compete in that tournament, 9,079 tickets were issued for the semifinals and 9,822 for the championship match. The Stan Sheriff Center has a seating capacity of 10,300.
"I don't think we'll hit 10,000 (combined) for the two nights," Wilton said.
The slump in ticket sales could be traced to these factors:
- Not only did the Warriors fail to qualify for the final four, their season ended in the quarterfinals of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation playoffs.
- Although it was announced in 2002 that UH would serve as host to the 2004 final four, ticket packages did not go on sale until this past March 15. UH squandered a chance to sell tickets at the height of the program's popularity — Feb. 26-28 — when the Warriors, then ranked No. 1, hosted two matches against No. 2 UCLA.
- Each of the final four teams has played in Hawai'i this year. What's more, the semifinals are scheduled on the same night as the series finale of the television show "Friends."
- UH's bid was accepted one year too late. UH actually bid for the 2003 final four, hoping to capitalize on its 2002 national championship.
Instead, the NCAA awarded the 2003 final four to Long Beach State. Soon after, the NCAA announced the tournaments would be held in Hawai'i in 2004 and UCLA in 2005. Long Beach State had been building toward this season, and the NCAA could have realized larger crowds by awarding the final four to UH last year and Long Beach State this year.
Wilton and Frazier said a poor turnout for this final four would not hurt UH's chances to host in the future. UH led the nation in attendance for the 10th consecutive year, despite an average turnstile count of 4,125 per MPSF home match.
"Keep in mind, how many schools can really put on an event like this?" Frazier said. "We have the best crowds at this institution than any other place in the country."
Reach Stephen Tsai at stsai@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8051.
