Carney said Lewis teammate, Jon Bergmann, a 6-foot-6 outside hitter from Clovis, Calif., is "100 percent sure he's going to UH."

Carney requested — and received — a release from his Lewis scholarship after the Romeoville, Ill., school recently announced its suggested punishment for violating a series of NCAA rules in men's volleyball. According to the recommendations, the Lewis volleyball team will forfeit its 2003 national championship, declare itself ineligible for the 2005 postseason and not recruit internationally for five years.

The NCAA is expected to announce Lewis' punishment in October.

"We got into a lot of issues over here," said Carney, who is attending classes at Lewis this semester.

After Lewis announced its self-imposed punishment, Carney and several teammates requested scholarship releases. The release allows a player to contact other schools about the possibility of transferring. Carney can receive financial aid from Lewis — and essentially remain on the Flyers' roster — until he officially notifies the school of an agreement to transfer.

Carney said UH tops a list that includes Pacific, Long Beach State and "maybe" UC Santa Barbara. Carney said he has another telephone interview scheduled with the UH coaches.

Carney, who is 6 feet 3, helped the Raiders win their first state boys volleyball championship last year. In addition to his accurate setting, Carney was an effective hitter.

"I think he's top notch," said Dave Deuser, who resigned as Lewis' head coach a month after leading the Flyers to the NCAA final four. "He's everything you want in a student-athlete. He's dedicated. He's smart. He's got it all."

In men's volleyball, transferring players are not required to serve a mandatory redshirt season. Lewis' fall semester ends Dec. 10, meaning Carney could join the Warriors for the start of training camp in January and compete during the 2005 season.