Azenha struggled, but so did Warriors' passing
By Leila Wai
Advertiser Staff Writer
A disconsolate Pedro Azenha pulled away from teammate Jose Jose Delgado, visibly distraught at being unable to help extend the season for the University of Hawai'i men's volleyball team.
Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser
Azenha, the Warriors' senior outside hitter, struggled in a loss to Long Beach State, 30-23, 30-25, 23-30, 30-22, in the quarterfinals of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation last night at the Stan Sheriff Center.
The season and college volleyball career came to an end for Hawai'i senior Pedro Azenha.
"I was just really sad because I felt like I let the team down," Azenha said. "I felt they were counting on me. I tried hard, but I'm just frustrated with myself right now.
"We had a really good chance to win it all and the season ends and I wasn't expecting it."
Azenha, who averaged a team-high 4.52 kills per game, with a .297 hitting percentage before last night's match, managed 4 kills a game but had a .156 hitting percentage last night.
"He struggled a little bit, but we didn't lose because of one player," setter Brian Beckwith said.
Junior outside hitter Matt Carere added: "It's nice when he can dig us out of ditches, but I think tonight it was too big of a hole to get us out of."
The only game Azenha hit above .200 was Game 2, when he had six kills and a .363 percentage. In the other three games, he combined for 10 kills and a .118 hitting percentage. He led the team with 45 swings.
UH's offensive woes were almost a direct result of jump-float serves by 49ers Duncan Budinger, Teddy Liles and Tyler Hildebrand, which created havoc for the Hawai'i passers and forced Beckwith to chase balls all over the court.
"They were serving really well and we couldn't get into rhythm," Carere said. "They were picking us apart."
That made Hawai'i's offense predictable, according to Hawai'i coach Mike Wilton.
"We lost a lot of options, so it made it really obvious who we were going to," Wilton said. "(Azenha) has been effective when we're in system, but hardly any hitter can be effective in that situation."
Wilton also pointed to Long Beach State's ability to dig Azenha when he was able to get a clear shot.
Long Beach State coach Alan Knipe said part of the team's game plan was to "make sure (Azenha) wasn't the one who singlehandedly beat us.
"It took everything we had to make sure he didn't hurt us."
Reach Leila Wai at lwai@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2457.
