Then again, the Tritons have not been successful against anybody. In 13 seasons, they are 11-238 in Mountain Pacific Sports Federation matches. An incoming seventh grader has a better chance of gaining admission into Kamehameha Schools (7-to-1 odds) than the Tritons have of winning a league match (23-to-1).

"You can't look past them," UH outside hitter Matt Bender said. "That's part of being a good team. You have to play to your level. San Diego is a good team, and (it) can play really well. We have to watch out."

The Warriors are scarred after losing consecutive three-game matches to Brigham Young last week in Provo, Utah. They did not have an ace during that series, middle blocker Mauli'a LaBarre was benched for missing a team meeting and the outside hitters were ineffective.

With a 3-hour practice Monday and a 2ý-hour workout yesterday, coach Mike Wilton said the Warriors are prepared for a fresh start. What happened in Utah stays in Utah.

"They're so embarrassed by what happened in Utah, we're not even going to talk about it anymore," Wilton said. "It's time to move on. We have no memory of what's happened before."

Wilton has opened the competition at every position except opposite hitter (Pedro Azenha is the most reliable attacker) and libero (Alfred Reft is the only defensive specialist on the 12-player travel roster).

Bender, who entered the trip as the team's second-best attacker, is competing against Lauri Hakala for the starting job at left-side hitter.

"That's how it should be," Bender said. "The best player should be playing. I'm all for it. If I want to play, I have to play the best."

Bender said he has not completely recovered from flu-like symptoms. "I have a little congestion," he said.

Wilton said: "He still doesn't seem very strong to me after being sick."

LaBarre, meanwhile, is challenging Kyle Klinger, Dionisio Dante and Jake Schkud for one of the two middle positions.

Wilton said Schkud, who also can play outside hitter, appears to be more comfortable in the middle. "He might be a jack-of-all trades for us," Wilton said. "He's mostly adept at playing in the middle, but on the second night at BYU, he was our best outside hitter. Not that he was great, but he had his nostrils out of the water."

The Tritons are a Division II team that does not offer volleyball scholarships.

"We're like every other team," coach Ronald Larsen said. "We go to the gym, work hard and try to get better. If you have the horses, maybe you compete better. If you have money, maybe you get more horses. The nice thing is our players don't get (scholarship) money. They're playing because they love the sport."

Reach Stephen Tsai at stsai@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8051.

Rematch for UH women

The University of Hawai'i women's volleyball team, which lost an exhibition match to Nebraska last Friday, will open the 2005 season against the Cornhuskers in the AVCA/NACWAA Volleyball Showcase on Aug. 26.

The American Volleyball Coaches Association/National Association of Collegiate Women Athletics Administrators yesterday announced that UH, Nebraska, Stanford and Penn State will play in the season-opening event at Omaha, Neb., Aug. 26 and 27.

The host Cornhuskers will be making their fifth appearance in the event, and the first since 2001 when they won the championship. Penn State will also be making its fifth appearance while UH and Stanford will be playing in the event for the fourth time.

Stanford won the NCAA title last year, finishing the season 30-6 and No. 1 in the final coaches' poll. Nebraska finished 30-2 at No. 5, Penn State 29-3 at No. 7, and Hawai'i 30-1 at No. 8.

"This year's tournament showcases four of the top volleyball programs across the country, and is one of the strongest fields ever presented in the 11-year history of this event," AVCA executive director Katherine McConnell said in a press release. "The event will be a spectacular introduction into the 2005 volleyball season."

— Advertiser Staff