The Hawai'i volleyball team hopes a new lineup and new schemes will mark a new beginning when it hosts UC San Diego tonight in the Stan Sheriff Center.

The Warriors, 1-4 and 0-2 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation, will open with Sean Carney and Joshua Walker at outside hitter, and Steven Grgas in the middle.

Walker, a second-year freshman, is making his second career start. His debut against Ball State lasted one game.

"I know exactly why I didn't play (after Game 1), and exactly what I had to do to get back on the court," Walker said. "I had to pass."

Walker spent extra time working on his passes, particularly in fielding float serves.

"It's starting to bear fruit now," UH coach Mike Wilton said. "He competes really hard. He's very athletic. He's our fixer. We want him to fix things."

Carney, a co-captain, moves from setter. In the new offense, the three outside positions are interchangeable, with the passing responsibilities evenly distributed.

The team's leading attacker, outside hitter Jim Clar, is recovering from an abdominal strain. Clar is on tonight's active roster, but he will be used as a reserve.

"The coaches are being cautious about it," Clar said.

He suffered the injury three weeks ago against UCLA, complaining of a "tight, pulling, really stinging feeling."

He said there still is tightness, but it's tolerable.

Grgas, who finished last season as a backup opposite attacker, spent most of the summer playing beach volleyball and working on his passing.

But Matt Rawson's inconsistent play — he's a skilled blocker but an erratic hitter — opened the way for Grgas to start in the middle.

Grgas said he works daily on improving his block reads.

"Hitting, I'm used to," he said. "Blocking is much more difficult, reading all three positions at once. I'm doing it every day (in practice) and it's getting better."

Grgas, who is 6 feet 7, gained 10 pounds since last season and now weighs 190.

"I'm healthier than I've ever been," he said.

Reach Stephen Tsai at stsai@honoluluadvertiser.com.