DAPT AND EVOLVE.

Its key to success in many

jobs, but perhaps none more
crucial than in coaching.
When change is the only con-
stant, with newplayers every
season and the sport itself
continually being tweaked, it
becomes a matter of relate or
become irrelevant.
That Dave Shoji has remained at the top of
his game that as the Hawaii womens vol-
leyball coach for 39 years is a testament to
his ability to remain contemporary, regardless
of the age gap.
Prime example: music.
For the first time in 40 years of preseason
practices, there was a sound systemin the
gym. It was an eclectic mix of rap, Hawaiian,
Jawaiianm, hip-hop and country the latter
genre snuck in by Shoji and just as quickly
snuck out.
It surprised many, fromShojis wife, Mary,
to vacationing Angelica Ljungquist, the pro-
grams first four-time NCAA All-America hon-
oree and the 1996 AVCA Player of the Year.
Whats going on? was heard fromall cor-
ners of the court.
Simple. The U.S. mens and womens na-
tional volleyball teams have music at their
training facility during workouts and prac-
tices.
Shoji, with sons
Kawika and Erik on
the U.S. mens roster,
literally took note.
I asked our team, Do
you guys want music? the
all-time winningest coach in Di-
vision I womens volleyball said.
They all lit up, saying Are you kid-
ding? Of course we want music.
I dont really like some of it, but they like it.
And thats what is important.
Through 1,318 matches, punctuated by
1,128 wins and a gaudy .856 winning percent-
age, the 67-year-old Shoji has been able to fo-
cus on what is important and let go of what
cant
be
con-
trolled.
Volley-
ball as played
in 2014 is nearly
unrecognizable to
those who played for
Shoji in 1975, or even to the coach himself, a
three-time All-America honoree at UC Santa
Barbara in the late 1960s.
Theres been a move frombest-of-three to
best-of-five; the change fromtraditional scor-
ing to rally scoring, first for Set 5 only, nowfor
the entire match; the more liberal ball-han-
dling rules; and the addition of the libero.
Theres been the explosion of the sport na-
tionally, an expanded schedule, conference
membership Hawaiis first three national ti-
tles came as an independent and the use of
the RPI for postseason selection seeding that
heavily favors what noware called The
Power Five conferences.
What are you going to do? As the late Oak-
land Raiders general manager Al Davis would
say, Just win, baby.
Which is what the RainbowWahine, under
Shoji, have continued to do, year in and year
out. Only once, when the injury-plagued 1992
squad limped to a 15-12 finish, has the pro-
gramcome close to a losing season.
Half of Shojis career has been spent in the
Stan Sheriff Center, which will celebrate its
20th anniversary Oct. 21. The Rainbow
Wahine opened the arena with a sold-out
crowd of 10,033, which witnessed Hawaii de-
feat San Jose State, 15-5, 12-15, 15-2, 15-6.
Hawaii began its run as national home at-
tendance leader that season, a streak snapped
last year by Nebraska, which drew155,324
(8,175 average) to its newDevaney Center.
(Hawaii, which averaged 7,591 in 2013 with
144,235 total, still holds the NCAA records of
8,378 average and 184,313 total set in 1996).
And, until last season, when the Huskers
turned a profit for the first time, the Rainbow
Wahine programwas the only one generating
revenue on an annual basis for some two
decades.
Hawaii could regain the attendance crown,
based on the increased season tickets head-
ing into Fridays opener and that feeling that
Shoji will be retiring in a fewseasons. (I wont
be here for 50, he said).
But he is here for a 40th, which will be
marked in a number of ways.
In October, the documentary Rise of the
Wahine will be released. It examines the state
of Hawaiis role in shaping gender equality
with a focus on UHs flagship female program,
Wahine volleyball.
Due out in November is the book Wahine
Volleyball: 40 Years Coaching Hawaiis Team.
The author is retired Honolulu Star-Advertiser
sportswriter Ann Miller, who covered the
teamfrom1980 until 2013.
And, of course, there is the obligatory
T-shirt that debuted last month.
Robyn Ah Mow-Santos, a two-time All-Amer-
ican and three-time Olympic setter, is begin-
ning her fourth year as an assistant coach.
She has been part of a number of Shojis cele-
brations, including his 600th victory her sen-
ior season of 1996.
Its cool to be a part of this season, said
Ah Mow-Santos, who ranks third in assists in
the programs career record book. I was
watching before I played for him, then a
player for himand nowa coach.
Its cool to see himnow, howhes changed
through the years.
Ah Mow-Santos was born about the same
time Shoji ran his first RainbowWahine prac-
tices in 1975. Associate head coach Scott
Wong was three weeks shy of his first birth-
day when Shoji won his first title in 1979.
It seems like every year or every other year
theres a celebration here, said Wong, a three-
time All-America honoree at Pepperdine and
the UHsand volleyball coach. Its awesome.
Obviously, hes done a lot of great things.
Its been an honor to be a part of this, an
honor to see greatness. Greatness is the pro-
gramthat has sustained itself at a high level
over time. Thats what Dave has done.
KEY TO SUCCESS
LIBERO/DEFENSIVE SPECIALIST
NUMBER 14 15 4 13 20
NAME SARAH SAVANAH CLARE-MARIE GIANNA KATIANA
MENDOZA KAHAKAI ANDERSON GUINASSO PONCE
HEIGHT 5-5 5-8 5-5 5-9 5-3
CLASS Senior Freshman Freshman Freshman Sophomore
HOMETOWN Santa Barbara, Calif. Kalihi Honolulu Huntington Beach, Calif. Honolulu
HIGH SCHOOL Santa Barbara Farrington Punahou Huntington Beach Moanalua
KEY STATS Played in all 30 Second freshman All-ILH, helped Buffanblu Two-time national beach Played 3 matches
matches as a junior scholarship libero to 2012 state title champion, indoor league as redshirt freshman
10 aces, 172 digs in UH program history MVP
Hawaii is fairly young but deep at the defensive spots.
Sarah Mendoza played in every match last season, mostly as a defensive
specialist, but did see some time at libero. Shell battle Farrington All-Stater
Savannah Kahakai for the starting libero spot.
The two appear to be interchangeable in terms of libero and the first sub
off the bench as DS, and both are solid servers. Mendoza, an assistant team
caption, has the experience, with a redshirt year in 2012 following her transfer
fromIrvine Valley, where she played for former UHAll-American Tom
Pestolesi. Kahakai is the prototype of the solid ball-handler and defender that
Hawaii-raised players have been known as since the programs inception.
The three others Katiana Ponce, Clare-Marie Anderson and Gianna
Guinasso are expected to see playing time, as none will be redshirting.
Both Anderson and Guinasso have strong volleyball genes. Andersons father,
Jay, helped Pepperdine to its first NCAA title in 1978 and is a multi-time
USVBA All-American for Outrigger Canoe Club. Guinassos father, Angelo, is a
former AVP pro beach player.
A
There is simplicity in the
complexity of the sport of
volleyball. It all comes down
to serve and pass, with
passing dictating the options
a setter has to run the
offense. All five of the
Rainbow Wahine back-row
players are expected to
contribute this season. Who
ends up with the most
match time will depend on
consistency and the ability
to make the athletic play
when needed.
7
Big West titles,
including 2013
shared with UC Santa
Barbara and Cal
State Northridge
7,591
Average attendance,
second nationally to
Nebraska (8,175), the
first time since 1993 UH
did not lead the country
17
Rank in the AVCA
preseason poll, the
lowest since the
coaches poll began
33 years ago
4
Five-set losses
Hawaii (25-5) was
2-4 when a match
went to five last
season
19
Consecutive conference
players of the year, with
graduated senior Emily
Hartong (left) winning the
Big West's last two
MIDDLE
NUMBER 18
NAME KALEI
ADOLPHO
HEIGHT 6-1
CLASS Senior
HOMETOWN Hoolehua, Molo
HIGH SCHOOL Molokai
KEY STATS Second in total
(98), first in so
fourth in kills (2
What looked like a somewhat worrisome situ
serendipitously solved itself within days last Ma
When all-conference middle Jade Vorster dec
transfer to Liberty and play with her younger si
graduate student, it created a 6-foot-4 void wort
blocks. But with a scholarship available and coi
terest fromArizonas 6-2 Olivia Magill she of t
touch Hawaii appears very solid at this posit
Teamcaptain Kalei Adolpho returns with her
blocks per set average. The 6-1 two-sport athlet
up basketball this season, putting her focus sol
leyball and perfecting the already effective Mo
step-out move.
Adding to the depth is Canadian Emily Maglio
bowWahine have a fourth option at the position
freshman Megan Huff. But the preseason injury
more Nikki Taylor had Huff moving to the outsid
she has become a serious contender for playing
1975
16
LOSSES 2
COACH OF
THE YEAR
1976
14
5
1977
22
5
1978*
28
10
* 1 TIED MATCH
1979
36
5
1980
34
10
1981
37
2
1982
33
1
1983
34
2
1984
33
11
1985
28
13
1986
31
7
1987
37
2
1988
33
3
1989
29
3
HAWAII
IN EVER-EVOLVING WORLD OF VOLLEYBALL,
SHOJIS SUCCESS REMAINS A CONSTANT
Stories by Cindy Luis
PHOTOGRAPHY BY JAMM AQUI NO
THE SHOJI YEARS
7
Players returning,
led by senior middle
Kalei Adolpho, right,
and sophomore hitter
Nikki Taylor
9
Players lost from 2013 roster,
including starters Emily
Hartong, Mita Uiato, Jade
Vorster and Ali Longo

WEDNESDAY
8/ 27/ 14
OLIVIA
MAGILL
SARAH
MENDOZA
2 0 14 PREVI EW
AIAW
SECOND
2 2
NCAA
SECOND
2 2
AIAW
SECOND
2 2
AIAW
THIRD
3 3
AIAW
THIRD
3 3
AIAW
CHAMPION
NCAA
CHAMPION
NCAA
CHAMPION
NCAA
CHAMPION
AIAW
THIRD
3 3
WINS
STAR-ADVERTISER PHOTOS
Theres always
excitement with a new
season. We have a lot of
people who have never
been on the floor on a
regular basis. I dont
know if thats exciting
but its a little scary.
T WAS the perfect stormfor Big West
volleyball last season.
The final week of play not only kept
Hawaiis quest for a 19th consecutive
conference title outright or shared
fromsinking, it also floated the postsea-
son boats of UC Santa Barbara and Cal
State Northridge.
A three-way tie meant having three
teams in the NCAA tournament, a first
since 2006 for what was once among the
premier conferences in the country.
The RainbowWahine got what they needed
when Long Beach State outlasted UC Santa Barbara
in five sets on Nov. 30. Coupled with sweeps of UC
Riverside and Cal State Fullerton on the final two
nights of the regular season, Hawaii breathed a col-
lective sigh of relief, finishing 13-3 in the BWC
standings along with UCSB and CSUN.
Long Beach State, UHs longtime nemesis-turned-
unlikely-savior, limped to an 11-5, injury-plagued
finish.
The question for 2014 is will it again take another
perfect storm to get multiple teams into the
postseason game or has the Big West re-estab-
lished itself?
THE NATIONAL PERCEPTIONappears to be a lit-
tle bit of both. Hawaii is the only conference mem-
ber ranked in the AVCA preseason Top 25, coming
in at a program-low17th. However, the three teams
behind the Wahine in the Big West poll all received
votes in the national rankings.
No question, a lot of people got a taste of vic-
tory and of success last season, said Brian Gimmil-
laro, whose Long Beach State teamwas picked
second behind UH. Those coaches and players
mostly are back.
I have no doubt that its going to again be a
strong conference. Certainly the teams that are
picked high in the upper half are all good, with the
bulk of their strength back.
I dont think were anywhere as good of a con-
ference as it once was. But we are getting better,
and were closer to it.
The conference members future and current
dominated the early days of the NCAA tourna-
ment, with Hawaii (two of its three as an independ-
ent), Long Beach State and Pacific winning a
combined six of the first 10 championships, and
the 49ers another two in 1993 and 1998. As late as
2004, the Big West had six teams selected for the
NCAA tournament but dropped to a one-bid league
in 2011 (Long Beach State) and 2012 (Hawaii, re-
turning after 16 seasons in the Western Athletic
Conference).
The national perception battle begins long be-
fore the first whistle of Sept. 26, the opening night
of conference play. It starts this Friday with presea-
son tournaments that lay the basis for the RPI that
is used in seeding the top 16 teams in the NCAA
tournament.
HAWAIIS SCHEDULE is not as ambitious as last
season, when opening with defending national
champion and preseason No. 1 Texas. But it will be
challenging for the young Wahine, with four
starters among the eight gone fromthe 25-5 squad.
They host three solid teams that went to the NCAA
tournament in Ohio (defending Mid-American
champion), San Diego State (Mountain West pre-
season fourth) and No. 25 Arizona State (Pac-12
preseason fourth).
Of the remaining eight Big West teams (Pacific
left for the West Coast Conference), Long Beach
State looks to have the toughest opening weekend.
The 49ers, receiving one first-place vote in the Big
West poll, are at No. 11 Illinois on Friday and face
No. 20 North Carolina and Southern Illinois on Sat-
urday in the Illini Invitational.
UCSB and CSUNalso received first-place votes in
the conference poll. The Gauchos open at the Col-
orado State Invitational, which features the host
Rams, Marquette and Virginia Commonwealth; the
Matadors are at the UNLV Invitational, playing the
host Rebels twice (avoiding conference foe UC
Riverside) and Western Kentucky.
THE HOPE around the league is for the Big West
to do well as a whole during the preseason so that
an in-conference loss doesnt drag down the RPI.
Hawaiis RPI remained high enough to be seeded
11th despite a bad loss at UC Davis last October..
CSUNadvanced to the second round of the
NCAA tournament for the first time in programhis-
tory, upsetting Colorado State. UCSB fell to
No. 9 San Diego, one of two nonconference teams
to defeat Hawaii last season.
Each coach understands that a strong schedule
not only helps their teambut, because of the RPI
formula, that of the conference as a whole. The
schedule is heavy with Pac-12 and West Coast
Conference matchups, particularly by the Big
Four at the top of the Big West poll.
Hawaii also has Oregon and UCLA coming in,
while Long Beach State hosts Oregon State, Saint
Marys and San Francisco. Cal State Northridge
travels to tournaments hosted by Arizona, Okla-
homa and San Diego, the latter where the Matadors
also play Stanford. UC Santa Barbara sees Loyola
Marymount at the Sac State Invitational and host
Cal at the Golden Bears tournament.
The scheduling game is tricky. Tough but not too
tough, beat opponents instead of getting beaten up.
Has the Big West done enough to get three or
four teams into the NCAA tournament this season?
Tune in Nov. 30 for the selection show.
NUMBER 8 10 1 3 11 5
NAME NIKKI TAI GINGER KEANI KALEI MEGAN
TAYLOR MANU-OLEVAO LONG PASSI GREELEY HUFF
HEIGHT 6-3 6-0 5-11 5-10 6-2 6-3
CLASS Sophomore Junior Junior Junior Freshman Freshman
HOMETOWN Honolulu Hilo Kihei, Maui Pearl City Riverside, Calif. Federal Way, Wash.
HIGH SCHOOL Kaiser Punahou Kamehameha-Maui Pearl City King Beamer
KEY STATS All-Big West, second Third in kills (229), Went 32-10 in sand National Junior College Press-Enterprise Four-year letter-winner
in kills (284), AVCA added 154 digs, as Wahine finished Player of the Year (2012) Player of the Year in volleyball and
sand All-American 17 blocks, 4 aces third nationally at College of Southern Idaho in volleyball basketball
To be a setter at Hawaii is akin to being in the po-
sitions Pantheon. Greatness is expected, the lineage
beginning with coach Dave Shoji and his All-America
setting hands at UC Santa Barbara.
Nahaku Brown, Joyce Kapuala Kaapuni, Martina
Cincerova, Cheri Boyer, Robyn Ah Mow-Santos,
Kanoe Kamanao RainbowWahine All-Americans
who have set the standards nationally and
internationally.
Sophomore Tayler Higgins and freshman
Kendra Koelsch are vying to replace
graduated senior Mita Uiato and her
Big West-leading 11.11 assist-per-set
average.
Higgins, who led Punahou to two
state championships, has the edge in
experience after playing in all 30
matches last season as a reserve.
She finished with 70 assists in 70
sets, a career-high 11 coming in
the crucial 3-2 win at UC Santa
Barbara.
Koelsch, Huntington Beach
Highs teamMVP and school
female athlete of the year,
has the edge in height by
4 inches. One of her up-
sides is she is a very good
blocker.
LAST SEASONS PERFECT STORM MAY SIGNAL
A RETURN TO GLORY DAYS FOR THE BIG WEST
I
KEY TO SUCCESS
OUTSIDE HITTER
In a word, consistency. The goal for
the hitters is not to just START the
match but to STAY there. The
pressure is on the returnees to be
as effective and steady as possible,
not just in hitting and blocking, but
when in the passing rotation. There
are talented newcomers ready for
the call when it comes. Like a
Chinese menu when selecting two
from Column A and one from
Column B, creating the best
combination likely will require
several return visits.
KEY TO SUCCESS
E BLOCKER
9 19
OLIVIA EMILY
MAGILL MAGLIO
6-1 6-2
Junior Freshman
okai Shoreline, Wash. Coquitlam, B.C.
Seattle Prep Pinetree
blocks Led Arizona in blocks Two-time Canadian
olo (15); as a freshman (114) Nationals All-Star
210) and a sophomore (119)
uation
arch.
cided to
ister as a
th 105
inciding in-
the 10-6
tion.
r 0.93
te is giving
ely on vol-
olokai Slide
o. The Rain-
n in 6-3
to sopho-
de, where
g time.
Hawaii is in a position of strength here
with two athletic and versatile middles.
Adolpho should continue to be a force
both on offense and defense. Magill
was underutilized on offense for the
Wildcats but wont be with the Rainbow
Wahine. She gets up quickly on the
attack and the block. Timing with the
setters is always critical and both have
connected well with Higgins and
Koelsch.
1990
28
6
1991
26
5
1992
15
12
1993
19
11
1994
25
5
1995
31
1
1996
35
3
1997
25
8
1998
32
3
1999
29
2
2000
31
2
2001
29
6
2002
34
2
2003
36
2
2004
30
1
2005
27
7
2006
29
6
2007
27
6
2008
31
4
2009
32
3
2010
29
3
2011
31
2
2012
27
3
2013
25
5
TOTAL
1,128
189
TEAM RECORD PTS.
1. Hawaii (5) 13-3 77
2. Long Beach State (1) 11-5 68
3. UC Santa Barbara (2) 13-3 63
4. CSUN (1) 13-3 60
5. UC Irvine 5-11 42
6. Cal Poly 6-10 34
7. UC Davis 6-10 25
8. Cal State Fullerton 4-12 24
9. UC Riverside 1-15 12
BIGWESTPOLL
First-place votes in parentheses
USA VOLLEYBALL
ALL-TIME GREAT COACH AWARD
NCAA AWARD
COACH OF 25TH ANNIVERSARY ALL-STAR TEAM
TAI
MANU-OLEVAO
TAYLER
HIGGINS
Options, options and more options.
An offense that was being built around sophomore outside hitter Nikki
Taylor has become somewhat of a jigsawpuzzle after Taylor sprained
her right (hitting) elbowover the summer and is out indefinitely. While
the 6-foot-3 All-Big West selection and AVCA sand All-American rehabs,
Hawaiis offense heads to a more conventional look using a true oppo-
site on the right and two left-side hitters predominately hitting on the
left. (In recent years, the left-side hitters had hit twice on the left, once
on the right, and the right-side hitter twice on the right, once on the left).
Multiple-choice questions meet multiple-choice answers. Go smaller
and more experienced? Then put juniors Tai Manu-Olevao (6 feet), also
an assistant teamcaptain, and Ginger Long (5-11) on the left and Keani
Passi (5-10), who redshirted last year after an All-America career at Col-
lege of Southern Idaho, on the right.
Go bigger and younger? Plug in freshmen Kalei Greeley (6-2) and/or
Megan Huff (6-3), the latter a converted middle, in the lineup. Both can
hit fromeither side as well as frombehind the 3-meter line.
NCAA
SECOND
2 2
NCAA
THIRD
3 3
NCAA
THIRD
3 3
NCAA
THIRD
3 3
COACH OF
THE YEAR
ALL-TIME
WINNINGEST
COACH
KEY TO SUCCESS
SETTER
NUMBER 7 2
NAME TAYLER KENDRA
HIGGINS KOELSCH
HEIGHT 5-9 6-1
CLASS Sophomore Freshman
HOMETOWN Honolulu Huntington Beach, Calif.
HIGH SCHOOL Punahou Huntington Beach
KEY STATS Played in all 30 matches, Lettered in indoor
third in assists (72), and sand volleyball
added 40 digs, 5 aces and surfing
The setter runs the show and for the
young Hawaii team much depends on
how quickly Higgins and Koelsch are
able to take command under the bright
lights. The real possibility is for a
modified 6-2 system where Koelsch will
play front row, taking advantage of her
blocking abilities, and Higgins subbing
into the back row. Connecting on the
middle attack and from the 3-meter line
will be crucial.
PULL OUT INSIDE PAGE. CUT EDGES AS SHOWN.
TAPE TOGETHER TO CREATE POSTER.
ABOUT THIS SECTION
TEAM W L PTS. 2013
1. Penn State (32) 34 2 1,417 1
2. Texas (11) 27 3 1,389 3
3. Stanford (7) 27 6 1,356 5
4. Washington 30 3 1,280 4
5. USC (2) 29 6 1,272 6
6. Wisconsin (8) 28 10 1,264 2
7. Nebraska 26 7 1,149 7
8. Purdue 23 12 980 8
9. BYU 24 7 924 13
10. Florida 28 4 897 15
11. Illinois 18 15 813 16
12. Minnesota 28 7 802 10
13. Florida State 26 8 695 11
14. San Diego 26 4 628 9
15. Missouri 35 1 547 12
16. Michigan State 23 12 494 14
17. Hawaii 25 5 481 16
18. Colorado State 28 2 472 21
19. Kentucky 22 9 452 20
20. North Carolina 27 5 378 25
21. Duke 28 5 361 22
22. Kansas 26 8 232 17
23. Creighton 23 9 184 NR
24. American 32 3 134 19
25. Arizona State 19 14 129 NR
AVCATOP25
First-place votes in parentheses
Others receiving votes:
Oregon 115, Oklahoma 114, California 111, Marquette
102, Arizona 60, Iowa State 59, LSU 52, Colorado 32,
UC Santa Barbara 26, Michigan 23, UCLA 23, CSUN 19,
Long Beach State 11, New Mexico 9, UT San Antonio 3