11:45 a.m. PT – The match ends in a little less than three hours with an undesired result: Pepperdine 4, UH 0. The match was a lot closer than the score indicated with UH in contention on four of the six singles courts. The team huddles at center court where Coach Nelson gives words of encouragement and the team has one last cheer. Despite the loss, it was another banner season for UH. The team made it three straight in WAC Tournament titles and NCAA Tournament appearances. UH won a share of the WAC regular season title for the first time in school history and ascended to its highest-ever national ranking. 

6:30 a.m. PT – Early morning wake up call. Team has an 8:00 a.m. practice and some of the guys, Craig Faulk, Jeremy Tweedt, Andy Weber, and Philipp Eberhard, head to the bakery next to the hotel for some breakfast. Craig said he “just ate the greatest breakfast sandwich ever.”

 

Practice starts at 8:00 a.m. this morning. The team usually practices in the afternoon during the season, but court time is limited with eight teams—both men and women—competing in this weekend's NCAAs. Plus, Coach Nelson chose the earliest slot available to simulate tomorrow's 9:00 a.m. start time.

 

7:50 a.m. – We take Nelson Road to get the tennis complex. Coach Nelson, who earned his master's degree from Stanford, claims the road is named after him. Somehow the team doesn't believe him.

 

Taube Tennis Stadium is one of the top tennis venues in the nation. Besides collegiate events, the stadium is home to the Bank of the West Classic, a WTA event. UH has played here numerous times over the years, including this past February when they lost to the seventh-ranked Cardinal. So besides the two pre-tournament practices, the players already have previous experience on the court. There are a total of nine outdoor courts in the facility.

 

UH's first-round opponent Pepperdine, arrives and hour after UH, and started hitting on an adjacent court. The Waves are ranked No. 21 in the country. The Rainbow Warriors have never beaten Pepperdine and actually played them in the NCAA Tournament first round just two year's ago in Malibu. The team hopes to exact some revenge this time around. 

 

2:00 p.m. PT – With a two-hour morning workout done, time to focus on school again. It's the tail end of finals week and Jenny Matsuda, department chair of student athlete academic services, traveled with the team to help administer finals. Jenny has been work with UH student-athletes for more than 10 years and has been particularly impressed with the studiousness and discipline of the tennis team.

 

Dmytro Kovalyov, a freshman from Yalta, Ukraine, is taking his economics final. Andy Weber  and Phillip Eberhard completed their marketing and accounting finals last night. After he puts the final touches on a paper today, Andy, the team's lone senior, will be officially done with school and will earn a business degree. He won't be walking at graduation tomorrow. Instead he'll help his team try to capture its second-ever NCAA Tournament win.

 

 5:00 p.m. PT – Coach Nelson and associate athletic director Marilyn Moniz-Kaho`ohanohano arrive at the NCAA meeting prepping everyone for this weekend's matches. Both John and Marilyn have been to countless NCAA events, so nothing new here. The rest of the team stays back at the hotel and will grab some dinner at some point. Match starts early tomorrow—9:00 a.m.—so everyone will get down pretty early tonight.

 

Come morning, the guys will really start to focus. For Dennis Lajola it will mean going through same rituals he does on every match day. He brushes his teeth 10 times on each side, then sits in the shower, counts to 20 seconds, write a personal message on the wall, circles a message then wipes it off. Kind of strange he admits, but it gets him in a comfort zone and gives him more confidence when he plays. He has even more idiosyncrasies, but he doesn't want to divulge. Meanwhile, his doubles partner, junior Daneil Llarenas, likes to get a hair cut before every road trip. Before the WAC Tournament three weeks ago, he had the Hawaiian island chain shave into his head. No such design this time around. Check back tommorow as the team gets into competition with a first-round match against Pepperdine.


Day 1: Thursday, May 13
6:45 a.m. PT - The team arrived in San Francisco two hours later than scheduled after their original red-eye flight out of Honolulu was cancelled. Luckily head coach John Nelson pulled some strings and was able to get the team on a different carrier the same evening. No big deal for the team which is used to the travel. More than half of this year's schedule was on the road, including week-long trips to New Mexico, Las Vegas and both Southern and Northern California. This is the team's second trip to Stanford this year. The team arrived at the Westin in Palo Alto, an absolutely gorgeous hotel, and hit the hay before school work and an afternoon practice.


4:00 p.m. PT - The team took the less five-minute drive to the Stanford tennis court. Junior Dennis Lajola was actually at the court at 1:00 p.m. already doing some hitting. There's a reason why he's a a three-time all-conference player and former U.S. Junior Davis Cup player. The weather is picture perfect with temperatures in the 70s and it should get warmer into the weekend. Not quite Hawaii weather, but better than the rain that hit the Bay Area earlier in the week.


6:00 p.m. PT - After wrapping up a two-hour workout, the team returned to the hotel. No team meal tonight. Coach Nelson describes it as "Tournament Mode." He likes to give everyone their own space so they can focus in on their own way. Plenty of places to eat in the area, so no problem for the guys. A couple guys will take some finals in the evening, while more finals will be conducted on Friday. Check back tommorow as the team continues its quest...






                                                                                         -UH-