Match Notes
The No. 4 University of Hawai'i men's volleyball team will face top-ranked and No. 1 seed Stanford in the semifinals of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championships, Thursday, April 29 at Maples Pavilion in Stanford, Calif. First serve is 7:30 p.m. PT (4:30 p.m. HT).
The other semifinal features No. 2 seed BYU and No. 3 seed Cal State Northridge at 5:00 p.m. PT (2:00 p.m. HT). The semifinal winners meet on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. PT (4:00 p.m. HT). The tournament champion earns the league's automatic berth to the four-team NCAA Championships which will be held at Maples Pavilion, May 6 and 8.
The Warriors (19-9) advanced to the semi's following a thrilling five-set win over Pepperdine last Saturday at the Stan Sheriff Center. UH erased one match point and needed a let serve from
Nejc Zemljak to secure the 18-16 victory in the fifth. Opposite
Jonas Umlauft had a match-high 36 kills on 71 swings.
The victory was UH's first tournament win since 2003 and snapped a four-match playoff losing streak.
The Cardinal (20-6) defeated eighth-seeded and defending NCAA champion UC Irvine in four sets in a quarterfinal round match at Maples Pavilion. Evan Romero had 24 kills while MPSF Player of the Year Brad Lawson added 21.
Stanford swept the two-match series in the MPSF opener for both teams in January. The Cardinal won both matches in straight sets and limited the Warriors to .161 hitting in the series. Stanford hit .450 and out-blocked Hawai'i by an average of 3.33 to 1.17.
MPSF Championships
Semifinals: No. 4 Hawai'i (19-9) vs. No. 1 Stanford (20-6); No. 2 BYU (22-8) vs. No. 3 Cal State Northridge (22-8)
When: Thursday, April 29, 2010 (Semifinals); Saturday, May 1, 2010 (Finals)
Time: 5:00 p.m. PT/2:00 p.m. HT (CSUN vs. BYU) and 7:30 p.m. PT/4:30 p.m. HT (UH vs. Stanford)
Where: Maples Pavilion; Stanford, Calif.
Television Coverage: KFVE-TV (Ch. 5) will televise the UH match live with John Fink (play-by-play) and Ryan Tsuji (color). Rebroadcast at 10:30 p.m.
Video Streaming: Free video streaming of all matches is available on gostanford.com
Radio Coverage: ESPN 1420 AM will broadcast all UH matches live with Blaine Kauwe calling the action.
Audio Webcast: Available at espn1420am.com
Live Stats: Available at gostanford.com
Series vs. Stanford: Despite Stanford's current six-match win streak in the all-time series, UH still holds an 34-30 advantage. The teams have met twice in the postseason with the Cardinal winning both meetings at the 1989 WIVA Championship match in Los Angeles and in the 1992 WIVA quarterfinals in Irvine, Calif.
Series vs. BYU: BYU leads the overall series 27-17. UH snapped a six-match losing streak in the series by sweeping both matches earlier this season at the Stan Sheriff Center. In postseason play, BYU leads 4-1 most recently winning in three sets in the 2003 semifinals in Malibu, Calif.
Series vs. Cal State Northridge: UH leads the overall series 42-15. The teams split the season series last month in Northridge, Calif., with the Matadors winning in five in the opener and the Warriors sweeping CSUN in the rematch. The teams have met once in postseason play with the Warriors prevailing 3-1 in the 1995 MPSF quarterfinals at the Stan Sheriff Center.
UH In the MPSF Tournament: Since 1993, the first year of the MPSF, the Warriors have competed in 14 MPSF Tournaments and own an 11-14 record. UH is 3-4 in MPSF semifinal matches. UH has never won the MPSF Tournament and has advanced to the championship match three times (1995, 2001, 2002).
All-Time MPSF Semifinal Appearances
Season Opponent Result Site
2003 BYU L, 0-3 Malibu, Calif.
2002 UC Santa Barbara W, 3-1 Malibu, Calif.
2001 BYU W, 3-1 Provo, Utah
1999 BYU L, 0-3 Provo, Utah
1998 Pepperdine L, 1-3 Los Angeles, Calif.
1996 UC Santa Barbara L, 2-3 Honolulu, O'ahu
1995 UC Santa Barbara W, 3-0 Los Angeles, Calif.
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