Box Score
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - The Warrior Volleyball squad overwhelmed top-ranked Pepperdine in four games to capture the first National Championship for any men's athletic program at the University of Hawaii, 29-31, 31-29, 30-21, 30-24, tonight at Recreation Hall on the Penn State campus.
A well-rounded team effort handed 10th year head coach Mike Wilton his first NCAA title, as Hawaii outhit (.402 to .296) and out-blocked (13 to 12.5) a Pepperdine squad that had won its last 17 matches entering tonight's championship contest.
Hawaii received standout performances from a number of players, including outside hitter Tony Ching, who saved his best performance of the year for the national championship match. Ching, a junior from Honolulu, put-down a season-high 17 kills on a .match-high .519 attack percentage with a career-high nine blocks to give the Warriors yet another weapon. The All-Final Four pick put down four kills apiece thourgh the first three games before recording five more in the fourth and final set.
Final Four Most Outstanding Player Costas Theocharidis had another stellar outing, leading all players with 19 kills in 38 swings. The three-time All-American also hit .342, while putting-up four total blocks.
Warrior captain Eyal Zimet was solid as well, posting his fourth double-double performance of the year, slamming down 13 kills on a .400 hitting percentage while also posting a match-high 13 digs.
Senior All-MPSF libero Vernon Podlewski had his second outstainding outing at the Final Four, posting 11 digs after recording 15 in Hawaii's semifinal win against Penn State on Thursday.
Freshman middle Delano Thomas was a force in the front row once again, drilling seven kills on a .462 hitting percentage to add to his four blocks. Fellow middle Dejan Miladinovic was dominant once again, with a match-high seven blocks and seven kills.
Setter Kimo Tuyay kept the Hawaii attackers happy, leading the team to a .402 attack percentage while dishing-out 59 assists.
The Warriors got-off to a quick start in their second natinal title match appearance, hitting .458 in game one behind the hot swings of Theocharidis and Ching, who combined for 11 kills on 16 attempts. Unfortunately, the Waves were hot as well, posting a .625 attack percentage thanks largely to AVCA Newcomer of the Year Sean Rooney's seven kills in seven attempts.
The second game saw Hawaii seize the momentum, as Zimet, Ching and Thomas put down four kills each to lift the Warriors to the 31-29 win. The Warrior front line also played a big role in helping swig the momentum in Hawaii's favor putting-up seven blocks.
In game three, the Warriors rallied strong to outhit the Waves, .387 to .122, taking the set by nine points, 30-21. After battling to a 15-14 advantage, the Warriors began to pull away, thanks largely to more hot-hitting from Theocharidis, Zimet and Ching, who totalled 14 kills in the game.
The fourth and final set of the match saw the action and the crowd activity crescendo as the Warriors inched closer to its national title. Hawaii quickly secured an early lead, taking an 8-4 advantage. After Pepperdine closed the gap to one point at 14-13, the Warriors turned on their finishing kick to pull away from the Waves. Each serve and each point for the Warriors seemed to elicit a stronger response from the crowd and the Hawaii bench, as they viewed history in the making for the Hawaii program.
A largely pro-Hawaii crowd of 5,357, including “Vili the Warrior” cheered-on the Warriors, who claimed their first title in its 24th year as a collegiate program. For Warrior head coach Mike Wilton, the win also gave him 200 victories as boss of the Hawaii program.
The Warrior team and staff will return home to the 50th state tomorrow evening at 6:30 p.m. on United Airlines flight 61 out of San Francisco.
