Hawaii Coach Dave Shoji
On his team’s
performance
We’re
extremely pleased to be advancing. I thought it was a tough
week for us because everybody was
talking about the
matchup with Nebraska. We knew that North Carolina was a good
team, and they proved that tonight. I think our team did a nice
job of concentrating on what it had to do, and that was to win.
It feels good to be in this position and be one of the last eight
teams to be playing at this time of the year. On
Hawaii’s
blocking
We’re
a much better blocking team than we showed tonight, but then
again our defense played very well
behind the block
and actually was the reason we probably won that match.
On how Hawaii matches up to Nebraska should the teams meet in
the regional final
I
don’t know if our lefts (left-side hitters) will have
their way like they did tonight. But we’ll have to see
how that works. They (Nebraska) have a great block. They have
a great team. They’re very athletic. We won’t know
that until midway through the first game, as far as how we match
up.
On playing in the Coliseum
It’s going to be a loud and vocal crowd, but the crowd
is a little more on you than in our arena. I think our players
will embrace playing in this situation. Obviously they have played
before big crowds before. It will be a little different in the
fact that they’re not cheering for us. They’re knowledgeable
fans, they like volleyball and it will be a challenge, but I
think we’re all looking forward to it.
Junior Outside Hitter Kim Willoughby
On playing against top competition
I
love playing teams like Nebraska for the simple fact that they’re very competitive, like tonight. I enjoyed playing
tonight, because North Carolina was very competitive. You get
to play against great volleyball players. Most of the players
that come from schools like Nebraska and Stanford are going to
end up playing after college. I think that’s the best thing,
because not only do you compete against them, but then after
you get to play with them and have a friendship also. That’s
why I like playing teams like Nebraska.
North Carolina Coach Joe Sagula
On
his team’s
performance
First of all, congratulations to Hawaii for a great match. They
were well-prepared and they played well. We knew they would be
tough. (Outside Hitter)Kim Willoughby was great tonight. Anyone
who hits .500 in the NCAA tournament, their team will be successful.
I thought
we played well defensively, but offensively Hawaii was more
successful than we were used to. If (junior
outside
hitter) Kim Willoughby gets those sharp angles, she’s tough.
I thought we served well tonight, too.
I’m proud of our team. We kept fighting and were in good
spirits. I’m proud of our seniors (setter Eve Rackham)
and (outside hitter Malaika Underwood) for their leadership,
and for how well the tournament has been run by Nebraska.
On Hawaii junior outside hitter Kim Willoughby
We tried two blockers on her, we tried three blockers on her,
but she had such good angles. In the second game, when it was
tied 20-20, she just stepped it up. We tried to hit their back
row to counter it, because their block is very good.
On Hawaii’s
success in the third game
They did a great job digging in area one in the third game.
They were everywhere in the back row. We tried a couple of rotations,
but Hawaii played very well. (Junior outside hitter) Lily Kahumoku
and (outside hitter) Kim Willoughby complement each other because
they have different styles. At this level, you need good outside
hitters, and it allows them to do well.
Senior setter Eve Rackham
On
the team’s
performance
I thought we passed well, and I thought we played well, but
we had a hard time putting the ball down.
Senior outside hitter Malaika Underwood
On the game
We’ve played very good teams all year long, but the biggest
thing is that tonight we didn’t execute very well. Hawaii
is the best team we’ve played all year, but that doesn’t
mean we couldn’t have beaten them.
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