UH-Hilo’s men’s tennis team keeps on playing as if there is no tomorrow, stretching the boundaries into uncharted territory.
It can now be said these Vulcans have gone farther than any other program in school history in NCAA Division II competition, and if tomorrow should ring again they’ll be playing for a championship.
Vaclav Slezak and Martin Soukal delivered up top and Arturo Dell’Eva provided a finishing touch down below as the Vuls powered into the national semifinals with a 4-0 victory against South Carolina-Aiken in Alamonte Springs, Fla.
“We know each match could be our last match,” coach Kallen Mizuguchi said. “Every match we’re motivated to fight for each other until the end.”.
The Vuls (15-4) are the fourth seed, so it would be fair to say they’ve simply held serve in reaching the Final Four.
But this group is an NCAA trend-setter.
UHH has pocketed five NAIA volleyball national titles under coach Sharon Peterson, but the closest the Vuls have come to a national title since moving to NCAA Division II was a fourth-place finish in men’s golf in 2004.
If UHH is to advance it will have to get past top-seeded Barry (Fla.), a 24-1 team that dispatched of the Vuls 6-1 on March 11. The Buccaneers also have beaten the other two semifinalists, No. 2 Columbus State and third-seeded Hawaii Pacific, this season.
“We’ll have to play at a high level,” Mizuguchi said. “Mentally, the team has gotten a lot better from the beginning of the season.”
For the second consecutive day, the teams of Slezak and Soukal, and Alessandro Giuliato and Chun En Wu took care of business in doubles play, rendering a loss by Luca Checchia and Alan Cincunegui as moot.
Checchia bounced back on Court 6 in singles, dropping only one game in a straight-set win, and 30 minutes later Slezak’s triumph at No. 1 singles put UHH on the cusp.
It was a race to clincher between Dell’Eva and the undefeated Giuliato, and the lesser-heralded Dell’Eva was able to do the honors on Court 5 with most of his teammates assembled to celebrate.
“This was another match where they played well and the played for each other,” Mizuguchi said. “The season is a success no matter what happens tomorrow.”
Singles
1. #15 Vaclav Slezak (UHH) def. Tales Silva (USC-A), 6-1, 7-5.
2. #26 Alessandro Giuliato (UHH) vs. Salvador Bandeira (USC-A), 6-1, 5-4, UNF.
3. #47 Martin Soukal (UHH) vs. #48 Antonio Sabugueiro (USC-A), 2-6, 6-4, 1-0, UNF.
4. Chun En Wu (UHH) vs. Vincente Andrades (USC-A), 6-0, 3-6, 2-5, UNF.
5. Arturo Dell`Eva (UHH) def. Alvaro Garcia Gil (USC-A), 7-5, 6-4.
6. Luca Checchia (UHH) def. Francesco Satta (USC-A), 6-1, 6-0.
Doubles
1. Slezak/Soukal (UHH) def. Sabugueiro/Bandeira (USC-A), 6-3.
2. Giuliato/En Wu (UHH) def. Andrades/Silva (USC-A), 7-5
3. Alex Sklizovic/Satta (USC-A) def. Checchia/Alan Cincunegui (UHH), 6-4.