Kawika Shoji: Leading the wildly talented Hawai'i generation of Olympians
SANDCAST: Beach Volleyball with Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter22 Apr 2020

Kawika Shoji: Leading the wildly talented Hawai'i generation of Olympians

A few weeks ago, Kawika Shoji and Taylor Crabb escaped the tedium of quarantine to do some hill sprints near their houses in Manoa. There is nothing new or special or spectacular about this. It is, actually, the most normal, mundane, practiced bit of Shoji’s life up to this point. It isn’t necessarily the hill sprints that are typical, but the fact that Shoji was there. Leading.

Forever leading.

Much has been justifiably made – and more needs to be made – of the current generation of Hawai’i volleyball players either currently or previously representing the United States in some professional capacity or other. There is Spencer McLachlin, a national champ at Stanford in 2010, Crabb’s first partner on the AVP Tour, currently a coach at UCLA. There’s Brad Lawson, McLachlin’s who put together one of the most complete performances in any collegiate national championship, leading the Cardinal to that 2010 title with 24 kills in 28 swings. He was named, alongside Shoji, his setter, the NCAA Tournament MVP. There’s Micah Christensen, Shoji’s current roommate and arguably the best setter on the planet. There’s Shoji’s younger brother, Erik, his teammate and libero on the United States National Team

Then, on the beach, there’s Tri Bourne, one of the top blockers in the USA Volleyball pipeline and currently ranked second in the American race to Tokyo. And the Crabbs, both Taylor and Trevor, the former currently ranked No. 1 in the American Olympic race, the latter, Bourne’s partner, to be cemented on the Manhattan Beach Pier later this year. There’s the McKibbins, Riley and Madison, whose infectious personalities and talents both on the beach and in the YouTube studios have led them to become perhaps the AVP’s most recognizable and hirsute faces.

There are two common threads here: Honolulu roots.

And Kawika Shoji.

“I was kind of the first generation to come over,” he said on SANDCAST: Beach volleyball with Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter.

It is not difficult to see why Shoji is the one who cleared that path, from the Islands to California to anywhere in the world that might need a good volleyball player. The son of legendary coach Dave Shoji, who helmed the University of Hawai’i from 1975-2017, Kawika saw first-hand what it took to climb the ladder. Even as a kid, he realized that volleyball, be it on the beach or indoors, is “a skillful game, it’s an athletic game, but it’s also a game of intelligence and decision making and strategy,” said Kawika, who is 32, married and with a 2-year-old daughter, Ada-Jean. “That’s the biggest takeaway I have of my upbringing. Most of us from Hawai’i, especially Erik and I, are not genetic freaks. We’re not jumping out of the gym, not the tallest, not the strongest, but the ability to control the ball and the ability to make the right decisions are things we pride ourselves on and have carried us a long way. It’s something I have a lot of pride in.”

His is an old-school mindset. He wasn’t raised in an era of social media highlight tapes, but in repetition-intensive practices. Ball control and decision-making was king. It’s how he became the first brick upon the Stanford foundation that would win that 2010 National Championship. Not with awe-inducing swings or bounce-blocks, but the two most fundamental aspects of the game: Controlling the ball, controlling your mind.

“I still think the game needs to be played the right way, and if you look at the top players, you don’t get to the top unless you can control the ball,” he said. “That’s just the way it is. That came from my dad. He knew the importance of ball control. He was really skill focused and old school in that way: A lot of repetitions. It can definitely get a little monotonous for sure, but if you don’t put in those touches, those hours, you can’t master whatever skill you’re trying to master. You gotta find a way to touch the ball and feel the ball.”

It wasn’t just volleyball that he espoused that mindset. As a standout on the Iolani School basketball team, he was named the Hawai’i State Player of the Year. He joked that his being named Player of the Year says more about the state of Hawai’i high school basketball than it does about his own skills on the court, but the one thing that he did point out was this: “I got it around just because of how smart I was on the court.”

It is more than possible that this generation of Honolulu natives would enjoy the successes they had whether Shoji paved the way or not. But few can be roommates with the player who shares their position, fighting for the same spot, and see it not as an awkward pairing, but as a legitimate advantage.

“I’m going to be ready if needed, and I’m going to do all of the little things to help our team win, help our team prepare, and that’s just understanding yourself, your strengths and weaknesses, your role, and valuing that role and what you do for others,” he said. “We all have service aspects of our life and our different roles in life and you have to value it.”

So he’s carved out a successful career overseas, picking up contracts in Finland, Germany, Turkey, Russia, Italy, and, currently, Poland. He supplements that with his role on the United States National Team, with whom he won a bronze medal in 2016.

At the current moment, he’s quarantined, like every other athlete. He has his brother, his daughter. The Crabbs, when they’re home, are “a lob wedge” down the street. He’s finding ways to be productive, be it watching film or running hill sprints or finishing up his masters in sports psychology.

Finding some way to do what he’s always done: Lead.

Episoder(500)

The fun is only just beginning for Sarah Schermerhorn

The fun is only just beginning for Sarah Schermerhorn

This episode of SANDCAST: Beach Volleyball with Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter, features good friend Sarah Schermerhorn, who has had a circuitous previous two seasons. After playing the majority of her career with one partner (Kim Hildreth), Schermerhorn played with more than 16 – 16! – in 2021. Now she’s back to having a stable partner in Corinne Quiggle, and it has been an auspicious start to the season, with a in an AVPAmerica event in Florida and a ninth in the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour Challenger in Tlaxcala, Challenger. On this episode, we chat about: Her great finish in Tlaxcala, and how it sets them up for the rest of the season The craziness of playing with 16 partners in 2021 How her and Corinne Quiggle partnered up for 2022 What her goals and focus are for this year ENJOY! *** Like our content? Leave us a tip :) We don't charge a subscription fee, so everything is much appreciated: https://motivated-author-4500.ck.page/products/sandcast-tip-jar We now have SANDCAST MERCHANDISE!! Rock the gear of your favorite podcast today! https://www.sandcastmerch.com/ If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/ This episode, as always, is brought to you by Wilson Volleyball, makers of the absolute best balls in the game, hands down. You can get a 20-percent discount using our code, SANDCAST-20! https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball Check out our book, Volleyball for Milkshakes, written by SANDCAST hosts Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter: https://www.amazon.com/Volleyball-Milkshakes-Travis-Mewhirter/dp/B089781SHB

6 Apr 20221h 18min

Brett Favre, Shawn Taylor, and the growth of Southern Miss beach volleyball

Brett Favre, Shawn Taylor, and the growth of Southern Miss beach volleyball

This episode of SANDCAST: Beach Volleyball with Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter, is one heck of an episode, because on this one, we expanded outside of beach volleyball a bit and onto the gridiron, bringing in venerated guest Brett Favre. Yes, it’s that Brett Favre, the Gunslinger, the man who started a record 321 consecutive games for the Green Bay Packers, an 11-time Pro Bowler and a Hall of Fame selection. And yes, that Brett Favre is a beach volleyball guy now, the father of Breleigh Favre, a 6-foot-2 senior who is starting on court one for the Golden Eagles alongside Kellie Garraway. On this episode, Favre and Southern Miss beach volleyball coach Shawn Taylor joined the podcast to chat: How Shawn Taylor is launching the Southern Miss beach volleyball team The value Brett Favre is bringing to the Southern Miss beach volleyball team, mainly in the mindset it takes to become great Favre’s rise from the seventh-string quarterback at Southern Miss to one of the greatest of all time, and why that’s applicable to Southern Miss How Shawn Taylor became the coach at Southern Miss And so much more. ENJOY! *** Like our content? Leave us a tip :) We don't charge a subscription fee, so everything is much appreciated: https://motivated-author-4500.ck.page/products/sandcast-tip-jar We now have SANDCAST MERCHANDISE!! Rock the gear of your favorite podcast today! https://www.sandcastmerch.com/ If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/ This episode, as always, is brought to you by Wilson Volleyball, makers of the absolute best balls in the game, hands down. You can get a 20-percent discount using our code, SANDCAST-20! https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball Check out our book, Volleyball for Milkshakes, written by SANDCAST hosts Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter: https://www.amazon.com/Volleyball-Milkshakes-Travis-Mewhirter/dp/B089781SHB

30 Mar 20221h 12min

Aleksandrs Samoilovs: 16 years into his career, the Latvian Lion King continues roaring

Aleksandrs Samoilovs: 16 years into his career, the Latvian Lion King continues roaring

This episode of SANDCAST: Beach Volleyball with Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter, is SUCH A BLAST! On the show this week is Latvian legend Aleksandrs Samoilovs, known to most as the Lion King. A veteran on the World Tour for 16 years now, Samoilovs has achieved more than anyone could have ever imagined, hailing from a tiny country the size of Idaho: three Olympic Games, No. 1 ranking in the world, medals of every color. And he’s still playing – and playing dang good volleyball. There was so much to chat about on this episode, including: How Samoilovs was dubbed the Lion King, and his embracing of the nickname A wild story from South Africa in which Samoilovs and Janis Smedins became No. 1 in the world Why working in a bank for two months was all he needed to know that he needed to become a beach volleyball player His ability to entertain and add value to the sport And so, so, so much more. Such a blast with Samoilovs, one of the greatest sportsmen in beach volleyball. ENJOY! *** Like our content? Leave us a tip :) We don't charge a subscription fee, so everything is much appreciated: https://motivated-author-4500.ck.page/products/sandcast-tip-jar We now have SANDCAST MERCHANDISE!! Rock the gear of your favorite podcast today! https://www.sandcastmerch.com/ If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/ This episode, as always, is brought to you by Wilson Volleyball, makers of the absolute best balls in the game, hands down. You can get a 20-percent discount using our code, SANDCAST-20! https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball Check out our book, Volleyball for Milkshakes, written by SANDCAST hosts Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter: https://www.amazon.com/Volleyball-Milkshakes-Travis-Mewhirter/dp/B089781SHB

23 Mar 20221h 18min

Sam Schachter and Dan Dearing: From considering retirement to the honeymoon phase

Sam Schachter and Dan Dearing: From considering retirement to the honeymoon phase

This episode of SANDCAST features the new-look Canadian team of Sam Schachter – an Olympian at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games – and Dan Dearing. This team is going to be FREAKY athletic – and also one that’s a bit of a surprise to many. Schachter considered retiring after falling short of the 2021 Tokyo Olympic Games; Dearing was literally retired for seven years. Now they’re back. And we chatted all about it, discussing: Schachter’s experience during the 2021 Tokyo Olympic quad Dearing’s retirement, and why he is back on the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour now What Dearing learned about the work ethic and commitment it takes to compete at the highest level Why Schachter plucked a guy seven years retired as his running mate for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games And, as always, a whole lot more. ENJOY! *** Like our content? Leave us a tip :) We don't charge a subscription fee, so everything is much appreciated: https://motivated-author-4500.ck.page/products/sandcast-tip-jar We now have SANDCAST MERCHANDISE!! Rock the gear of your favorite podcast today! https://www.sandcastmerch.com/ If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/ This episode, as always, is brought to you by Wilson Volleyball, makers of the absolute best balls in the game, hands down. You can get a 20-percent discount using our code, SANDCAST-20! https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball Check out our book, Volleyball for Milkshakes, written by SANDCAST hosts Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter: https://www.amazon.com/Volleyball-Milkshakes-Travis-Mewhirter/dp/B089781SHB Be sure to check out some of the coolest beach volleyball gear in the country at Vollis Beach! Recently partnered with LuLu Lemon, Vollis is offering high quality, good looking apparel, and you can get it at a discount using Travisfans to get 15 percent off! https://www.vollisgear.com/ SHOOTS!

16 Mar 20221h 9min

Kim Smith never imagined beach volleyball in her life, ’now it is my life’

Kim Smith never imagined beach volleyball in her life, ’now it is my life’

This episode of SANDCAST features, for the first time in a while, a fellow writer! Coming on to chat is longtime AVP player-turned-AVP staff writer Kim Smith. For four years, Smith was a solid presence on the AVP Tour, making six top-10s, competing alongside Olympians and promising up-and-coming talent alike. But when the pandemic hit, and she found herself two spots out of the AVP Champions Cup, her role flipped, from AVP player to AVP staff writer. On the show, we chat about all of that: How she got into beach volleyball in the first place, being from Zionsville, Indiana Her transition from indoor to beach, and why her passing drove Jose Loiola positively crazy How Sarah Sponcil allowed her to see the insane work ethic demanded of being an Olympian Becoming the AVP staff writer, and how everything just ‘feels right’ in her life And, as always, much more. ENJOY! *** Like our content? Leave us a tip :) We don't charge a subscription fee, so everything is much appreciated: https://motivated-author-4500.ck.page/products/sandcast-tip-jar We now have SANDCAST MERCHANDISE!! Rock the gear of your favorite podcast today! https://www.sandcastmerch.com/ If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/ This episode, as always, is brought to you by Wilson Volleyball, makers of the absolute best balls in the game, hands down. You can get a 20-percent discount using our code, SANDCAST-20! https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball Check out our book, Volleyball for Milkshakes, written by SANDCAST hosts Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter: https://www.amazon.com/Volleyball-Milkshakes-Travis-Mewhirter/dp/B089781SHB Be sure to check out some of the coolest beach volleyball gear in the country at Vollis Beach! Recently partnered with LuLu Lemon, Vollis is offering high quality, good looking apparel, and you can get it at a discount using Travisfans to get 15 percent off! https://www.vollisgear.com/ SHOOTS!

9 Mar 20221h 10min

Drinking Whiskey with the Crabbs...and Nick Lucena...and Taylor Sander

Drinking Whiskey with the Crabbs...and Nick Lucena...and Taylor Sander

This episode of SANDCAST: Beach Volleyball with Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter, is, without a doubt, our most hilarious one to date. It’s not just SANDCAST, this time, but a combination of our usual podcast and Drinking Whiskey with the Crabbs, as Taylor Crabb and Trevor Crabb brought on a 10-year bottle of Widow Jane. It wasn’t just shared but us, either, but also Nick Lucena, who was in town, and Taylor Sander, who swung by for a few drinks and some funny stories. It’s not often you get four Olympians and three Manhattan Beach Open champions on a single show. It’s different, this show. As you might expect from that cast of characters, and the two bottles of whiskey we crushed, it’s not so much a podcast as it is a bar conversation that happens to be a podcast. But we did cover some very real topics, including: A behind-the-scenes look at the Tokyo Olympic Games, from Taylor Crabb’s quarantine experience to Trevor Crabb’s injury that kept him out, from Nick Lucena almost needing a substitute to Tri Bourne’s wild ride as a last minute fill-in. How Tayor Crabb and Taylor Sander became a team Nick Lucena’s hilarious story about almost playing for Qatar with Phil Dalhausser in 2003 How Drinking Whiskey with the Crabbs was started Note: If you have a young listener in the car, maybe it’s best to skip this one. There is an abundance of profanity, so if you’re sensitive to that sort of thing, we’d encourage you to wait for next week’s family friendly episode with AVP writer extraordinaire Kim Smith. Until next time... SHOOTS! *** Like our content? Leave us a tip :) We don't charge a subscription fee, so everything is much appreciated: https://motivated-author-4500.ck.page/products/sandcast-tip-jar We now have SANDCAST MERCHANDISE!! Rock the gear of your favorite podcast today! https://www.sandcastmerch.com/ If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/ This episode, as always, is brought to you by Wilson Volleyball, makers of the absolute best balls in the game, hands down. You can get a 20-percent discount using our code, SANDCAST-20! https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball Check out our book, Volleyball for Milkshakes, written by SANDCAST hosts Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter: https://www.amazon.com/Volleyball-Milkshakes-Travis-Mewhirter/dp/B089781SHB Be sure to check out some of the coolest beach volleyball gear in the country at Vollis Beach! Recently partnered with LuLu Lemon, Vollis is offering high quality, good looking apparel, and you can get it at a discount using Travisfans to get 15 percent off! https://www.vollisgear.com/ SHOOTS!

2 Mar 20221h 19min

Nick Lucena has (at least) one more chapter in his beach volleyball journey

Nick Lucena has (at least) one more chapter in his beach volleyball journey

This episode of SANDCAST: Beach Volleyball with Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter, features Nick Lucena, one of the most humble, genuine, fun people in the sport of beach volleyball. As any conversation with Lucena is, this one was an absolute blast – funny, introspective, humble. On this episode, we chat about: How Lucena intended to retire a decade ago, and why he’s still playing now How he had given up on the hope of qualifying for an Olympics – and then qualified for two, in Rio and Tokyo His thoughts on playing with Andy Benesh, with whom he’ll be playing this season Why working out before matches works so well for him And, as always, so much more. Such a fun episode with Nick. ENJOY! *** Like our content? Leave us a tip :) We don't charge a subscription fee, so everything is much appreciated: https://motivated-author-4500.ck.page/products/sandcast-tip-jar We now have SANDCAST MERCHANDISE!! Rock the gear of your favorite podcast today! https://www.sandcastmerch.com/ If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/ This episode, as always, is brought to you by Wilson Volleyball, makers of the absolute best balls in the game, hands down. You can get a 20-percent discount using our code, SANDCAST-20! https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball Check out our book, Volleyball for Milkshakes, written by SANDCAST hosts Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter: https://www.amazon.com/Volleyball-Milkshakes-Travis-Mewhirter/dp/B089781SHB Be sure to check out some of the coolest beach volleyball gear in the country at Vollis Beach! Recently partnered with LuLu Lemon, Vollis is offering high quality, good looking apparel, and you can get it at a discount using Travisfans to get 15 percent off! https://www.vollisgear.com/ SHOOTS!

23 Feb 202258min

February Mailbag: Why we LOVE the AVP schedule, best surprise teams, biggest wins this offseason

February Mailbag: Why we LOVE the AVP schedule, best surprise teams, biggest wins this offseason

This episode of SANDCAST: Beach Volleyball with Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter, features our always-popular Fan Question mailbag episode, hosted, as always, by the wonderful Savvy Simo. We had A LOT to talk about this week, including: Why we LOVE the AVP schedule Why the barrier to entry to the main draw getting higher is a good thing, for both qualifier and main draw players alike Who our surprise teams of the year are Biggest wins of the off-season And, like always, so, so, so much more. ENJOY! *** Like our content? Leave us a tip :) We don't charge a subscription fee, so everything is much appreciated: https://motivated-author-4500.ck.page/products/sandcast-tip-jar We now have SANDCAST MERCHANDISE!! Rock the gear of your favorite podcast today! https://www.sandcastmerch.com/ If you want to receive our SANDCAST weekly newsletter, the Beach Volleyball Digest, which dishes all the biggest news in beach volleyball in one quick newsletter, head over to our website and subscribe! We'd love to have ya! https://www.sandcastvolleyball.com/ This episode, as always, is brought to you by Wilson Volleyball, makers of the absolute best balls in the game, hands down. You can get a 20-percent discount using our code, SANDCAST-20! https://www.wilson.com/en-us/volleyball Check out our book, Volleyball for Milkshakes, written by SANDCAST hosts Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter: https://www.amazon.com/Volleyball-Milkshakes-Travis-Mewhirter/dp/B089781SHB Be sure to check out some of the coolest beach volleyball gear in the country at Vollis Beach! Recently partnered with LuLu Lemon, Vollis is offering high quality, good looking apparel, and you can get it at a discount using Travisfans to get 15 percent off! https://www.vollisgear.com/ SHOOTS!

16 Feb 20221h 21min

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