There is little chance opponents will overlook the University of Hawai'i volleyball team's serving and passing after the power of those skills showed up on the radar yesterday.

In their final preparation for road matches against Cal State Northridge tonight and tomorrow, the Warriors spent an hour working exclusively on serve-and-pass drills at UH's Gym I.

As motivation, team manager Doug Hussey and athletic trainer Tara Humphrey used JUGS machines — radar devices that resemble blow dryers and measure velocity — to time the serves. Opposite attacker Lauri Hakala blasted serves that traveled better than 70 mph, and setter Brian Beckwith and outside hitter Matt Carere zipped shots in the mid-60s.

Not only were 90 percent of the serves kept in play, but the Warriors were able to pass effectively and consistently.

With a relatively small outside attack — 6-foot-6 Beckwith is taller than each of the starting perimeter hitters — the Warriors rely on aggressive serving and ball-control to out-sly taller opponents.

"We need to serve and pass well, and everything else will fall into place," Hakala said. "That's our game."

UH coach Mike Wilton added: "That's how it should be for every team. Serving and passing in volleyball are like passing and dribbling in basketball. You should be good at it, and you can't win without it."

Hakala, who induced the most "oohs" when his times were announced, missed a showdown with outside hitter José José Delgado, whose serves also top 70 mph. Delgado showed up at the end of the practice.

"I had to take care of business," Delgado said. "School is my business."

Only middle blocker Mauli'a LaBarre's float serves were not timed.

"It would be too fast for the radar," LaBarre said, smiling.

"We didn't have all day," associate coach Tino Reyes mused. "We have a flight to catch."

LaBarre said: "As long as we focus on what we do on our side of the net, and play hard, we'll do good on this trip. When we're serving and passing, when we're in system, we're a tough team to play against."

The Northridge matches offer a difficult obstacle. Because of a scheduling conflict, the teams meet at 6 tonight (Pacific time) and at 11 a.m. tomorrow.

"We're obviously not happy about it," said Northridge coach Jeff Campbell, who was offered a morning or 11 p.m. starting time tomorrow. "We chose to go early, even though it wasn't given as a choice."

Wilton said: "It is what it is. It'll be the same for both teams. We have other concerns."

Topping UH's dread list is opposite attacker Dan Rhodes, who slammed 41 kills in a five-game loss at Pepperdine last week. He was the fifth NCAA male player to top 40 kills in a match since the rally-scoring format was implemented in 2001.

"I don't think I've seen a better performance attacking-wise," Campbell said. "He had 41 kills against one of the best blocking teams in the country. What made his performance so good was that everyone in the gym knew (the set) was going to him. (Pepperdine) had 6-10 and 6-11 blockers on him. It was great."

Rhodes' performance solidified his comeback. He missed most of last season with a broken bone in his right (hitting) hand. "It's healed 100 percent," Campbell said.

Campbell will revise his lineup. Isaac Kneubuhl, a Kamehameha Schools graduate, regains his starting job as a left-side hitter, replacing freshman Eric Vance. Senior Brian Waite will start in one of the middle positions in place of James Lischer.

The moves are designed to improve the Matadors' passing and defense.

"The problem we have with Hawai'i is everybody's good," Campbell said. "There's not one weak link. Delgado, Hakala and Carere get a lot of sets. They don't have giants on the outside, but they can hit."

Reach Stephen Tsai at stsai@honoluluadvertiser.com.