Long months of preseason workouts and waiting gave way to weeks of intense two-a-day practices and more waiting.

Now, the moment is here for the No. 12 Hawai'i Rainbow Wahine volleyball team, when practice attire is switched with match uniforms, and when fans pour into the Stan Sheriff Center by the thousands as they always have.

All that isn't lost on senior Nicki Thomas, whose Hawai'i squad opens its season tonight against defending NCAA champion and top-ranked Penn State at 7 in the Hawaiian Airlines Wahine Volleyball Classic.

"Today (yesterday) was the first day it hit me," Thomas said. "From double days and just practices and a lot of fun with the girls, today was just like 'oh my gosh, we're playing Penn State tomorrow.' It got me excited and kind of nervous. It's going to be a lot of fun."

Even more so, this season means a bit more for Thomas. She red-shirted her freshman year, then sat out the past two years with knee injuries.

"I think one of my things for this season is to prove to myself that I can still play," Thomas said. "And the last two seasons were hard, but I know I can do it."

Though there's always the notion of wanting more time on your side, Hawai'i coach Dave Shoji said the Rainbow Wahine are ready to go.

"Everybody is waiting to play," Shoji said. "We had a long spring, long summer, haven't been able to get on the floor except for a couple times for eight months, so everybody is anxious to play."

Exactly who'll start tonight will likely be a match-time decision.

Jamie Houston, last year's Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year, said the team has the right tools, and fans will see something different from last season's squad that finished 27-6.

"We worked so hard to get to this first game," Houston said. "People will see a different game."

No. 6 UCLA opens the three-day, round-robin tournament against Ohio at 5 p.m. Hawai'i plays Ohio tomorrow and UCLA on Sunday.

"They're going to be really good and it'll really show where we're at right now and that'll be good for us," Thomas said of the tournament field. "It's going to be a fun game."

Houston hopes to see improvement through the weekend.

"I just want us as a team to get better each and every game and each and every match," Houston said. "As long as we get better as a team, we'll have opportunities."

TOURNAMENT CAPSULES

NO. 1 PENN STATE (34-2 IN 2007, NCAA CHAMPION)

Coach: Russ Rose (925-159, 30th season)

The Nittany Lions open defense of their second national title with every starter back. ... Their four captains — Megan Hodge (6-3 Jr. OH), Nicole Fawcett (6-4 Sr. OH), Christa Harmotto (6-2 Sr. MB) and Alisha Glass (6-0 Jr. S) — are also All-Americans. ... Those three hitters started every match last season and supplied 70 percent of the offense. ... PSU has never lost to Hawai'i (3-0) and is 5-1 in the Classic, winning it three years ago. ... It has been the country's best hitting team the past two years and ranked second in blocking last season. ... Has won its last 26, with the last loss coming 348 days ago. ... After this weekend, won't play another ranked opponent until the conference season starts, with the Big Ten having three other teams in the Top 25.

NO. 6 UCLA (23-11, NCAA REGIONAL FINAL)

Coach: Andy Banachowski (1,060-281, 41st year)

This is the Bruins' 19th Classic appearance and they have won eight championships, with two-time All-American Nellie Spicer (5-10 Sr. S) leading them to the last two. Spicer is third on the UCLA career assist list . ... Return all but one starter, but kill leader Kaitlin Sather (6-1 Sr. OH) is out indefinitely after injuring her right biceps in the spring. ... Ali Daley (6-0 Sr. OH) was Pac-10 honorable mention pick last year, averaging 3.69 kills and 2 digs. ... UCLA is 54-29 in Hawai'i, but 35-4 against everyone but the Rainbow Wahine. ... Swept Hawai'i last year in 96 minutes, holding UH to .083 hitting. ... After finishing 9-9 in Pac-10 last season, picked second behind Stanford this season. Six conference teams are ranked among top 11.

NO. 12 HAWAI'I (27-6, NCAA SECOND ROUND)

Coach: Dave Shoji (953-169, 33rd season)

Returns six starters, including WAC Player of Year Jamie Houston (6-1 Sr. OH), whose 5.51 kill average last season ranked second nationally. ... Aneli Cubi-Otineru (5-11 Jr. OH) was a 2007 all-WAC selection in her first season at UH after collecting 13 double-doubles. ... Amber Kaufman (6-0 Jr. MB) is preseason all-WAC pick after moving to the middle last season and winning WAC high jump in the spring, earning All-America track honors and qualifying for Olympic trials. ... Rainbow Wahine are 28-6 in season openers, but have lost two of last three. They are 21-2 in season-openers at home, losing their first (1976) and last. ... UH is 8-12 against top-ranked teams after losing their last five.

OHIO (26-6, NCAA FIRST ROUND)

Coach: Ryan Theis (first season)

Geoff Carlston left in February to become coach at Ohio State and Theis is one of 50 new Division I coaches this season. He was formerly an assistant at Florida. ... Carlston lifted the Bobcats to their first five NCAA Tournament appearances. They have at least 20 wins the past six seasons. ... Lost three starters including Mid-American Player of the Year Melissa Griffin. ... Ellen Herman (6-1 Jr. OH) averaged four kills last season and played for the U.S. Women's National A2 team this summer. She could become one of the school's top-10 kill leaders this weekend. No other returning hitter averaged more than two kills a game last season. ... Ohio, which has never played any of its Classic opponents before, beat two top-15 teams in September tournaments last year. After this weekend, it has only one more ranked opponent on its schedule — No. 15 Middle Tennessee State, which ended Hawai'i's 2007 season.