What was AWOL for a while finally returned to the Stan Sheriff Center: the Hawai'i volleyball team's collective smile.

The good times rolled for the Warriors in a 30-19, 30-22, 30-20 smackdown of undermanned New Jersey Institute of Technology in a non-conference match at the Stan Sheriff Center.

In improving to 5-13, the Warriors made meaningful serves, passed well and hit even better.

They also were able to benefit from their first 'opala time of the season. All 12 of their available players logged time, including Justin Ching's crowd-oohing performance.

Ching, who is optimistically listed at 5 feet 6, replaced outside hitter Sean Carney in the third set.

"I thought I was going in to serve for Sean," Ching said.

Instead, Ching remained in the rotation as the outside hitter. He went through two turns as a front-row hitter — and blocker — and buried three kills in four swings, including aloha ball.

Of his final swing, which hit the top of the net and blooped over the reach of a double block, Ching said: "I really wanted to crush it."

Ching, a 2005 Maryknoll School graduate, had played in one set during his UH career. He was added to the active roster after outside hitter Gus Tuaniga failed to meet a team requirement.

"Justin is the best jumper on the team," outside hitter Josh "Sky" Walker said. "He's always been able to out-jump me."

Ching has a vertical jump of more than 40 inches. He can touch 10 feet 7, and grab a basketball rim with both hands. At Maryknoll, he was known as Spider-Man.

"Pocket Hercules — that's what I call him," UH libero Ric Cervantes said. "He can really jump."

Setter Nejc Zemljak said: "He's easy to set. Just get him the ball up there. He won the Hawai'i Speed and Quickness contest. Obviously, he can jump."

That final sequence was made possible because the Warriors used their ball-control to control the match.

They scored on 39 of their 88 serves.

They also sided out 81 percent of the time (51 of 63). The Highlanders' sideout success was 56 percent.

The Highlanders were without two liberos, Glen DeMagalhaes and Chuck Richmond. Both broke team rules and were sent home on the first leg of this cross-country road trip.

Backup setter Adam Gustafson was forced to make his first start at libero.

Then in the second set, NJIT's best attacker, Amobi Armstrong, landed awkwardly and appeared to sprain his left ankle. He hobbled off the court, forcing the Highlanders, who had only nine active players, to use one of their two reserves. Armstrong returned later.

NJIT coach Ryan McNeil recalled thinking: "Who am I going to put in there? Do I have to suit up myself?"

The Highlanders took an 11-9 lead in the second set, forcing the Warriors to burn a timeout. After that, Walker blasted a shot through a double block. Then Zemljak and middle Steven Grgas collaborated on a double block to tie it at 11. Walker then tooled a spike off a double block to give the Warriors a lead they would not relinquish.

For Walker, who finished with 11 kills in two sets, the match had added meaning. Walker was raised in Virginia Beach, Va.

"It was good to play a team from the East Coast," Walker said. "I wanted to see what it's like outside our conference."

Grgas and Jarrod Lofy also provided a boost in the middle. They combined for 15 kills; each committed one error. That enabled Matt "Dragon" Rawson, who aggravated his subluxed left shoulder during warmups, a chance to rest.

"Everyone was working on their game," Cervantes said. "We needed this to help us get ready for (UC Irvine) next week."

The rematch between NJIT and UH is tonight.

Visit Tsai's blog at http://warriorsbeat.honadvblogs.com.