The strength of the volleyball culture in Hawaii is undeniable.

Likewise, an international University of Hawaii men’s volleyball roster embraced the culture of the islands in the Rainbow Warriors’ ascent to back-to-back national championships.

In his opening comments following the Rainbow Warriors’ sweep of Long Beach State in Saturday’s title match in the National Collegiate Men’s Volleyball Championship in Los Angeles, UH coach Charlie Wade made note of a boar tooth necklace presented to him by Judge Thomas Kaulukukui Jr. to wear among the lei adorning his shoulders during the match.

“He’s a very respected elder in Hawaii and he’s helped us learn a lot about Hawaiian culture and warrior (culture), specifically,” an emotional Wade said in the post-match press conference. “He gave me this boar tooth necklace in December, and he said, ‘When you play for the championship again, I’d like to see you wearing that.’

“So Judge, thank you very much and we’re bringing home the trophy.”

Wade went on to credit Judge Kaulukukui for educating the team and “I feel obligated that we share Hawaiian language and Hawaiian culture and anything about Hawaii that we can as often as we can.

“My children (sons Makana, Kainoa and Kekoa) have Hawaiian blood in them and I take that very seriously. I’m so proud to represent the state.”

As they did with a couple hundred supporters in the stands in Columbus, Ohio, a year earlier, the Warriors sang “Hawaii Pono’i” after capturing the national title. This time they were joined by the UH band and the throng of fans celebrating the victory in storied Pauley Pavilion on the UCLA campus.

The emphasis on representing the islands contributed to a program culture that produced strikingly efficient performances in the final matches of the past two NCAA men’s volleyball seasons.

The Warriors put together a .434 hitting performance in their 25-22, 25-21, 25-20 sweep of Long Beach State, the tournament’s top seed, in the title match on Saturday. Combined with last year’s sweep of Brigham Young in the NCAA title match, the Warriors hit .407 with 85 kills against 17 errors in 167 total attacks with the national championship on the line.

“In the end it’s all about being mentally dialed in and ready to perform at a high level and execute,” UH setter Jakob Thelle, the common thread connecting the efficient performances, said during Sunday’s homecoming celebration outside the Stan Sheriff Center.

“That’s what we’ve done so far. We’ve been executing when it matters the most, and we’ve shown that in the Big West tournament at home and also in the national championship.”

Long Beach State hit .304, led by Alex Nikolov’s 20 kills in 37 attacks, but managed just one block while the Warriors put down eight. In addressing UH’s play at the net, Wade pointed to the Warriors’ production from the service line for forcing the Beach into out-of-system attacks.

“I thought our serving … that’s what sets up our defense,” Wade said after the match. “Jake (Thelle) served 18 times tonight without an error and really got (Long Beach State) in trouble, put some pressure on them.”

Wade traces the Warriors’ knack for putting together championship performances on the season’s biggest stages back to late summer, when they reported back to campus for the fall semester.

“I think we’ve cracked the code a little bit in what we have to do,” Wade said on Sunday. “It’s not just showing up in May and April. We know the process when the semester starts in August and September and October.

“We know what we have to do to get to this point and, knock on wood, we’ve been pretty good at playing late in the season for a nice little run here.”

It wasn’t long after the Warriors’ return on Sunday that talk turned toward yet another run at a title. After losing four AVCA All-America honorees off of last year’s roster, the Warriors had four players recognized again this season, led by Thelle’s first-team selection. Middle blocker Guilherme Voss and outside hitter Spyros Chakas, the NCAA Tournament MVP, made the second team and opposite Dimitrios Mouchlias, the team’s kills leader, earned honorable mention recognition.

This time, all of the above are slated to return next season, along with fellow starters in outside hitter Chaz Galloway, middle Cole Hogland and libero Brett Sheward.

So as the Warriors savored their welcome back to Manoa on Sunday, it probably won’t be long before their focus turns toward a trip to Fairfax, Va., site of the 2023 NCAA Tournament.

“For us, nothing changes,” Thelle said. “We have the same team next year and we just can’t wait to get after it back in the fall again and work hard for another one. Might as well go for a three-peat, right?”

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Cindy Luis contributed to this story.