PLNC Aspires to Be the Host with the Most : Volleyball: With a home-court advantage, Crusaders set their sights on NAIA championship.

When Point Loma Nazarene talks home-court advantage, they’re not blowing hot air.

The host court is always a dangerous place, but doubly so if you happen to be at the Crusaders’ Golden Gym, and you happen to be playing women’s volleyball.

“We were 11-1 at home this season,” said middle blocker and co-captain Roberta Smith.

“And we wish we could have been undefeated,” Coach Barb Wnek said, finishing the thought.

There’s a short supply of timidity when it comes to what PLNC can accomplish at home. Accordingly, expectations run high as the NAIA National Championship tournament gets under way with pool play at 8 this morning and ends with Saturday night’s championship match at PLNC.

“Usually you go into someone else’s gym and you’re all intimidated because they’re running around and screaming,” said Smith, who as the team’s lone senior is taking her first and final shot at nationals. “Now we’re the ones doing the running around and the screaming.”

In case you don’t recognize them, the Crusaders will be the one jumping on tables and yelling “Lomacita,” to fire them up. Sophomore middle blocker Sunday Renzema credited co-captain Debbie Litten, who is Smith’s sister--both are married--with starting the ritual.

But fans develop some habits of their own. Throughout the regular season, team members were surprised when virtual strangers would heap praise on them as they shuffled to class.

So players assume that at home, everyone in the stands is a built-in support system.

“In our own gym, we assume if they’re here, they’re here for us,” Smith said. “They could be someone else’s parent, but we assume they’re cheering for us.”

After Smith and Renzema surveyed several of the teams practicing Wednesday, they concluded there’s no real reason the championship can’t stay on the campus.

“Sure, I think we have a chance,” Smith said. “Our district is so hard. We want to show everyone that we’ve earned our spot here. No one plays the kind of games we play day in and day out.”

Said Renzema: “There are teams in our district that aren’t here who are better than some of the ones out there. That’s why it’s so important to do well.”

Twenty teams from 18 states and 32 NAIA districts--most schools represent two or three districts--will vie for the title. PLNC, runner-up to District 3 winner Cal Baptist of Riverside, received an automatic at-large berth as tournament host.

The Crusaders (20-8) avoided the pool with top-ranked, top-seeded and defending champion Brigham Young-Hawaii (19-12), but weren’t lucky enough to sidestep second-seeded and five-time champion Hawaii-Hilo (18-8). After a noon meeting with West Virginia Wesleyan, PLNC plays Hawaii-Hilo at 8 tonight.

But the Crusaders aren’t shaking in their knee pads.

“I’m not afraid of them,” Smith said. “We played Biola and beat them bad, and (Hawaii-Hilo) barely beat them. I’m not saying that because of that we’ll win, but . . .”

There are other reasons the local girls should make good. Sixth-year coach Wnek wasn’t happy with her team’s execution at the district tournament. But after a four-day Thanksgiving break, players have been sharp and focused in practice.

“I don’t care if we win all the time, but I do care how we play,” Wnek said. “The way we ended it was disappointing. We didn’t play to our ability. We took a few days off and it made a big difference. Since then, practices have been great.”

The Crusaders have reduced their service errors and improved their service returns, but the area of vast improvement has been in their defense.

“Our defense has been awesome,” Smith said. “If we play like we’re practicing, we’ll do great. When it’s nationals, it’s a little more intense. You go after balls you normally wouldn’t go after.”

Based on her own experience, Wnek knows that once her players have a taste of national competition, they will want to feast again, and nine of her 10 players will be back next season.

“As a coach, your goal for your players is to experience nationals,” said Wnek, who went twice when she played at Biola. “Nothing compares to it. Once you’ve seen the level of play, you know you can be there.”

PLNC earned its berth here as tournament host and not through a district championship. But the Crusaders don’t feel pressure to prove it belongs here. Wnek is taking the brunt of that.

“I don’t want them to feel a lot of pressure,” said Wnek. “I want them to have fun.”

The Crusaders figure this is their party; they will leave the crying to someone else.

“We’re not feeling pressure,” Renzema said. “Excitement. That’s what we’re feeling.”

Volleyball notes

Point Loma Nazarene may be the local host, but the Crusaders have only one San Diego area athlete on its roster in Rancho Buena Vista High grad Aurora Van Sickle, a junior outside hitter. BYU-Hawaii matches that with sophomore Jenny Fellers, who played with Van Sickle at RBV. Four San Diegans play for unseeded Baker, out of Baldwin City, Kan.: Chula Vista’s Roseann Combs (Marian High and Southwestern College), Santee’s Paula Hutchings (Grossmont College and former Valhalla High coach), Alpine’s Terah Nutting (Grossmont College) and Oceanside’s Mikilin Esposito (El Camino).