Men's Volleyball Weekly Release
April 7, 2008
Complete Release in PDF Format 
LONG BEACH STATE won 3-2 at Pacific and 3-0 at No. 8 Stanford. Senior Paul Lotman and sophomore Dean Bittner each had 25 kills in Stockton. The 49ers travel to UC Santa Barbara Friday and CS Northridge Saturday. With Long Beach State, BYU, and CS Northridge in the mix for a regular season title and No. 1 MPSF Tournament seed, the 49ers are the only team who control their own destiny. Should LBSU win both matches, they earn the top spot regardless of other outcomes, as the 49ers hold the tiebreaker over BYU. A scenario also exists where if each team were to finish with five losses, Long Beach State would earn the No. 1 seed, by way of either the head-to-head or highest percentage of games won tiebreaker amongst the three teams.
BYU won twice at No. 13 Hawaii, 3-1 and 3-0. The Cougars had five players in double-figure kills on the first night, led by senior Ivan Perez with 15. Senior Trent Sorensen had 10 kills (.562) with two aces and six blocks the second night. The Cougars are tied for first with Long Beach State and CSUN, and host USC twice to conclude the regular season. Two wins over the Trojans secures at least a 2 seed, though a No. 1 seed can be achieved with two wins along with one Long Beach State loss. BYU Holds the two-way tiebreaker over CS Northridge, but not over the 49ers.
CAL STATE NORTHRIDGE dropped a 3-1 contest at No. 9 UC Irvine but bounced back with a 3-0 win at No. 7 UCLA. The Matadors held a .345-.247 hitting advantage in Westwood and controlled the net, 11.5-3.5. Senior Isaac Kneubuhl had 11 kills (.375) and four blocks while freshman Cody Loe had eight kills in 12 errorless swings (.667) in returning to the lineup. UC San Diego and Long Beach State visit CSUN this weekend (Apr. 11-12) with a No. 1 tournament seed still up for grabs. The Matadors sit in a three-way tie for first and two wins this weekend solidifies at least a No. 2 seed. Two wins and one BYU loss, however, would guarantee a regular season title and top seed.
UC IRVINE won a pair of MPSF matches, including a 3-1 upset over first-place CS Northridge, snapping their 14-match win streak. The 42-40 game 3 was the third longest game in MPSF history. The Anteaters also won 3-0 at No. 14 UC Santa Barbara, securing a playoff spot. Junior Jon Steller recorded a 42-kill week in seven games (6.00 K/G) with a .315 hitting clip. UCI travels to Pacific and Stanford to end the regular season. Tied for sixth with USC and Stanford, the match in Palo Alto has major implications on tournament seeding. Two wins and the Anteaters will be at least a No. 6 seed, as they also hold two-way tiebreakers over USC and Pepperdine.
UCLA junior Sean O'Malley slammed a career-high 25 kills (.400) in a 3-1 win over No. 14 UCSB, and followed up with a match-high 14 kills (.480) in a 3-0 loss to No. 2 CSUN. The Bruins turned in one of their best offensive matches against the Gauchos with a .413 attack along with eight service aces. UCLA visits Stanford (Apr. 11) and Pacific (Apr. 12) to finish the regular season. A quarterfinal home match can be locked up by winning both matches, regardless of Pepperdine's outcomes, as UCLA holds the head-to-head tiebreaker.
USC clinched a postseason appearance with a 3-2 comeback upset at No. 5 Pepperdine. The Trojans were down 2-0 in games, had two match points against them, and rallied for their first win in Malibu since 1999. Senior Juan Figueroa had 29 kills (.392) and senior setter Jimmy Killian dished out 77 assists (15.40 A/G), an MPSF single-match high this year. USC travels to BYU for two, and currently in a three-way tie for sixth, can finish anywhere from fourth to eighth in the standings. The Trojans hold two-way tiebreakers over UCLA and Stanford.
STANFORD clinched an MPSF Tournament berth with a 3-0 home win over UC San Diego. Sophomore Evan Romero recorded 21 kills (.378) vs. the Tritons. The Cardinal is in a three-way tie with UCI and USC for sixth place. Two wins at home this weekend against UCLA and UCI, along with one USC loss to BYU is the most effective way to avoid the play-in match.
PEPPERDINE junior Paul Carroll recorded 33 kills (.391) in a 3-2 home loss to No. 11 USC. The Waves are tied for fourth and still alive for a quarterfinal home match, though must finish one match better than UCLA this weekend, as the Bruins hold the two-way tiebreaker. Hawaii visits Malibu Friday and Saturday (Apr. 12-13).
UC SAN DIEGO lost to Cal Baptist and Stanford, though won its school record 10th match in a five-game marathon at Pacific (20-18 in game five). Sophomore Jason Spangler had 22 kills, two aces, and 15 digs in the win. The Tritons finish their most successful season ever this weekend at CS Northridge and UC Santa Barbara.
HAWAII dropped two home matches to No. 3 BYU Thursday and Friday. Freshman Josh Walker recorded 29 kills (.439) and seven blocks Thursday. The Warriors finish their season at Pepperdine Friday and Saturday.
UC SANTA BARBARA lost 3-1 at No. 7 UCLA and 3-0 at home to No. 9 UC Irvine. Freshman Jeff Menzel had 16 kills (.303) and two aces vs. Irvine. The Gauchos wrap up their season by hosting Long Beach State Friday and UC San Diego Saturday.
PACIFIC fell 3-2 to both No. 4 Long Beach State and UC San Diego at home this past weekend. Senior Pekka Seppanen had 28 kills and 12 digs vs. UCSD. The Tigers end their season by hosting UC Irvine and UCLA this weekend (Apr. 12-13).
STELLER AND FIGUEROA NAMED MPSF MOLTEN PLAYERS OF THE WEEK Woodland, Calif. - UC Irvine junior Jon Steller (Fresno, CA/Clovis West HS) slammed 27 kills en route to a 3-1 upset over first-place CS Northridge. He added 15 in a 3-0 win over UCSB for a total of 42 in seven games (6.00 K/G) with a .315 hitting attack. Steller added a career-high seven block assists vs. CSUN and averaged 1.43 blocks and 6.86 points per game during the week... USC senior Juan Figueroa (Levittown, Puerto Rico) led his team to their first win at Pepperdine since 1999, coming back from a 2-0 deficit in games. He tallied 29 kills (5.80 K/G) at a .392 clip with six digs and two blocks in the upset over the No. 5 Waves.