Dramatic January Ends; No. 2 USC Visits No. 1 CSUN
Feb. 1, 2010
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PEPPERDINE (2-3 MPSF, 2-4 overall) freshman Maurice Torres slammed a career-high 28 kills, while adding six blocks, as the No. 11 Waves came from behind to upset No. 1 USC in five sets last Friday in Malibu. In a match that featured 61 ties, Kasey Crider dished a 2010 MPSF and career-high 76 assists in leading Pep to .391 hitting. Four starters hit at least .400 with double-digit kills. Pepperdine visits UCSB and CS Northridge this week (Feb. 3 & 5).
UC SANTA BARBARA (4-2 MPSF, 4-5 overall) continues to roll on the road in a stunning 3-1 win at No. 2 Stanford last Thursday, before a 3-0 outcome at Pacific. Cullen Irons tallied 22 kills (.375), while Jeff Menzel had 23 with five aces in Palo Alto. Irons came back with 15 kills (.429) and Scott Slaughter added a career-high .833 hitting (10-0-12) and six blocks in Stockton. Tied for third, UCSB is at home this week against Pepperdine and USC.
CAL STATE NORTHRIDGE (5-1 MPSF, 8-1 overall) won two in NorCal, 3-2 at No. 2 Stanford and 3-0 at Pacific. The Matadors had four players reach double-figure kills in Palo Alto, led by Theo Edwards' 21 (.487) and Jacek Ratajczak's 20 (.514). Matt Stork had 71 assists and six blocks and guided a .373 team attack. Mike Gaudino had 11 kills (.526) vs. the Tigers. Atop the MPSF standings, CSUN returns home for No. 2 USC and Pepperdine (Feb. 3 & 5).
USC (4-1 MPSF, 6-2 overall) had five players reach double-figure kills, led by Murphy Troy's 21 (.400), though came up short at Pepperdine. Hunter Current hit .737 (15-1-19) and Tri Bourne had the double-double on 18 kills and 10 digs. The Trojans head to top-ranked CS Northridge Wednesday and UCSB Friday.
HAWAII (4-2 MPSF, 6-3 overall) held off UC Irvine twice at home, 3-2, in a pair of three-hour plus matches. The Warriors won the first two sets both nights, before having to hold on in the fifth. UH survived the longest fifth set in the conference this year, 20-18 last Friday, also fighting off six UCI match points. Jonas Umlauft slammed a 2010 MPSF-high 37 kills (.424) that night, and came back with 21 on night two. Tied for third, Hawaii hosts UCLA for two.
LONG BEACH STATE (3-2 MPSF, 4-4 overall) recorded a season-high 20 blocks in a 3-0 home win over UC San Diego last Friday. Individually, Antwain Aguillard led with 11, followed by Dean Bittner's eight and Dan Alexander's seven. Kyle Friend put away 13 kills with a career-clip (.571). The 49ers return the visit to UC San Diego Friday.
UCLA (3-3 MPSF, 4-5 overall) split two home matches with No. 4 BYU, winning Friday 3-0. The Bruins erased six BYU set points in the opening frame of night one to win it 40-38, the longest set in the conference this year. Kevin Ker set the team to .459 hitting in the win, led by Jack Polales' .545 clip (19-1-33). Garrett Muagututia totaled 40 weekend kills and was three blocks shy of a Saturday triple-double (27K/13D/7B). UCLA travels to Hawaii for two this week.
BYU (4-2 MPSF, 6-3 overall) senior hitter Andrew Stewart tied a career-high 22 kills (.333) and Russell Lavaja reached a career-high 11 blocks Saturday, as the Cougars came back to win in five sets and split at UCLA. BYU recorded 20 team blocks. Kevin Sagers had 14 kills (.333) in Friday's loss. The Cougars continue their eight-match road swing at UC Irvine Thursday and Friday.
UC SAN DIEGO (1-4 MPSF, 3-6 overall) picked up a 3-0 non-conference home win over Princeton last Wednesday, before its loss at Long Beach State. Cyrus Kiani had 12 kills (.733) and Frank Fritsch served three aces in the win. The Tritons host Long Beach State for a quick rematch Friday, followed by Hope International Saturday.
STANFORD (3-3 MPSF, 3-3 overall) dropped home contests to UC Santa Barbara in four and CS Northridge in five. Brad Lawson had 23 kills and Kawika Shoji had 61 assists and 15 digs vs. CSUN. Lawson collected 22 kills (.425) vs. UCSB, while Evan Romero had 26 (.449). The Cardinal hosts Pacific Wednesday and UC Santa Cruz Friday.
UC IRVINE (1-5 MPSF, 5-6 overall) was edged twice in five sets at Hawaii. Carson Clark combined for 50 kills (5 K/S), including a career-high 29 (.355) in the first match. The Anteaters, who also won 3-0 at home over Princeton last Tuesday, hosts BYU Thursday and Friday (Feb. 4-5).
PACIFIC (0-6 MPSF, 4-6 overall) dropped a pair of 3-0 home matches to UCSB and CS Northridge. Sean Daley hit .412 vs. UCSB (11-4-17). The Tigers visit Stanford Wednesday, before hosting Quincy from the MIVA twice, Feb. 5-6.
TORRES AND IRONS MPSF MOLTEN PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Pepperdine freshman opposite Maurice Torres (Riverside, CA/Orange Lutheran HS) recorded career-highs of 28 kills (.400), six blocks, three aces, and 35 points, as the No. 11 Waves erased a 2-1 deficit to edge top-ranked USC in five sets. Each of those statistics were also match-highs. The 28 kills were the most by a Pepperdine freshman since Sean Rooney also had 28 in a 2002 match.
UC Santa Barbara junior outside hitter Cullen Irons (Hanford, CA/Hanford HS) hit a career-high .375 (22-7-40) as the No. 10 Gauchos stunned No. 2 Stanford in four sets on the road. He then broke that career-mark with a .429 effort (15-3-28) at Pacific, while adding four blocks and one ace. Irons averaged 5.29 kills at .397 for the week.
Nominated: Kyle Friend (LB), Brad Lawson (SU), Andrew Stewart (BY), Jonas Umlauft (UH), Jacek Ratajczak (N)