No. 1 Seed Stanford Host MPSF Semifinals, Championship

4/26/2010 12:00:00 AM

April 26, 2010

STANFORD (16-6 MPSF, 20-6 overall) won its MPSF quarterfinal match 3-1 over No. 8 seed UC Irvine last Saturday, the first postseason victory for the Cardinal since the national title run in 1997. Evan Romero had 24 kills (.347) and MPSF Player of the Year Brad Lawson added 21 (.304), while the Cardinal hit .350 in the match. Top-seeded Stanford hosts No. 4 seed Hawaii in the second tournament semifinal Thursday (Apr. 29) at approximately 7:30 pm (PT).

BYU (15-7 MPSF, 22-8 overall) defeated No. 7 seed UCLA in Provo, 3-1, to advance to Thursday's conference semifinals in Palo Alto, CA. The Cougars hit .364 in the quarterfinal win, led by Kevin Sagers' .622 attack (17-2-22). Robb Stowell delivered a match-high 18 kills (.300), while first-team All-MPSF Andrew Stewart tallied 16 (.294). Futi Tavana registered a match-high eight blocks. No. 2 seed BYU meets No. 3 CS Northridge in the first semifinal at 5pm (PT).

CAL STATE NORTHRIDGE (15-7 MPSF, 22-8 overall) used serving and blocking to defeat No. 6 seed USC in the Matadome. The No. 3 Matadors stuffed 10 of their 19 total blocks in the first set, while first-teamer Kevin McKniff served four of the nine team aces. Fellow first-team middle-man Jacek Ratajczak hit .500 (19-1-36) along with nine blocks. Mike Gaudino totaled 10 kills, 12 digs, four blocks, and three aces. CSN moves on to face No. 2 BYU at Stanford Thursday.

HAWAII (14-8 MPSF, 19-9 overall) fought off a match point at 14-13 down and survived a three-hour plus marathon at home to get by No. 5 seed Pepperdine at home. Setter Nejc Zemljak served the last of his four aces as the match-winner, sending the No. 4 Warriors to Thursday's semifinals at No. 1 Stanford. MPSF Freshman of the Year Jonas Umlauft slammed 36 kills (.282), just two off the 2010 national-high, while Matt Rawson hit .611 on 18 errorless swings.

PEPPERDINE (14-8 MPSF, 16-10 overall) came within match point of earning the only quarterfinal road win, but was edged 18-16 in set five in Honolulu. JD Schleppenbach ended his career with a 20-kill (.400), 10-dig double-double. Rodnei Santos recorded 16 kills and two aces and all-conference first-teamer Cory Riecks added 13 kills.

USC (13-9 MPSF, 16-11 overall) dropped a 3-1 outcome at No. 3 seed CS Northridge to end the season. All-conference selection Murphy Troy combined for 23 kills, 10 digs, and two aces. Tony Ciarelli tallied 14 kills and three aces and all-freshman libero Maddison McKibbin picked up a match-high 15 digs.

UCLA (11-11 MPSF, 16-14 overall) concluded 2010 with a 3-1 loss at No. 2 seed BYU. Second-team All-MPSF Garrett Muagututia recorded a team-high 16 kills (.281) and Jack Polales chipped in 14. Nick Vogel turned in the best overall line for the No. 7 seed Bruins, with 13 kills on 25 errorless swings (.520), a match-best two aces, and six blocks.

UC IRVINE (10-12 MPSF, 15-15 overall) ended its season with a four-set loss at No. 1 seed Stanford. First-team all-conference honoree Carson Clark accumulated a double-double on 23 kills and 10 digs, in addition to serving a pair of aces. Second-team hitter Jordan DuFault added 18 kills and Cory Yoder tallied 17 (.324) for the No. 8 seed Anteaters.