USC Unbeaten Through January

1/31/2011 12:00:00 AM

Jan. 31, 2011

USC (6-0 MPSF, 6-0 overall) opposite Murphy Troy hit .512 (26-5-41), picked up seven digs, and equaled a 2011 MPSF-high five aces in a 3-1 win at UCLA last Friday. Tony Ciarelli added a double-double on 15 kills and 10 digs. In last Wednesday's sweep at UC Santa Barbara, Troy was errorless in 19 swings (.632), as Riley McKibbin set a .493 team hitting attack. The 6-0 Trojans, off to their best start since 1994, are next in action Feb. 11 at Pepperdine.

LONG BEACH STATE (5-1 MPSF, 6-3 overall) won a pair at home for the second straight week, 3-0 sweeps over Pacific and No. 2 Stanford, and begins February in sole possession of second place. The 49ers had four wins over top-five teams in January. Kyle Friend led the way against the Cardinal, owning 11 kills at .500 hitting, along with eight digs. Jim Baughman and Antwain Aguillard (.611) put away 12 balls each against the Tigers. This is a bye week for LBSU.

BYU (4-2 MPSF, 7-2 overall) hit .541 last Friday and .421 on Saturday in a pair of 3-0 home victories over UC Irvine. Robb Stowell (.688) and Taylor Sander (.529) each totaled 11 kills in the first win, as the former was errorless. Sander added a .600 clip in the second win (13-1-20). Futi Tavana combined for 11 blocks and a .714 (16-1-21) clip over the six sets. BYU combined for a 19.0-5.5 team block advantage. The Cougars host UCLA Friday and Saturday (Feb. 4-5).

UC SAN DIEGO (2-2 MPSF, 4-6 overall) Calvin Ross put away a career-high 17 kills while hitting .577 in the middle to lead the Tritons in a 3-2 comeback home win last Friday over Hawaii. Carl Eberts added 13 kills and nine digs. The outcome marked just the third win ever against the Warriors. Ross also hit .706 on 17 errorless swings (12-0-17) in Saturday's 3-1 loss. The Tritons host Hope International Tuesday (Feb. 1) before MPSF resumes with Pepperdine Friday.

PACIFIC (1-3 MPSF, 4-4 overall) Florian Gornik collected 17 kills (.615), two aces, and five blocks, while Taylor Hughes added 13 kills (.300), as the Tigers earned their first conference win in three sets at CS Northridge. Patrick Tunnell set Pacific to .352 with 40 assists (13.33 A/S). Sean Daley hit .462 (7-1-13) and recorded eight blocks. Pacific visits Stanford Wednesday (Feb. 2), before partaking in the Hall of Fame Classic in Springfield, MA over the weekend.

STANFORD (4-2 MPSF, 5-2 overall) split a pair of 3-0 outcomes last week, coming up big in Northridge and falling in Long Beach. Spencer McLachlin hit .520 (15-2-25) in the win, Brad Lawson followed with 14 putaways and Eric Mochalski hit .700 without an error (7-0-10). Evan Barry assisted on 43 balls (14.33 A/G) as the Cardinal hit .349 on the night. Stanford hosts Pacific Wednesday before traveling to the MIVA Conference against Lewis Friday and Loyola Saturday.

UCLA (2-2 MPSF, 7-3 overall) setter Alex Scattareggia set a .482 overall team hitting attack, while dishing 39 assists (13 A/S) in a 3-0 home win over Pepperdine last Wednesday. Kyle Caldwell hit .591 (14-1-22) on the right side and Gonzalo Quiroga added 11 kills (.474). Weston Dunlap had a team-high 13 kills (.688) from the middle in Friday's loss to USC. The Bruins head to Provo this week for two, Friday and Saturday at BYU.

UC SANTA BARBARA (3-3 MPSF, 5-4 overall) split two home matches last week, as Jeff Menzel registered a match-high 15 kills (.565) in a 3-0 Friday win over Pepperdine. Scott Slaughter was 12 for 16 errorless swings in the middle (.750) while Cullen Irons followed with 11 kills at .500. Vince Devaney set 40 assists (13.33 A/G) in leading the Gauchos to a .563 offense. Tied for fifth, UCSB plays at Hawaii Thursday and Friday (Feb. 3-4).

HAWAII (2-2 MPSF, 2-5 overall) split a pair at UC San Diego, edged in five before coming back to win in four. Jonas Umlauft combined for 51 kills over the nine sets (5.67 K/S), swinging for a .350 clip. He has knocked down 20-plus kills in five straight matches. Josh Walker added 13 kills (.458) in the win, as UH hit .424 as a team that night. The Warriors UC Santa Barbara Thursday and Friday (Feb. 3-4).

UC IRVINE (2-4 MPSF, 4-6 overall) was defeated twice at BYU this past weekend. Cory Yoder hit .667 (15-1-21) while Carson Clark tallied 13 kills on night one. Each followed up with 12 kills on night two, as Yoder hit .450. The Anteaters head to Penn State for two matches this weekend, meeting annual NCAA Tournament participant and the host Lions Friday along with Ohio State Saturday.

CAL STATE NORTHRIDGE (1-5 MPSF, 2-7 overall) fell 3-0 at home to Stanford and Pacific last week. Against the Tigers, Drew Staker hit .667 on 12 errorless swings (8-0-12), while Brandon Lebrock and Greg Faulkner had identical hitting lines (9-3-16) in hitting .375. Staker hit .533 (9-1-15) against the Cardinal. The Matadors travel cross country to play Ohio State Friday and Penn State Saturday at State College, PA.

PEPPERDINE (0-5 MPSF, 2-5 overall) dropped 3-0 outcomes at UCLA and UC Santa Barbara last week. Maurice Torres had team-highs of 13 kills and four aces in Westwood and Cory Riecks attacked with a .360 clip (11-2-25). The Waves travel to UC San Diego Friday (Feb. 4).

MURPHY TROY MPSF MOLTEN PLAYER OF THE WEEK
USC senior opposite Murphy Troy (St. Louis, MO/University HS) repeats this award from last week by staying hot with a .550 attack (38-5-60) through a pair of road wins. He hit .632 without an error (12-0-19) in a 3-0 win at UCSB last Wednesday. Troy then put away a match-high 26 kills (.512) along with tying a 2011 conference-high five aces at No. 4 UCLA, four of which within a 10-0 set four Trojan run. He added seven digs in the 3-1 Friday win. Also Nominated: Jonas Umlauft (UH); Antwain Aguillard (LBSU); Futi Tavana (BYU); Calvin Ross (UCSD)