Third-Straight Win Lifts UCI to Upper Half

2/21/2011 12:00:00 AM

Feb. 21, 2011

UC IRVINE (6-5 MPSF, 9-8 Overall) has taken three straight, including a 3-1 Monday win over Hawaii, going over .500 in the MPSF and into the top half of the standings. The Anteaters upset No. 3 Long Beach State in four last Wednesday and swept CS Northridge on Friday. Carson Clark hit .500 vs. the Matadors with a match-high 15 kills, while Anthony Spittle led a .419 team attack. Clark had 24 kills vs. the 49ers and Jordan DuFault added a season-high 17.

USC (8-1 MPSF, 8-1 Overall) won six straight sets at home this past week, 3-0 over Stanford and Pacific. Tony Ciarelli hit an errorless .667 (12-0-18) vs. the Cardinal, while the Trojans hit .407 as a team. He added five aces and five blocks. Tri Bourne recorded 13 kills (.632) and Ciarelli next with 12 (.357) vs. the Tigers, leading a .444 team attack. USC has swept six of their nine matches and all four at home, heading to Northridge and Long Beach this week.

STANFORD (7-4 MPSF, 10-4 Overall) won at Pepperdine for the first time since1997 this past Saturday, 3-0, a quick recovery after a 3-0 loss at USC last Thursday. The Cardinal hit a season-high .492, led by Spencer McLachlin's 600 clip (10-1-15) and Brad Lawson's .500 (9-2-14). The Waves were held to a .139 offense. UCLA visits on Friday followed by UC Santa Barbara on Saturday.

UC SANTA BARBARA (7-5 MPSF, 9-6 Overall) came away with a split at home against second place BYU last week, bouncing back from a 3-1 Thursday loss with a sweep on Friday. Jeff Menzel collected 30 kills in the series, 17 (.273) in the loss and 13 (.333) in the win. Cullen Irons put away a match-high 18 kills in the win, while Dylan Davis hit .556 in the middle (11-1-18). The Gauchos travel north this week to Pacific and Stanford.

BYU (7-3 MPSF, 10-3 Overall) freshman Taylor Sander recorded 17 kills (.312) and three aces to lead a 3-1 win at UC Santa Barbara last Thursday. Robb Stowell added 14 kills and shared a match-high six blocks with Futi Tavana. BYU held a 12.5-6.0 block advantage, coming back from a first set loss. Tavana had eight blocks in Friday's loss. UC San Diego visits Provo for two this week, Thursday and Friday (Feb. 24-25).

HAWAII (4-5 MPSF, 6-8 Overall) split at UCLA, losing 3-0 Thursday before returning the favor in a Saturday sweep. Josh Walker was 14 for 23 without an error (.609) in the first match. Jonas Umlauft put away nine of his 15 night two kills in the third set, hitting .387, while Nejc Zemljak served four aces. The Warriors won the attack (.329-.176) and block (11.5-5.0) in the win. After a 3-1 Monday defeat at UC Irvine, night two is Tuesday (Feb. 22).

UCLA (3-7 MPSF, 8-8 Overall) split a pair of 3-0 outcomes at home against Hawaii last Thursday and Saturday. In the first night's win, three Bruins' hit at least .450, led by Weston Dunlap at .471 (10-2-17). Kyle Caldwell delivered a .467 clip (11-4-15) followed by Gonzalo Quiroga at .450 (10-1-20). Caldwell picked up a double-double in the loss on 10 kills and 11 digs. UCLA travels north this week to Stanford Friday and Pacific Saturday.

PEPPERDINE (3-6 MPSF, 5-6 Overall) split a pair at home, winning 3-1 over Pacific before falling 3-0 to Stanford. Maurice Torres delivered 23 kills (.333) and Matt Pollock registered a .455 clip (11-1-22) in the win. Setter Kasey Crider dished 52 assists (13 A/S) and picked up nine digs. The Waves visit Long Beach State and CS Northridge this week.

LONG BEACH STATE (6-3 MPSF, 7-5 Overall) recovered from the loss at UC Irvine to win 3-1 at UC San Diego Friday. The 49ers won the block in La Jolla, 11-4, as Ryan Meehan totaled seven individually. Taylor Crabb led with 11 kills and a pair of aces and Antwain Aguillard hit .474 (11-2-19). Setter Mike Klipsch picked up a team-high 13 digs. Jim Baughman tallied 13 kills in the Bren Center. Pepperdine and top-ranked USC visit the Pyramid this week.

CAL STATE NORTHRIDGE (3-6 MPSF, 4-10 Overall) bounced back from a 3-0 loss at UC Irvine, and first set loss at UC San Diego, to win in four in La Jolla. Matt Stork came within three blocks of a triple-double on 42 assists, 10 digs, and seven blocks. Tanner Nua shared a match-high 13 kills, followed by Brandon LeBrock and Greg Faulkner with 11. 16.5 blocks helped limit the Tritons to .116 hitting. The Matadors host USC and Pepperdine this week.

UC SAN DIEGO (3-7 MPSF, 6-10 overall) dropped a pair of 3-1 home decisions to Long Beach State and CS Northridge. Carl Eberts equaled a match-high 13 kills vs. the Matadors. Setter Phil Bannan collectd 35 assists, 10 digs, and a pair of aces. He also served three aces vs. the 49ers. The Tritons travel to BYU for two on Thursday and Friday (Feb. 24-25).

PACIFIC (2-7 MPSF, 6-9 Overall) fell 3-1 at Pepperdine and 3-0 at USC last weekend. Taylor Hughes had 13 kills (.407) and Florian Gornik chipped in 12 (.409) in Los Angeles. Hughes recorded a 14-kill night in Malibu. UCSB and UCLA visit the Spanos Center this weekend.

TONY CIARELLI MPSF MOLTEN PLAYER OF THE WEEK
USC junior outside hitter Tony Ciarelli (Huntington Beach, CA/Huntington Beach HS), posted a match-best 12 kills on an errorless .667 attack in a 3-0 win over No. 5 Stanford. He added five aces, five blocks, and had no reception errors on 15 attempts and just 1 serving error on 24 attempts. In a 3-0 home sweep over No. 15 Pacific, Ciarelli put away 12 kills on just 2 errors (.357) and two aces. He had no reception errors on 19 attempts and no serving errors on 19 attempts. Also Nominated: Dylan Davis (UCSB); Jonas Umlauft (UH); Carson Clark (UCI); Antwain Aguillard (LB)