UCI Tightens MPSF Race; USC Takes Eight Straight to UCLA
March 12, 2012
MPSF Men's Volleyball Weekly Release - 3/12/12
UC IRVINE (12-3 MPSF, 16-3 Overall) became the first visiting team in 2012 to win a set in the Wooden Center, let alone a match, in a 3-2 thriller in front of 1,503. Kevin Tillie (.333) and Carson Clark (.447) shared a match-high 21 kills. The Anteaters also took charge on serve, firing 10 aces, four apiece from Tillie and Clark. One-half match out of first, and officially solidified in the MPSF Tournament, UCI takes seven straight wins to Northridge Wednesday (Mar. 14).
USC (10-4 MPSF, 13-4 Overall) rides a conference-high eight-match win streak into first-place UCLA Wednesday (Mar. 14), behind two more wins last week, 3-0 over Penn State and 3-1 at Pepperdine. Tied at one set in Malibu, Tony Ciarelli served 13 consecutive points to break open a 10-9 lead, mixing in four of his seven aces within the 13-0 run. He had a match-high 14 kills (.355) vs. the Lions. The Trojans are within two matches of first with eight to play in the MPSF.
BYU (11-3 MPSF, 15-4 Overall) pulled to within one match of first with a pair of 3-0 home wins over Pacific. Taylor Sander controlled the weekend hitting, combining for a .420 clip (26-5-50). Joe Kauliakamoa dished 72 assists in the six sets (12.00 A/S), leading an overall .349 team attack. Futi Tavana totaled a series-high 10 blocks, becoming the rally scoring total blocks and block assist leader at BYU. The Cougars travel to Hawaii for two this weekend (Mar. 16-17)
HAWAII (4-10 MPSF, 7-12 Overall) Steven Hunt had a match-high 22 kills (.298), while JP Marks set a new career-high of 18 kills (.419), as the Warriors snapped a seven-match losing streak in earning a series split at Stanford last Wednesday. UH came back from dropping the first set to win in four. The victory was also the first against the Cardinal in Palo Alto since 2008, a span of seven matches.
UCLA (12-2 MPSF, 18-3 Overall) split two at home, defeating UC San Diego in three and edged by No. 2 UC Irvine. Still, the Bruins were the first team to officially punch a ticket to the MPSF Quarterfinals. UCLA was down 24-20 in set three vs. the Tritons, following up with an 8-2 run to end the match. Thomas Amberg had an 11-kill (.529), 11-block night vs. UCI. One-half match ahead in the MPSF standings with eight to play, USC and Pepperdine visit Westwood this week.
STANFORD (11-4 MPSF, 14-5 Overall) had three players with double-figure kills, including a career-high from Steven Irvin (19), followed by Brad Lawson (11) and Brian Cook (10), while the team hit .368 in last Tuesday's 3-1 win over Hawaii. Irvin hit .483 and served three aces. Stanford came back that night from an opening set loss. The Cardinal does not compete again until March 30.
UC SAN DIEGO (2-13 MPSF, 4-16 Overall) snapped a nine-match skid with a 3-1 decision at UC Santa Barbara this past Friday. Fred Stahl hit .611 (13-2-18) with six blocks. Sebastian Brady also owned six blocks along with a .500 clip (9-1-16). Carl Eberts recorded a match-high 14 kills (.611) at UCLA. The Tritons head to Long Beach State Thursday (Mar. 15) and CS Northridge Friday (Mar. 16).
CAL STATE NORTHRIDGE (4-8 MPSF, 8-11 Overall) won two of three non-conference home matches last week, taking out Loyola-Chicago and Ball State in three sets. The Matadors hit .462 vs. the Cardinals, led by Matt Stork's .682 clip (16-1-22) and John Baker at .483 (15-1-29). Stork slammed 20 kills (.395) and Baker hit an errorless .438 (7-0-16) vs. Loyola, as CSN hit .452. Top-ranked UC Irvine visits on Wednesday, as well as UC San Diego Friday.
LONG BEACH STATE (5-7 MPSF, 10-9 Overall) split two matches against the MIVA as it hosted the annual Active Ankle Tournament. The 49ers swept IPFW, behind a team attack of .473 (43-8-74). Taylor Crabb and John La Rusch delivered identical lines of 10-2-16 (.500), and Ryan Meehan was seven for an errorless 11 (.636). Meehan hit .384 with a career-high 12 kills in the Lewis match. UC San Diego (Mar. 15) and No. 1 UC Irvine (Mar. 17) visit the Beach this week.
PEPPERDINE (6-8 MPSF, 9-9 Overall) outlasted Penn State in five sets at home last Thursday. Matt Pollock recorded a career-high 12 blocks, while Maurice Torres led offensively with 21 kills (.529). Pollock was also eight for an errorless 12 swings (.667) against the Lions. The Waves head to UC Santa Barbara Wednesday and UCLA Friday.
PACIFIC (4-11 MPSF, 6-14 Overall) Florian Gornik put away a series-high 29 kills (4.83 K/S) in the two losses at BYU this past weekend. Sean Daley hit a collective .350 (9-2-20) with six blocks, and Javier Caceres picked up a series-high 18 digs (3.00 D/S). The Tigers are off this week, next in action Mar. 23 at home against UC Santa Cruz.
UC SANTA BARBARA (3-11 MPSF, 5-13 Overall) dropped two at home, 3-0 to UC Irvine and 3-1 to UC San Diego. Kevin Donohue had a match-high 15 kills and Evan Licht hit .533 (10-2-15) with a match-high seven blocks against the Tritons. The Gauchos host Pepperdine Wednesday and USC Friday.
CARSON CLARK MPSF MOLTEN PLAYER OF THE WEEK
UC Irvine senior opposite Carson Clark (Santa Barbara, CA/Santa Barbara HS) recorded a match-high 21 kills and hit .447 (21-4-38) as the Anteaters handed top-ranked UCLA its first home loss. He also fired four aces and had two block assists and five digs. Clark started the week with eight kills and four aces in a 3-0 win at No. 12 UC Santa Barbara. For the week, Clark averaged 3.62 kills (.379), 1.00 aces and 4.75 points per setââ'¬¦.
Also Nominated: Futi Tavana (BYU); Ryan Meehan (LBSU); Tony Ciarelli (USC); Steven Hunt (UH)