USC (18-4 MPSF, 22-4 Overall) defended its regular season conference title, backed by 17 straight overall wins to finish the schedule and 14 in the conference. Neither such streaks had ever occurred for the program in the MPSF era (since 1993). Tony Ciarelli put the finishing touches in solidifying the No. 1 MPSF Tournament seed, firing an all-era school and MPSF record 11 aces in the Walter Pyramid (Apr. 12). The Trojans host Northridge in the quarterfinals Saturday (Apr. 21), taking both meetings 3-0 this year.
STANFORD (17-5 MPSF, 20-6 Overall) swept through its final weekend over UCSB and UCLA and ultimately won the three-way tiebreaker with BYU and UCI to claim the No. 2 tournament seed. Stanford was a combined 3-1 against its fellow 17-5 MPSF teams, thus providing the seeding boost. The Cardinal host No. 7 seed Pepperdine, winning in four at home and in five on the road this season. Brad Lawson averages 4.01 kills, while Erik Shoji and Evan Barry lead the MPSF with 2.68 digs and 12.02 assists, respectively.
BYU (17-5 MPSF, 23-6 Overall) received the three seed after a three-way tiebreaker was decided after the final weekend. The Cougars waited on other results from around the conference, as it finished up with two wins over EIVA Penn State, 3-1 and 3-0. No. 6 seed Long Beach State is the quarterfinal opponent in Provo, splitting with the 49ers Mar. 23-24, taking a 3-0 win on the 23rd. BYU's 3.20 block average ranks second, led by Futi Tavana (1.51 B/S, 2nd). Taylor Sander leads the MPSF with 4.82 kills (.398) and 5.71 points per set.
UC IRVINE (17-5 MPSF, 21-5 Overall) swept UC San Diego on the road to conclude the regular season, allowing for a home match in the quarters. The fourth-seeded Anteaters host No. 5 UCLA in the Bren Center Saturday, as two of the three meetings this year went to UCI. Carson Clark records 3.88 kills and 0.56 aces per set, ranking sixth and second in the conference, respectively. Kevin Tillie averages 3.52 kills (.390) and Dan McDonnell hits .440 in the middle. UCI is tops in the MPSF in hitting (.357) and serving (1.69 A/S).
UCLA (16-6 MPSF, 22-7 Overall) is seeded fifth and visits No. 4 seed UC Irvine. The Bruins took the last of the three regular season meetings, 3-0 in Crawford Hall on the Anteater campus. UCLA comes off a Northern California split, winning in four sets at Pacific, and enters the postseason in the top-three in the MPSF in hitting (.326, 3rd), opponent hitting (.216, 2nd), and aces (1.27 A/S, 2nd). Thomas Amberg (.484) and Wes Dunlap (.470) rank as the top-two middle hitters in the MPSF. Gonzalo Quiroga has served 46 aces.
LONG BEACH STATE (10-12 MPSF, 15-14 Overall) was bumped up to the six seed when it defeated Pepperdine in four sets to finish the regular schedule. The 49ers travel to No. 3 seed BYU for quarterfinal action, managing a regular season split vs. the Cougars in the Walter Pyramid (Mar. 23-24). The 20-18 set five on the 24th was the first win over BYU since 2008, and the longest match in the MPSF since Jan. 21, 2011. Ryan Meehan and Jeff Ornee hit .413 and .412 in the middle, respectively.
PEPPERDINE (9-13 MPSF, 14-14 Overall) is this week's seven seed, traveling to No. 2 seed Stanford to open postseason play. The Waves played the Cardinal tough this year, particularly during a March 30 match in Malibu, taking it to 15-12 in the fifth. Matt Pollock hits .446 in the middle (fifth), along with a 1.17 block average (sixth). Matt West ranks second with 11.37 assists per set, and Maurice Torres is in the top-five in kills (4.03 K/S, T-3rd), points(4.86 P/S), and aces (0.43 A/S, 5th).
CAL STATE NORTHRIDGE (8-14 MPSF, 12-17 Overall) split in its final two regular season matches, defeating Pepperdine last Thursday (Apr. 12) in four sets to punch the eighth and final MPSF postseason ticket. The Matadors are seeded eighth, visiting top-ranked and No. 1 seed in the quarterfinals. Drew Staker leads the block (1.08 B/S), while the team ranks fifth in that category (2.52 B/S). Julius Hoefer leads CSN with a 3.01 kill per set average.
UC SAN DIEGO (6-16 MPSF, 9-19 Overall) was defeated at home by UC Irvine to end the season last Saturday. Chase Frishman currently is tied for third in the MPSF with 2.28 digs per set. Highlights from 2012 included winning five straight matches (Mar. 9-31) for the first time since 1990, and Vaun Lennon being named the MPSF Player of the Week on Apr. 2, just the third such award in Triton history.
PACIFIC (5-17 MPSF, 8-20 Overall) came back from two sets down at home to defeat UC Santa Barbara in five sets to close the season, also snap a six-match losing streak. The Tigers had a strong block in 2012, totaling 310 on the year, second most in the conference. Sean Daley led that charge with 156, (1.51 B/S), tied for second. Javier Caceres also ranks second in digs (2.56 D/S).
UC SANTA BARBARA (5-17 MPSF, 7-19 Overall) finished its season at Stanford and Pacific last weekend, coming up short in three and five sets, respectively. Miles Evans led the Gauchos offensively in 2012 with 325 kills (3.46 K/S), while Chad Kingi placed in the conference top-five in digs (2.27 D/S).
HAWAII (4-18 MPSF, 7-20 Overall) dropped 3-0 and 3-1 outcomes at UC Santa Barbara to end the 2012 season (Apr. 6-7). The Warriors were led offensively this year by Steven Hunt, with 4.15 kills per set, currently ranking second in the MPSF. Hunt also ranks fourth in the conference with 4.78 points per set, while Nick Castello is tied for third with a 2.28 dig average.
TONY CIARELLI MPSF MOLTEN PLAYER OF THE WEEK
USC senior outside hitter Tony Ciarelli (Huntington Beach, CA/Huntington Beach HS) served an MPSF and USC all-era match-record 11 aces to help claim the team's then 16th consecutive victory with a 3-0 win at No. 8 Long Beach State. He broke the MPSF single match ace mark of 10 held by UCLA's Adam Naeve against Pepperdine in 2001, the first year of rally scoring (the sideout scoring conference record was eight), as well as the USC record of eight shared with Beau Rawi. Ciarelli also hit .537 (28-6-41) through the wins at LBSU and Northridge, which helped clinch the No. 1 MPSF Tournament seedââ'¬¦
Also Nominated: Kevin Tillie (UCI); Sean Daley (PAC); Taylor Sander (BYU); Brad Lawson (STAN)