Hawaii Extends Streak, Leads By One-Half Match
April 6, 2015 MPSF Volleyball Release 14
HAWAII (16-2 MPSF/21-3 Overall) extended its win streak to 14 matches, and reached 20 wins for the first time since 2006, with 3-2 and 3-0 outcomes at UCLA (Mar. 30-31). It was the first two-match road sweep for UH at UCLA since 2003. In the first win, Hawaii fought off a two-set deficit, guided by backup setter Alex Jones. The Warriors hit .436 with Jones at setter in sets three, four, and five. Sinisa Zarkovic hit a collective series clip of .377 (28-5-61), six kills alone in Monday's set five, and was then errorless (10-0-18) in the second win with five blocks. Taylor Averill hit .583 for the series (24-3-36) and along with Zarkovic, totaled eight blocks (1.00 B/S). Davis Holt recorded nine of his 10 series blocks on night two. In control of its own path for the MPSF's No. 1 tournament seed, Hawaii hosts Stanford (Apr. 10-11) and travels to BYU (Apr. 17-18) to close the regular season.
UC IRVINE (16-3 MPSF/22-4 Overall) libero Michael Brinkley set a single-match school record 25 digs in a four-set home win over Long Beach State (Apr. 3). The total was also the most by an MPSF player since Stanford's Erik Shoji picked up 26 (also in four sets) on Feb. 13, 2009. Brinkley also became the eighth MPSF player to reach 1,000 career digs. UCI also defeated CSUN in three (Apr. 1), and travels to UCSB Wednesday (Apr. 8) and UCLA Friday (Apr. 10), before concluding the regular season at home vs. UC San Diego (Apr. 18). At the top of the standings, UCI is one-half match behind Hawaii in the loss column, and holds a two-way tiebreaker over UH (4-3 head-on MPSF sets) and Pepperdine (+2 head-on MPSF points).
PEPPERDINE (16-4 MPSF/21-4 Overall) hit .486 and served 12 aces in a 3-0 home win over Cal Baptist (Apr. 4). Matt West and Mitchell Penning served five aces apiece. Parker Kalmback hit .522 with match-highs of 15 kills and nine digs. The Waves also earned a 3-0 home win over USC (Apr. 2), as Kalmbach (.435), Josh Taylor (.375), and Scott Rhein (.500) all finished with 12 kills. West guided a .469 team offense in that win. Winners of 19 straight in Firestone Fieldhouse, Pepperdine hosts UCLA (Apr. 7) and UCSB (Apr. 15), before hosting MPSF Quarterfinals where it will be at least a three seed.
USC (13-7 MPSF/15-8 Overall) won 3-0 at Stanford (Apr. 4), as Alex Slaught tallied a match-high 16 kills with a .483 clip. Andy Benesh hit .429 (7-1-14) with six blocks, while fellow middle Robert Feathers was a perfect seven for seven swinging. Micah Christenson led a .362 team attack, and served three of the six team aces. The Trojans host Concordia Tuesday (Apr. 7), before closing the regular season with Cal Baptist back-to-back (Apr. 16 & 18). Two wins against the Lancers secures the fourth and final home court for MPSF Quarterfinals.
LONG BEACH STATE (10-11 MPSF/14-12 Overall) John La Rusch recorded a career-high 23 kills with a .500 hitting clip at UC Irvine (Apr. 3). He went on for 12 kills at .688 along with seven digs in a straight-set win at UC San Diego (Apr. 4). La Rusch totaled 35 kills (5.00 K/S) with a .554 attack over the two road matches. The 49ers have one match remaining in the regular season, hosting CSUN (Apr. 18), where they can clinch an MPSF Tournament spot with a win.
STANFORD (7-11 MPSF/10-14 Overall) Daniel Tublin recorded a match-high 18 kills with a .500 attack, along with three aces and six digs in a four-set home win over Cal Baptist (Apr. 2). Gabriel Vega added 17 kills at .364. Madison Hayden served five of the 13 Cardinal aces. Tied for eighth entering the week, Stanford has four matches to play, traveling to Hawaii for two (Apr. 10-11) and hosting UCLA (Apr. 17) and UCSB (Apr. 18).
UCLA (7-11 MPSF/11-11 Overall) Mitch Stahl and Trent Kersten teamed up for an effective middle in the Hawaii series, combining for a .404 clip (27-6-52). Stahl added three aces and eight blocks over the two matches. Tied for eighth entering the week, the Bruins visit Pepperdine (Apr. 7), host UC Irvine and UC San Diego (Apr. 10-11), and travel to Stanford (Apr. 17).
CSUN (7-12 MPSF/10-15 Overall) won 3-1 at UC San Diego (Apr. 3), and stays in contention for an MPSF playoff bid. The Matadors enter the week one-half match behind UCLA and Stanford for that final ticket, and holds a tiebreaker over the Cardinal (5-4 head-on MPSF sets). CSUN hosts BYU for two (Apr. 10-11), and visits Long Beach State (Apr. 18) to close it out. Greg Faulkner was 11 for an errorless 15 (.733), along with eight blocks in La Jolla. Bradley Sakaida added a double-double with 11 kills and 11 digs, and Jakub Ciesla also posted 11 kills at .308.
UC SANTA BARBARA (10-8 MPSF/14-8 Overall) was off last week, and hosts UC Irvine (Apr. 8) and UC San Diego (Apr. 10), followed by visits to Pepperdine (Apr. 15) and Stanford (Apr. 18). The Gauchos enter the week with the MPSF's five seed (holding a two-way tiebreaker over BYU, 5-3 head-on MPSF sets). They are one win away from securing a postseason bid.
BYU (10-8 MPSF/13-9 Overall) was off last week, and has four remaining. The Cougars currently own the MPSF's six seed, and travel to CSUN (Apr. 10-11) and return home vs. Hawaii (Apr. 17-18). BYU holds two-way tiebreakers over UCLA and Long Beach State (both 2-0 on MPSF matches), but not over UCSB (3-5 sets) and Stanford (0-2 matches). One win for BYU would clinch a postseason bid.
CAL BAPTIST (2-18 MPSF/6-20 Overall) managed to hit .333 as a team at Pepperdine (Apr. 4). Enrique Garcia was seven for an errorless 14 (.500), while Rohit Paul also hit .500 (8-1-14).
UC SAN DIEGO (0-19 MPSF/2-23 Overall) Tanner Syftestad had a match-high of16 kills, along with six digs, and four blocks vs. CSUN (Apr. 3).