MPSF Volleyball Results, Feb. 24
Feb. 24, 2017 *Ucsb 3, UC SAN DIEGO 0 (25-19, 25-20, 25-14)
Recap by UCSB
SAN DIEGO -- No. 13 UC Santa Barbara ended a seven-match winning streak in emphatic fashion on Friday night at the RIMAC Arena, comfortably sweeping host UC San Diego 25-19, 25-20, 25-14. Senior outside hitter Jacob Delson led the team in both kills (11) and digs (12), notching his third double-double of the season and fifth of his career. Freshman middle blocker Keenan Sanders was also a potent part of the attack, knocking down nine kills on just 13 swings for the Gauchos, who improved to 7-8 overall with a 4-8 mark in MPSF action. The Tritons dropped to 5-10, 2-8 on the year. They were led outside Tanner Syftestad, who had a team-high 10 kills. UCSB controlled all facets of the game on Friday, outblocking (11.0-6.5), outhitting (.276-.048) and outacing (5-3) the hosts. The Gauchos were able to keep the Tritons under .100 hitting in all three games, including a .030 mark in the last frame. Sophomore middle Connor Drake was a key part of UCSB's advantage at the net, tying a season-high and finishing one short of his career best with seven blocks, including two solo efforts. Four other Gauchos recorded multiple blocks, including Sanders and setter Casey McGarry who had four apiece. Despite the final score, it was relatively close in the first set until the Gauchos were able to pull away with a 7-0 run behind strong serving from Corey Chavers, who notched two of his three aces during the run and forced UCSD to burn both its timeouts. Hayden Boehle also contributed two of his five kills during the spree. The Gauchos actually trailed until late in the middle set, heading down the stretch with an 18-20 disadvantage. However, UCSB once again reeled off seven straight points to take it, starting with a Drake-Chavers double-block and ending with a Delson ace. Drake and Chavers chipped in two kills apiece during the run. Things were more comfortable for the Gauchos in the third, as they hit a match-high .333 and jumped out to a big 8-2 lead early. From that point, UCSD trailed by at least seven and as much as 10. Sanders finished off the match with a quick hit from McGarry, who had 34 assists on the night. UCSB will look to keep it rolling tomorrow night as it faces off against No. 7 UC Irvine at 7:00 p.m. at the Bren Center.
*LONG BEACH STATE 3, Usc 0 (25-17, 25-12, 25-15)
Recap by LBSU
LONG BEACH -- The No. 2 Long Beach State men's volleyball team was solid offensively hitting .524 on its way to a 3-0 [25-17, 25-12, 25-15] sweep over No. 14 USC on Friday night at the Walter Pyramid. The Beach have now won eight consecutive matches to improve to 15-2 on the year and 11-1 in the MPSF, while posting a perfect 6-0 record at home, and going 8-0 in the month of February. Meanwhile, the Trojans fall to 6-10 overall and 5-8 in conference play. Long Beach State came out firing on all cylinders tonight as it never hit below .400 in any of the three sets. The Beach knocked down a total of 38 kills on 63 attempts, while committing just five errors to hit .524 in the match. Additionally, their defense was on point as the 49ers limited the Trojans to just .096 (26-19-73) hitting in the contest. "I'm just glad they came out with a significantly better sense of competitiveness and sense of urgency to play every point here tonight," Long Beach State head coach Alan Knipe said. "There's no doubt that a lot of the little things went our way tonight unlike the beginning of our match on Wednesday night where a lot of things didn't go our way in the first set. "The lesson learned for us is to just keep pressuring and good things usually happen. I just like the response by the guys to come out and be ready to go right out of the gate for whatever they are going to bring at us." The Beach kept the pressure on the Trojans throughout all three sets as they took advantage of 11 USC service errors, four blocking errors and six reception errors. Sophomore setter Josh Tuaniga did a good job of pacing the 49ers' offense as he dished out 33 assists, while contributing a pair of kills himself. He also tacked on two service aces, while adding five blocks and four digs. TJ DeFalco led the Beach in scoring for the sixth-straight match as he tallied 14 kills while hitting .550 for his 15th double-figure contest of the season. LBSU's offense also got a boost from Kyle Ensing's nine-kill effort on 16 attempts without an attack error. Ensing hit .562 in the match and added five total blocks to help lead the Beach at the net along with senior middle blocker Amir Lugo-Rodriguez who posted eight block assists as the 49ers finished the match with 11.5 total team blocks. Senior libero Andrew Sato once again set the tone for the backrow with nine digs. Defensively, the Beach owned a reception percentage of 97.1 percent as they only committed one reception error in the contest. With the offense going strong and the defense playing its game, the Beach managed to roll over the Trojans never allowing them to score more than 17 points in a single frame. The first set was the closest as the two teams battled back-and-forth early on, but it did not take long for LBSU to break the 10-10 tie and go on a 6-0 run and never look back. Following the run, the Beach led by as many as nine points (21-12) before taking set one by a score of 25-17. Long Beach State started the second set on a 4-0 run and never allowed the Trojans to come closer than three (8-5) before the 49ers broke the game wide open and cruised to a 25-12 victory. The third set was much like the first. The two teams fought through several early ties, but Long Beach State broke the 9-9 deadlock and took a 15-11 lead forcing a timeout before running away with the game, 25-15. USC's scorers were all held to single digits as Lucas Lossone and Ryan Moss led the team with five kills apiece. Gert Lisha tallied 21 assists, while Lossone and Blake Markland each notched three digs to lead the Trojans. Long Beach State returns to action on Wednesday, March 1 when it hosts No. 7 UC Irvine at 7 p.m. in the Walter Pyramid
*CSUN 3, Cal Baptist 0 (25-21, 25-20, 25-22)
Recap by CSUN
NORTHRIDGE, CA - Sophomore Dimitar Kalchev had a match-high 14 kills to go with three aces as the 11th-ranked CSUN Matadors swept the visiting Cal Baptist Lancers 25-21, 25-20, 25-22 in an MPSF match Friday night at The Matadome.
CSUN(11-6, 4-6 MPSF) hit a collective .329 as a team as Kalchevconnected at a .360 clip on 25 swings. The sophomore outside hitter also three aces giving him 47 on the season to go with six digs. Junior Arvis Greene also reached double figures with 11 kills (.222) along with five digs and three blocks.
Josiah Byers recorded three kills (.750), two aces and a match-high six blocks as CSUNout-blocked the Lancers 10.5 to 7.0. Redshirt freshman Parker Maki, making just his second start of the season, chipped in six kills, seven digs and five blocks.
"I'm really happy with the way we performed tonight," said CSUN head coach Jeff Campbell. "This match for us was much more in tune with what we need to do to win. We did what we needed to do tonight and now we have to turn our focus to San Diego next week."
The visiting Lancers hung tough in each and every set as they tied the opening set 18-18 on a Rohit Paul kill. But the Matadors followed up a Cal Baptist hitting error with a Kalchev ace and a Maki kill to go up three, 21-18. But Cal Baptist answered with a 3-0 run of its own before CSUN took advantage of a Lancer service error as Kalchev connected for a kill and Byers closed the set with a pair of aces.
The second set was tied at 19-19 when a Kalchev kill propelled the Matadors on a 5-0 run to earn set point at 24-19. The visitors saved one set point on a Paul kill before Greene connected off the Lancer block sending CSUN to the 25-20 win.
Another 3-0 Matador run at 18-18 in the final set proved to be the difference. Kills from Maki, Eric Chance and Greene provided the margin as CSUNwon the final set by three, 25-22.
Kevin Vaz had 10 kills to lead Cal Baptist which slipped to 3-13 overall and 1-11 in the MPSF.
CSUNcontinues its four-match homestand next week as the Matadors host UC San Diego and UC Irvine.
*HAWAII 3, Pepperdine 0 (25-21, 25-19, 25-11)
Recap by UH
HONOLULU -- The University of Hawai'i men's volleyball team continued its unbeaten streak at home with a straight-set win over No. 10 Pepperdine, Friday, in the first of two Mountain Pacific Sports Federation matches at the Stan Sheriff Center. Set scores were 25-21, 25-19, 25-11.
The rematch is Sunday at 5:00 p.m.
The fourth-ranked Rainbow Warriors (15-2, 6-2 MPSF) extended their win streak to 10 matches and their set streak to 17 straight. UH also won its 14th consecutive home match and improved to 10-0 this season at the Sheriff Center.
Sophomore opposite Stijn van Tilburg led a potent Warrior offense with 15 kills, hitting .737. Senior outside hitter Kupono Fey added 10 kills at a .500 clip as UH hit .460 for the match.
Mitchell Penning had a team-high 11 kills for the Waves (6-6, 4-5).
In a tightly contested Set 1, UH pushed its lead to 18-15 after Hendrik Mol's stuff block before the Waves trimmed it to one at 19-18. The teams traded side-outs until Jenning Franciskovic's dump and van Tilburg's fifth kill put UH on top 24-20 and the Warriors went on to the 25-21 victory. Hawai'i hit .533 in the set with only one error in 30 attempts.
UH scored five straight points for a 6-3 lead to start Set 2 and added three more for a 10-5 lead. The Warriors maintained their cushion after Gasman's overpass kill for a 17-12 advantage and blew it open at 22-15 following Franciskovic's ace and Fey's kill.
The Warriors jumped out to a 6-1 lead in Set 3 and never looked back. The lead was 17-4 after a six-point run and UH cruised to it most-lopsided set victory over the Waves (25-11) in series history.
*Byu 3, STANFORD 1 (25-19, 23-25, 25-23, 26-24)
Recap by BYU
STANFORD, Calif. -- A double-double from senior outside hitter Jake Langlois helped No. 3 BYU men's volleyball rally past No. 8 Stanford in four sets (25-19, 23-25, 25-23, 26-24) Friday night at the Burnham Pavilion & Ford Center to complete the road series sweep. "I'm proud of the way the guys played tonight," BYU head coach Shawn Olmstead said. "We knew Stanford wasn't about to throw in the towel after that first set. They're a really good, disciplined team. We had a great couple of wins this week that helped us get better as a team." Langlois led the Cougars with 14 kills and 12 digs for a double-double while adding a team-high eight blocks. Erik Sikes collected a career-high 15 digs and Leo Durkin contributed 45 assists. Price Jarman had a career-high 10 kills while adding a season-high eight blocks and Tim Dobbert and Joseph Grosh each added seven blocks in the win. BYU (14-2, 8-1 MPSF) took a 5-2 lead against Stanford (9-7, 6-5 MPSF) early in the first set with help from two Grosh kills. The teams traded every other point from there until a trio of Cougar points, capped off by a Kiril Meretev kill, extended the BYU advantage to five, 12-7. The Cardinal rallied after a timeout, going on a 7-2 run to knot the set up at 14-all. Back-to-back Grosh and Langlois blocks pushed the Cougars back ahead 18-15, and consecutive Wil Stanley aces brought the lead back to five at 21-16. A Stanford service error then sealed the 25-19 set one win for BYU. The Cardinal jumped out to an 8-2 lead to start the second set after strong offensive play. The Cougars eventually rallied with an 8-2 run of their own to cut the lead to one, down 13-12, forcing a Stanford timeout along the way. A 5-0 spurt, helped by two Jarman kills, gave BYU its first lead of the set at 18-16. That run was quickly countered with a 6-2 one from the Cardinal, as Stanford took a 22-20 edge. The Cardinal ultimately took the close set 25-23 on a Cougar service error. A pair of kills each from Langlois, Grosh and Storm Fa'agata-Tufuga helped BYU take a 10-2 lead at the beginning of the third set. Stanford went on a 4-1 run to cut the advantage to five, 13-8, but a Dobbert kill followed to keep the Cougars ahead. Dobbert and Jarman teamed up for a block as BYU maintained its lead 20-14. The Cardinal stayed in the set, then going on a 4-0 run to cut the lead to just two, 20-18. A Langlois kill closed things out with the Cougars at set point, giving BYU a 25-23 set win and a 2-1 lead in the match. Langlois started the fourth set off with a service ace to give the Cougars the early edge. A block and kill from Fa'agata-Tufuga helped BYU on a 4-0 rally to stay ahead 7-3. Stanford followed with a 5-0 run of its own to take an 8-7 advantage. The set remained neck-and-neck from there as Brenden Sander subbed into the set and collected a kill to tie the score at 11-all. Another Langlois kill tied the set at 19 apiece, and back-to-back Sander kills gave the Cougars a 23-21 edge. The Cardinal picked up an ace on BYU's first set point, but the Cougars scored the next two points on a Langlois kill and a Jarman and Durkin block to win the set and match 26-24. The Cougars return home to the Smith Fieldhouse next, facing Cal Baptist Friday, March 3, at 7 p.m. MST. The match will be streamed live on TheW.tv. Links to the video stream and live stats can be found on the BYU men's volleyball schedule page.​
*UC IRVINE 3, Ucla 2 (25-23, 28-26, 22-25, 21-25, 17-15)
Recap by UCI
IRVINE, Calif. -- No. 7 UC Irvine toppled No. 6 UCLA, 3-2 (25-23, 28-26, 22-25, 21-25, 15-17) in front of 2,253 fans during the Think Pink match at the Bren Center Friday. The Anteaters remain undefeated in five set matches (5-0) and improve to 10-5 overall and 7-4 in the MPSF. UCLA goes to 10-7 on the season and 7-6 in league action. Senior Tamir Hershko put away a season-high 23 kills to lead UCI. Outside hitter Thomas Hodges recorded 18 kills, while Aaron Koubi had a break-out night with a career-best 11 kills, two aces and 10 digs. Senior Michael Saeta totaled 52 set assist, eight digs, four kills and an ace, while freshman Scott Stadick had seven kills and three total blocks. UCLA was led by Christian Hessenauer's 16 kills. Jake Arnitz added 13 kills and Dylan Missry had 11 kills in the loss. Micah Ma'a recorded 42 set assists, four kills and three block assists. The Bruins dominated the net 12.5-4.0. UCLA held a slight edge in hitting (.354-.344) and aces (9-8) with UCI holding a 33-29 advantage in digs. The teams were never farther apart than two points in the first set. The Anteaters used consecutive Bruin service, attack and ball handling errors to sneak ahead 24-22. After a UCLA kill, UCLA served in to the net to give UCI the set 25-23. The second set was much like the first coming down to the final stretch. A block by Scott Stadick and Tamir Hershko gave UCI set point, 25-24. After trading points, Hershko had a kill and a service ace to end the set 28-26 for the Anteaters. UCLA had a kill by Dylan Missry followed by two UCI attack errors to open a 21-16 lead in the third set as the Bruins would go on to the 25-22 victory. UCLA scored six straight to take control of the fourth set, 10-3. Trailing 20-13, UCI would score five of their own to close within 20-18, but the Bruins answered with the next two and won the set 25-21. An ace gave UCLA match point 14-13, but the Bruins followed with an attack error, knotting the score at 14-14. Back-to-back kills by Aaron Koubi and Hershko sealed the win for UCI, 17-15. Tonight was UCI's annual "Think Pink" event to support breast cancer awareness. The team honored Tee Sohacki, a two-time breast cancer survivor before the match. The Anteaters will host No. 13 UC Santa Barbara tomorrow (Feb. 25) at 5:00 p.m. in Crawford Court.