Coming Up— The No. 3-ranked UCLA men's volleyball team (23-5,17-5) earned the No. 2 seed in the MPSF Tournament and will host No. 8-ranked Hawai'i, the No. 7 seed, on Saturday in Pauley Pavilion at 7 p.m. The MPSF Semis (Apr. 21) and Final (Apr. 23) will be played at the site of the top-seeded team remaining in the field. NCAA selections will be announced on Apr. 24.
Live Coverage — Fans can follow matches on UCLA's live Twitter feed @UCLAMVB. *****Hawai'i---live stats ---http://www.statbroadcast.com/events/statbroadcast.php?t=1&gid=ucla ; live stream --- http://pac-12.com/live/ucla --- internet radio - http://www.uclabruins.com/mediaPortal/player.dbml?type=live&db_oem_id=30500
In The Rankings — The Bruins are No. 3 in the AVCA national rankings. UCLA was in the top spot earlier this season for weeks 2,3 and 4 but fell following a Feb. 5 loss at Hawaii and then again in week 12, but lost a pair of matches to BYU. It was the first time the Bruins had held the top spot since being ranked first in the week 4 and 5 AVCA polls during the 2014 season, after beginning that year by winning nine of the first 10 matches.
Five Bruins Earns MPSF Honors — Jake Arnitz and Micah Ma'a earned first-team All-MPSF honors in a vote of the league coaches. Mitch Stahl was selected to the second-team, while Hagen Smith and JT Hatch received honorable mention. Ma'a was also chosen to the MPSF All-Freshman squad.
Recent MPSF Playoff History — 2015 - #8 UCLA lost at UC Irvine in quarterfinals 0-3; 2014 -- #5 UCLA lost at UC Santa Barbara in quarterfinals 2-3; 2013 -- #4 UCLA def. Pepperdine in quarterfinals 3-0 and lost in semis at BYU 2-3; 2012 -- #5 UCLA lost in quarterfinals at UC Irvine 1-3; 2011 -- #8 UCLA lost in quarterfinals at USC 1-3; 2010 -- #7 UCLA lost at BYU in quarterfinals 1-3; 2009 -- #8 UCLA lost in quarterfinals at UC Irvine 1-3. The Bruins last won the MPSF Tournament in 2006 and then went on to claim their 19th NCAA Championship.
Scouting the Opponent — Hawai'i has won six of its last eight matches to finish in seventh-place in the MPSF. The wins were over CSUN (2), UCI (2) and Cal Baptist (2) and the losses to UC Santa Barbara. Earlier this season, the Bruins split a pair of matches at Hawai'i on Feb. 5 (L 1-3 25-18, 20-25, 23-25, 18-25) and on Feb. 6 (W 3-2 22-25, 25-22, 19-25, 25-18, 15-9).
On Feb. 6, the Bruins snapped Hawaii's 17-match home court win streak with a five-set win. The Bruins rebounded from a poor first set hitting mark (.097) to out hit the Warriors .374 to .208 for the match. UCLA also won the battle at the net, besting UH 19.5 (season-high) to 4.0 in total blocks. Micah Ma's blasted down a career-best 18 kills while hitting .500 on 32 swings. Jake Arnitz finished with 13 kills and a career-best 8 block assists. Mitch Stahl matched his career-best with nine block assists and two block solos. Hagen Smith had 30 set assists and seven kills. Oliver Martin totaled five kills, six block assists and a solo block.
On Feb. 5, UCLA dropped its first match of the season, in four sets, at then fifth-ranked Hawai'i. For the match, Hawai'i out hit the Bruins .273 to .138 (season-low) and won the battle of the block 13.0 to 9.5. Ma'a led UCLA with nine kills, eight digs and two blocks. Smith finished with seven kills, six digs and four blocks. Stahl had five kills and five block assists. Davis Gillett led UCLA with 13 digs.
Recapping — The Bruins finished the regular season by winner 10 of their last 12 matches. Last Saturday, Jake Arnitz led the way against Pepperdine with 18 kills (.483). He totaled six kills in the first set alone while hitting at a .857 clip. Hagen Smith added a career-high tying nine kills for the match (.692). Oliver Martin (.800) and Mitch Stahl (.692) totaled eight and nine kills, respectively. JT Hatch recorded three aces while Micah Ma'a and Jackson Bantle each had two. UCLA out hit the Waves .420 to .223 and out blocked the visitors 8.5 to 2.5.
On Thursday, Hatch finished with 15 kills (.367), an ace and 10 digs in a 3-0 win over Stanford. Arnitz totaled 12 kills (.276), an ace and five blocks. Smith had six kills (.556), 21 set assists, five digs and two blocks. Ma'a recorded six kills (.286), six digs and a pair of block solos. Davis Gillett tallied 12 digs, several on the spectacular side.
The Bruins' 10-0 start this year was their best since the 1998 squad earned wins in the first 16 matches of that season. UCLA, under the direction of coach Al Scates, owns the only three unbeaten seasons in the history of the men's game (1984:38-0, 1982: 29-0, 1979: 30-0).
Bruins By the Numbers - Micah Ma'a has at least one ace in 12 of the last 13 matches; and at least one ace in 24 of the 28 matches to date ... Davis Gillett has double digit digs in six of the last 10 matches ... JT Hatch has at least one ace in 11 of the last 12 matches ... Jake Arnitz has double digit kills in 14 of the last 16 matches he has played in ... 10 of the last 15 Bruin opponents have hit below the .200 mark ... Ma'a had an MPSF high 7 aces in match versus CSUN on Jan. 29 ... His triple-double v. BYU (4/2) was the first by an MPSF player since Jonah Seif of UCSB on Feb. 6, 2014...The last time UCLA won more than 22 matches was when it captured 26 in 2006...The last time it lost as few as 5 matches in a season was 2000 (29-5).
NCAA Nat'l. Rankings - Mitch Stahl 5th in blocks (1.25/set); Micah Ma'a 4th in aces (0.51/s); JT Hatch 12th in aces (0.42); UCLA team 3rd Aces (1.84/s), 6th Blocks (2.57/s); 5th in Kills/s (13.16); 3rd in set assists (12.46); 6th in hit % (.309).
All-Time Bruin Lists— Micah Ma'a is tied for third on school rally scoring era list for most aces in a season (54) and is within reach of the rally scoring top spot currently held by Gonzalo Quiroga ('14) and Adam Naeve ('01) of 56 ...Mitch Stahl is 9th on career block assist list (232)-No. 8 is Weston Dunlap, 2009-12 (248)...Stahl is tied for ninth in career total blocks (248)-No. 9 is Garrett Muagututia, 2007-10 (248).
2016 Honors — Apr. 11 Micah Ma'a-Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. Co-National Freshman of the Week; Feb. 22 Micah Ma'a -Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. Co-National Freshman of the Week; Jan. 31 - Jake Arnitz, MPSF Player of the Week. Micah Ma'a Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. Co-National Freshmen of the Week; Jan. 11 Mitch Stahl - AVCA National POW and MPSF POW. Micah Ma'a Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. Co-Freshman of the Week.
Coach Speraw: Year Four at UCLA — John Speraw (UCLA '95), who is in his fourth season as the head coach at his alma mater, has captured three NCAA titles as a head coach (2012, 2009, 2007 at UCI), three as an assistant coach (1996, 1998, 2000 at UCLA) and two as a player (1993, 1995 at UCLA). Also the head coach of the U.S. Men's National Volleyball Team, Speraw led that squad to the 2015 FIVB World Cup and automatic qualification for the 2016 Olympic Games. Speraw came back to UCLA after 10 seasons at UC Irvine where he led the Anteaters to three NCAA championships, and a 199-106 (.646) overall record. In winning that 2007 title, Speraw became the only individual to produce a championship as a head coach, assistant coach and player in collegiate men's volleyball history. On Mar. 25, 2013, he was named head coach of the U.S. Men's National Team for the next quadrennial ending at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janiero. In the summer of 2014, he guided the U.S. team to a win over top-ranked Brazil in the FIVB World League gold-medal match. In the summer of 2012, he had served as an assistant coach for the National Team, which advanced to the quarterfinals of the London Olympics. Speraw won the National Coach of the Year award in 2007.
Elsewhere in MPSF: Apr.16 Quarterfinal Playoff Matches - No. 8 UC Irvine at No. 1 BYU, No. 5 UCSB at No. 4 Stanford, No. 6 Pepperdine at No. 3 Long Beach State
Live Coverage — Fans can follow matches on UCLA's live Twitter feed @UCLAMVB. *****Hawai'i---live stats ---http://www.statbroadcast.com/events/statbroadcast.php?t=1&gid=ucla ; live stream --- http://pac-12.com/live/ucla --- internet radio - http://www.uclabruins.com/mediaPortal/player.dbml?type=live&db_oem_id=30500
In The Rankings — The Bruins are No. 3 in the AVCA national rankings. UCLA was in the top spot earlier this season for weeks 2,3 and 4 but fell following a Feb. 5 loss at Hawaii and then again in week 12, but lost a pair of matches to BYU. It was the first time the Bruins had held the top spot since being ranked first in the week 4 and 5 AVCA polls during the 2014 season, after beginning that year by winning nine of the first 10 matches.
Five Bruins Earns MPSF Honors — Jake Arnitz and Micah Ma'a earned first-team All-MPSF honors in a vote of the league coaches. Mitch Stahl was selected to the second-team, while Hagen Smith and JT Hatch received honorable mention. Ma'a was also chosen to the MPSF All-Freshman squad.
Recent MPSF Playoff History — 2015 - #8 UCLA lost at UC Irvine in quarterfinals 0-3; 2014 -- #5 UCLA lost at UC Santa Barbara in quarterfinals 2-3; 2013 -- #4 UCLA def. Pepperdine in quarterfinals 3-0 and lost in semis at BYU 2-3; 2012 -- #5 UCLA lost in quarterfinals at UC Irvine 1-3; 2011 -- #8 UCLA lost in quarterfinals at USC 1-3; 2010 -- #7 UCLA lost at BYU in quarterfinals 1-3; 2009 -- #8 UCLA lost in quarterfinals at UC Irvine 1-3. The Bruins last won the MPSF Tournament in 2006 and then went on to claim their 19th NCAA Championship.
Scouting the Opponent — Hawai'i has won six of its last eight matches to finish in seventh-place in the MPSF. The wins were over CSUN (2), UCI (2) and Cal Baptist (2) and the losses to UC Santa Barbara. Earlier this season, the Bruins split a pair of matches at Hawai'i on Feb. 5 (L 1-3 25-18, 20-25, 23-25, 18-25) and on Feb. 6 (W 3-2 22-25, 25-22, 19-25, 25-18, 15-9).
On Feb. 6, the Bruins snapped Hawaii's 17-match home court win streak with a five-set win. The Bruins rebounded from a poor first set hitting mark (.097) to out hit the Warriors .374 to .208 for the match. UCLA also won the battle at the net, besting UH 19.5 (season-high) to 4.0 in total blocks. Micah Ma's blasted down a career-best 18 kills while hitting .500 on 32 swings. Jake Arnitz finished with 13 kills and a career-best 8 block assists. Mitch Stahl matched his career-best with nine block assists and two block solos. Hagen Smith had 30 set assists and seven kills. Oliver Martin totaled five kills, six block assists and a solo block.
On Feb. 5, UCLA dropped its first match of the season, in four sets, at then fifth-ranked Hawai'i. For the match, Hawai'i out hit the Bruins .273 to .138 (season-low) and won the battle of the block 13.0 to 9.5. Ma'a led UCLA with nine kills, eight digs and two blocks. Smith finished with seven kills, six digs and four blocks. Stahl had five kills and five block assists. Davis Gillett led UCLA with 13 digs.
Recapping — The Bruins finished the regular season by winner 10 of their last 12 matches. Last Saturday, Jake Arnitz led the way against Pepperdine with 18 kills (.483). He totaled six kills in the first set alone while hitting at a .857 clip. Hagen Smith added a career-high tying nine kills for the match (.692). Oliver Martin (.800) and Mitch Stahl (.692) totaled eight and nine kills, respectively. JT Hatch recorded three aces while Micah Ma'a and Jackson Bantle each had two. UCLA out hit the Waves .420 to .223 and out blocked the visitors 8.5 to 2.5.
On Thursday, Hatch finished with 15 kills (.367), an ace and 10 digs in a 3-0 win over Stanford. Arnitz totaled 12 kills (.276), an ace and five blocks. Smith had six kills (.556), 21 set assists, five digs and two blocks. Ma'a recorded six kills (.286), six digs and a pair of block solos. Davis Gillett tallied 12 digs, several on the spectacular side.
The Bruins' 10-0 start this year was their best since the 1998 squad earned wins in the first 16 matches of that season. UCLA, under the direction of coach Al Scates, owns the only three unbeaten seasons in the history of the men's game (1984:38-0, 1982: 29-0, 1979: 30-0).
Bruins By the Numbers - Micah Ma'a has at least one ace in 12 of the last 13 matches; and at least one ace in 24 of the 28 matches to date ... Davis Gillett has double digit digs in six of the last 10 matches ... JT Hatch has at least one ace in 11 of the last 12 matches ... Jake Arnitz has double digit kills in 14 of the last 16 matches he has played in ... 10 of the last 15 Bruin opponents have hit below the .200 mark ... Ma'a had an MPSF high 7 aces in match versus CSUN on Jan. 29 ... His triple-double v. BYU (4/2) was the first by an MPSF player since Jonah Seif of UCSB on Feb. 6, 2014...The last time UCLA won more than 22 matches was when it captured 26 in 2006...The last time it lost as few as 5 matches in a season was 2000 (29-5).
NCAA Nat'l. Rankings - Mitch Stahl 5th in blocks (1.25/set); Micah Ma'a 4th in aces (0.51/s); JT Hatch 12th in aces (0.42); UCLA team 3rd Aces (1.84/s), 6th Blocks (2.57/s); 5th in Kills/s (13.16); 3rd in set assists (12.46); 6th in hit % (.309).
All-Time Bruin Lists— Micah Ma'a is tied for third on school rally scoring era list for most aces in a season (54) and is within reach of the rally scoring top spot currently held by Gonzalo Quiroga ('14) and Adam Naeve ('01) of 56 ...Mitch Stahl is 9th on career block assist list (232)-No. 8 is Weston Dunlap, 2009-12 (248)...Stahl is tied for ninth in career total blocks (248)-No. 9 is Garrett Muagututia, 2007-10 (248).
2016 Honors — Apr. 11 Micah Ma'a-Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. Co-National Freshman of the Week; Feb. 22 Micah Ma'a -Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. Co-National Freshman of the Week; Jan. 31 - Jake Arnitz, MPSF Player of the Week. Micah Ma'a Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. Co-National Freshmen of the Week; Jan. 11 Mitch Stahl - AVCA National POW and MPSF POW. Micah Ma'a Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. Co-Freshman of the Week.
Coach Speraw: Year Four at UCLA — John Speraw (UCLA '95), who is in his fourth season as the head coach at his alma mater, has captured three NCAA titles as a head coach (2012, 2009, 2007 at UCI), three as an assistant coach (1996, 1998, 2000 at UCLA) and two as a player (1993, 1995 at UCLA). Also the head coach of the U.S. Men's National Volleyball Team, Speraw led that squad to the 2015 FIVB World Cup and automatic qualification for the 2016 Olympic Games. Speraw came back to UCLA after 10 seasons at UC Irvine where he led the Anteaters to three NCAA championships, and a 199-106 (.646) overall record. In winning that 2007 title, Speraw became the only individual to produce a championship as a head coach, assistant coach and player in collegiate men's volleyball history. On Mar. 25, 2013, he was named head coach of the U.S. Men's National Team for the next quadrennial ending at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janiero. In the summer of 2014, he guided the U.S. team to a win over top-ranked Brazil in the FIVB World League gold-medal match. In the summer of 2012, he had served as an assistant coach for the National Team, which advanced to the quarterfinals of the London Olympics. Speraw won the National Coach of the Year award in 2007.
Elsewhere in MPSF: Apr.16 Quarterfinal Playoff Matches - No. 8 UC Irvine at No. 1 BYU, No. 5 UCSB at No. 4 Stanford, No. 6 Pepperdine at No. 3 Long Beach State