Coming Up— The No. 2 ranked UCLA men's volleyball team (25-7 in 2016) will open the regular season with a match at No. 11 Loyola-Chicago (20-8) on Tuesday, Jan. 3 (5 p.m. Pacific start time). The Bruins will remain in the Midwest for matches in the AVCA Showcase Pac-12/Big Ten Challenge against No. 13 Penn State (19-10) at 2 p.m. Pacific time and defending national champion and pre-season No. 1-ranked Ohio State (31-3) at 3 p.m. Pacific time on Jan. 6 and Jan. 7, respectively. Those matches will be played in Columbus, Ohio, location of this year's National Championship tournament.
Live Coverage — Follow the matches on UCLA's live Twitter feed @UCLAMVB.
*Loyola Match---live stats ---http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=150145; live stream on ESPN3
*Penn State Match---live stats ---http://www.gopsusports.com/gametracker/launch/gt_mvolley.html?event=1525654&school=psu&sport=mvolley&camefrom=&startschool=&;
*Ohio State Match---live stats ---http://www.gopsusports.com/gametracker/launch/gt_mvolley.html?event=1525654&school=psu&sport=mvolley&camefrom=&startschool=&; Live TV - Big Ten Network
In The Rankings — The Bruins are No. 2 in the pre-season AVCA national rankings. The last time the Bruins were listed as high as second in the pre-season poll was in the 2014 campaign.
Scouting the Opponents — Loyola has been picked to finish third in the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (MIVA) Preseason Poll. Defending NCAA champion Ohio State was slated to finish first, with Lewis, a future Bruin opponent, tabbed second. The Ramblers, who were just seven points behind Lewis for second place, are led by junior middle blocker Jeff Jendryk who has earned American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Second Team All-America recognition in each of the last two seasons and was chosen to the Preseason All-MIVA Team.
Penn State, 18-time Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA) champions, was selected as the preseason No. 2 as voted by the league's head coaches. The Nittany Lions, who finished the 2016 season 19-10, advanced to the EIVA Semifinals last season, received 54 points and one of the eight first-place votes.
Ohio State's begins its national title defense as the top-ranked team in the AVCA Preseason Poll. The Buckeyes received 23 of 24 first-place votes. In addition, three Buckeyes were voted to the Off the Block Preseason All-America Teams. Miles Johnson and Nicolas Szerszen were chosen as First Team Preseason All-Americans by Off the Block. Setter Christy Blough garnered Second Team honors. Ohio State was also selected by the league's coaches as favorites to win the 2017 Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (MIVA) championship.
Who's Back— All starters return for the Bruins - OH Jake Arnitz, MB Mitch Stahl, MB Oliver Martin, S/H Micah Ma'a, S/H Hagen Smith, OH JT Hatch, Libero Davis Gillett. In addition, first subs Opp Christian Hessenauer, OH Michael Fisher, OH Dylan Missry, MB Eric Sprague are also back. Veteran Jackson Bantle returns as well as a OH/Opp. Incoming players added to the roster include: OH Sam Kobrine, S Reece Salmons, Libero Sam Jones, MB Daenan Gyimah.
Last season, UCLA ranked 3rd in the NCAA in kills per set (13.20), set assists per set (12.46) and aces per set (1.77); placed 5th in hitting % (.313); 6th in blocks per set (2.51) and 18th in digs per set (8.75). Individuals in the top 20: Aces - Micah Ma'a 5th at 0.48 per set / JT Hatch 14th at 0.39 per set; Blocks - Mitch Stahl 6th at 1.19 per set.
A year ago, the Bruins participated in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since it captured the program's 19th title in 2006 when it took on Ohio State in the semifinals.
Honors — 2017 Watch Listees: Karch Kiraly Award (best outside attacker) JT Hatch, Jake Arnitz/ Erik Shoji Award (best libero) Davis Gillett / Ryan Millar Award (best middle attacker) Mitch Stahl / Lloy Ball Award (best setter) Micah Ma'a...Three Bruins were named to the 2016 AVCA All-America squad - 1st team Micah Ma'a; 2nd team Mitch Stahl, Jake Arnitz. Earning 1st team All-MPSF honors were Ma'a and Arnitz; 2nd team was Stahl; Honorable Mention went to JT Hatch and Hagen Smith. Arnitz was named to the NCAA All-Tournament team. Ma'a was named Off the Block's Server of the Year and a Freshman All-American.
By the Numbers - Jake Arnitz upped his hitting percentage from .227 as a freshman to .313 in 2016 ... Mitch Stahl improved his blocking average from 0.9 per set to 1.19 and his hitting % from .365 in 2015 to .471 last season ... Hagen Smith upped his kills per set average from 0.1 in 2015 to 1.2 in 2016 ... Micah Ma'a had at least one ace in 15 of the last 17 matches; and at least one ace in 27 of the 32 total matches; he had seven matches with more than a pair of aces ... In the process, he destroyed the old freshman ace record of Gonzalo Quiroga (39 in 2011) with 58 ... Oliver Martin increased his hitting percentage from .213 in 2015 to .447 in 2016 and his block per set mark from 0.4 to 0.9 ... Davis Gillett had double-digit digs in eight of the last 14 matches and totaled 26 matches in 2016 with five or more digs ... JT Hatch had at least one ace in 13 of the last 16 matches and 11 matches with multiple aces -- he had 13 aces in 2015 and finished with 39 in 2016... Arnitz posted double-digit kills in 16 of the last 19 (11 of last 13) matches he played in 2016 ... Martin hit over .500 in 11 matches last season ... Smith had seven matches with nine or more digs and 12 matches with at least five kills ... Jackson Bantle had 16 service aces last season ... Ma'a had an MPSF high 7 aces in match versus CSUN on Jan. 29, 2016 ... His triple-double v. BYU (4/2/16) was the first by an MPSF player since Jonah Seif of UCSB on Feb. 6, 2014...The last time UCLA won more than 25 matches was when it captured 26 in 2006 on the way to an NCAA title...The Bruins' 10-0 start last year was their best since the 1998 squad earned wins in the first 16 matches of that season.
All-Time Bruin (rally scoring) Lists— Micah Ma'a set a rally scoring era school record with 58 aces last season (old rally scoring mark was 56 by Gonzalo Quiroga ('14) and Adam Naeve ('01) ...Mitch Stahl is 6th on the season block assist list (114) and 9th on the career block assist list (246)...Stahl is 9th in career total blocks (262) and was T6th all-time with 124 last season.
Coach Speraw: Year Five at UCLA — John Speraw (UCLA '95), who is in his fifth 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 where his squad took home the Bronze medal. 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 first individual to produce a championship as a head coach, assistant coach and player in collegiate men's volleyball history. He was named head coach of the U.S. Men's National Team on Mar. 25, 2013. 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. He was also an assistant on the gold medal winning U.S. squad in the 2008 Beijing Games. Speraw won the National Coach of the Year award in 2007.
Elsewhere in MPSF Action: Jan.3-IPFW at UCI, USC at Concordia; Jan. 4 -UC Merced at CSUN, McKendree at Pepperdine; Jan. 5 -Erskine at Hawaii, UCSD at UCI;
Live Coverage — Follow the matches on UCLA's live Twitter feed @UCLAMVB.
*Loyola Match---live stats ---http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=150145; live stream on ESPN3
*Penn State Match---live stats ---http://www.gopsusports.com/gametracker/launch/gt_mvolley.html?event=1525654&school=psu&sport=mvolley&camefrom=&startschool=&;
*Ohio State Match---live stats ---http://www.gopsusports.com/gametracker/launch/gt_mvolley.html?event=1525654&school=psu&sport=mvolley&camefrom=&startschool=&; Live TV - Big Ten Network
In The Rankings — The Bruins are No. 2 in the pre-season AVCA national rankings. The last time the Bruins were listed as high as second in the pre-season poll was in the 2014 campaign.
Scouting the Opponents — Loyola has been picked to finish third in the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (MIVA) Preseason Poll. Defending NCAA champion Ohio State was slated to finish first, with Lewis, a future Bruin opponent, tabbed second. The Ramblers, who were just seven points behind Lewis for second place, are led by junior middle blocker Jeff Jendryk who has earned American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Second Team All-America recognition in each of the last two seasons and was chosen to the Preseason All-MIVA Team.
Penn State, 18-time Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA) champions, was selected as the preseason No. 2 as voted by the league's head coaches. The Nittany Lions, who finished the 2016 season 19-10, advanced to the EIVA Semifinals last season, received 54 points and one of the eight first-place votes.
Ohio State's begins its national title defense as the top-ranked team in the AVCA Preseason Poll. The Buckeyes received 23 of 24 first-place votes. In addition, three Buckeyes were voted to the Off the Block Preseason All-America Teams. Miles Johnson and Nicolas Szerszen were chosen as First Team Preseason All-Americans by Off the Block. Setter Christy Blough garnered Second Team honors. Ohio State was also selected by the league's coaches as favorites to win the 2017 Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (MIVA) championship.
Who's Back— All starters return for the Bruins - OH Jake Arnitz, MB Mitch Stahl, MB Oliver Martin, S/H Micah Ma'a, S/H Hagen Smith, OH JT Hatch, Libero Davis Gillett. In addition, first subs Opp Christian Hessenauer, OH Michael Fisher, OH Dylan Missry, MB Eric Sprague are also back. Veteran Jackson Bantle returns as well as a OH/Opp. Incoming players added to the roster include: OH Sam Kobrine, S Reece Salmons, Libero Sam Jones, MB Daenan Gyimah.
Last season, UCLA ranked 3rd in the NCAA in kills per set (13.20), set assists per set (12.46) and aces per set (1.77); placed 5th in hitting % (.313); 6th in blocks per set (2.51) and 18th in digs per set (8.75). Individuals in the top 20: Aces - Micah Ma'a 5th at 0.48 per set / JT Hatch 14th at 0.39 per set; Blocks - Mitch Stahl 6th at 1.19 per set.
A year ago, the Bruins participated in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since it captured the program's 19th title in 2006 when it took on Ohio State in the semifinals.
Honors — 2017 Watch Listees: Karch Kiraly Award (best outside attacker) JT Hatch, Jake Arnitz/ Erik Shoji Award (best libero) Davis Gillett / Ryan Millar Award (best middle attacker) Mitch Stahl / Lloy Ball Award (best setter) Micah Ma'a...Three Bruins were named to the 2016 AVCA All-America squad - 1st team Micah Ma'a; 2nd team Mitch Stahl, Jake Arnitz. Earning 1st team All-MPSF honors were Ma'a and Arnitz; 2nd team was Stahl; Honorable Mention went to JT Hatch and Hagen Smith. Arnitz was named to the NCAA All-Tournament team. Ma'a was named Off the Block's Server of the Year and a Freshman All-American.
By the Numbers - Jake Arnitz upped his hitting percentage from .227 as a freshman to .313 in 2016 ... Mitch Stahl improved his blocking average from 0.9 per set to 1.19 and his hitting % from .365 in 2015 to .471 last season ... Hagen Smith upped his kills per set average from 0.1 in 2015 to 1.2 in 2016 ... Micah Ma'a had at least one ace in 15 of the last 17 matches; and at least one ace in 27 of the 32 total matches; he had seven matches with more than a pair of aces ... In the process, he destroyed the old freshman ace record of Gonzalo Quiroga (39 in 2011) with 58 ... Oliver Martin increased his hitting percentage from .213 in 2015 to .447 in 2016 and his block per set mark from 0.4 to 0.9 ... Davis Gillett had double-digit digs in eight of the last 14 matches and totaled 26 matches in 2016 with five or more digs ... JT Hatch had at least one ace in 13 of the last 16 matches and 11 matches with multiple aces -- he had 13 aces in 2015 and finished with 39 in 2016... Arnitz posted double-digit kills in 16 of the last 19 (11 of last 13) matches he played in 2016 ... Martin hit over .500 in 11 matches last season ... Smith had seven matches with nine or more digs and 12 matches with at least five kills ... Jackson Bantle had 16 service aces last season ... Ma'a had an MPSF high 7 aces in match versus CSUN on Jan. 29, 2016 ... His triple-double v. BYU (4/2/16) was the first by an MPSF player since Jonah Seif of UCSB on Feb. 6, 2014...The last time UCLA won more than 25 matches was when it captured 26 in 2006 on the way to an NCAA title...The Bruins' 10-0 start last year was their best since the 1998 squad earned wins in the first 16 matches of that season.
All-Time Bruin (rally scoring) Lists— Micah Ma'a set a rally scoring era school record with 58 aces last season (old rally scoring mark was 56 by Gonzalo Quiroga ('14) and Adam Naeve ('01) ...Mitch Stahl is 6th on the season block assist list (114) and 9th on the career block assist list (246)...Stahl is 9th in career total blocks (262) and was T6th all-time with 124 last season.
Coach Speraw: Year Five at UCLA — John Speraw (UCLA '95), who is in his fifth 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 where his squad took home the Bronze medal. 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 first individual to produce a championship as a head coach, assistant coach and player in collegiate men's volleyball history. He was named head coach of the U.S. Men's National Team on Mar. 25, 2013. 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. He was also an assistant on the gold medal winning U.S. squad in the 2008 Beijing Games. Speraw won the National Coach of the Year award in 2007.
Elsewhere in MPSF Action: Jan.3-IPFW at UCI, USC at Concordia; Jan. 4 -UC Merced at CSUN, McKendree at Pepperdine; Jan. 5 -Erskine at Hawaii, UCSD at UCI;