Senior JT Hatch has earned All-MPSF honors in all four seasons.
Photo by: Don Liebig/ASUCLA
MVB Hosts Stanford Saturday
April 12, 2018 | Men's Volleyball
NO. 2 BRUINS HOST STANFORD IN MPSF QUARTERFINALS — No. 2-ranked UCLA (22-6, 9-3 and the No. 2 seed in Mountain Pacific Sports Federation), welcomes Stanford (6-19, 3-9 and the No. 7 seed) to Pauley Pavilion on Saturday night at 7 p.m. for an MPSF Quarterfinal match. The winner will advance to play a semifinal match on April 19 in Provo, Utah at 3:30 p.m. of 6 p.m. PT. The MPSF Championship match will be held at BYU on April 21 at 6 p.m. PT with the winning team receiving the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Championship. BYU earned the home court as the No. 1 seed into the MPSF Tournament by virtue of its victory last Thursday night against Pepperdine.
MATCH DAY: Saturday
No. 2 seed UCLA vs No. 7 seed Stanford
Time: 7 p.m.
Site: Pauley Pavilion
Live Stats: http://www.statbroadcast.com/events/statbroadcast.php?t=1&gid=ucla
Video:http://www.mpsports.org/collegesportslive/?media=574487 (pay per view)
Audio: http://ucla.leanplayer.com/
UCLA captured both regular season meetings with the Cardinal this season, winning a pair of 3-1 decisions (25-12, 25-16, 18-25, 25-21 at Stanford on Mar. 1 and 25-15, 20-25, 25-22, 25-15 in Pauley on Apr. 5). Christian Hessenauer had 16 kills in the win on the Farm. Daenan Gyimah led the team with 15 kills in last week's victory and totaled 11 block assists for the pair of matches. The Bruins outblocked Stanford in its first two meetings of the season by a combined 20.5 to 5.0 margin and out-aced the Cardinal 15 to 8.
2018 MPSF MVB Bracket
Apr. 14 - MPSF Quarterfinals-7 pm
No. 7 Stanford at No. 2 UCLA
No. 6 USC at No. 3 Pepperdine
No. 5 Grand Canyon at No. 4 Concordia
Apr. 19 - MPSF Semis at BYU
Highest remaining seeds play - 3:30 pm (PT)
Lowest remaining seed vs. BYU - 6 pm (PT)
Apr. 21-Championship at BYU - 6 pm (PT)
Winner receives automatic bid to NCAA Tournament - NCAA selections on Apr. 22
GYIMAH NAMED PLAYER OF THE WEEK - Daenan Gyimah hit .632 for the week while leading UCLA to wins over Stanford and No. 2 BYU. He averaged 3.86 kills per set and added 10 block assists (1.43 blocks per set). Gyimah, who hit over .600 in each match, led UCLA in kills and blocks in both contests. He is hitting an NCAA-leading .534 entering the week and is attempting to become the first Bruin in the rally scoring era (since 2001) to hit over .500 for a season with at least 300 hitting attempts. This was the third MPSF award for Gyimah this season.
POST-SEASON HONORS - Seven Bruins earned all-league honors. Four were chosen first-team All-MPSF – Jake Arnitz, Christian Hessenauer, Micah Ma'a, Daenan Gyimah. Second-team honors went to JT Hatch and Dylan Missry. Oliver Martin was an honorable mention selection.
Arnitz was a first-team honoree for the third straight season.This is the first all-league honor for Hessenauer who ranks in the top 15 in the MPSF league statistics in five categories. Ma'a, who was an honorable mention pick last season and first-teammer in 2016, leads the MPSF in set assists average (10.90). Gyimah, an honorable mention selection last season, paces the MPSF with a .582 mark in league matches. Hatch merited All-MPSF honors for the fourth straight season (hon. ment. in '17 and '16, second-team in '15). Missry and Martin earned their first All-MPSF honors.
NCAA / MPSF STATS - Deanan Gyimah began the week leading the nation in hitting percentage at .534 and was listed seventh in blocks/set (1.18). UCLA is third nationally in hitting percentage coming into the week (.355). Micah Ma'a is third in the NCAA and first in the MPSF in assists / set at 10.73. The Bruin team is third in the NCAA in aces (1.78) per set and third in the nation in kills per set (13.19).
RANKING - UCLA is in the No. 2 spot in this week's AVCA poll. The Bruins were No. 4 in the AVCA Preseason Poll and second in the Coaches' Preseason MPSF poll behind BYU. In 2017, UCLA finished fifth in the MPSF and was No. 6 in the final AVCA National Poll. UCLA has been ranked as high as No. 2 in the AVCA poll at some point in each of the past five seasons.
RECENT MPSF TOURNAMENT HISTORY — The Bruins last won the MPSF Tournament in 2006 and then went on to claim their 19th NCAA Championship. UCLA has won MPSF Tournament titles in 2006, 2001, 2000, 1996, 1995, 1994, 1993... 2017 - #5 seed UCLA lost at #4 UC Irvine 1-3 in quarterfinals; 2016 - #2 UCLA def. #7 Hawai'i 3-1 in quarterfinals, def. #3 Long Beach St. in semis 3-1, lost at #1 BYU in championship 1-3; 2015 - #8 UCLA lost at #1 UC Irvine in quarterfinals 0-3; 2014 -- #5 UCLA lost at #4 UC Santa Barbara in quarterfinals 2-3; 2013 - #4 UCLA def. #5 Pepperdine in quarterfinals 3-0 and lost in semis at #1 BYU 2-3; 2012 -- #5 UCLA lost in quarterfinals at #4 UC Irvine 1-3; 2011 -- #8 UCLA lost in quarterfinals at #1 USC 1-3; 2010 -- #7 UCLA lost at #2 BYU in quarterfinals 1-3; 2009 -- #8 UCLA lost in quarterfinals at #1 UC Irvine 1-3.
NCAA TOURNAMENT FORMAT - The MPSF Championship contest will take place April 21, at Provo, with the winner earning an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament (at UCLA on May 3 and 5 in Pauley Pavilion). Automatic bids to the NCAA Tournament also go the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA-George Mason current leader), the Midwest Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (MIVA-Ohio State/Loyola tied for lead), the Big West Conference (Long Beach State current leader) and Conference Carolinas (Barton College / King tied for lead). There are two at-large bids to this year's tournament. The NCAA Championship field will be announced on April 22 as well as how many rounds will be hosted at UCLA.
2018 NCAA MVB Bracket
Apr. 26, 27 or 28 - NCAA First Match (site tbd) - No. 6 seed vs. No. 7 seed
May 1 - NCAA Quarterfinals (site tbd) - Winner No. 6 v. No. 7 match vs. No. 3 seed // No. 4 seed vs. No. 5 seed
May 3 - NCAA Semifinals (6 and 8:30 Pauley Pavilion)
No. 1 seed vs. 4/5 winner
No. 2 seed vs. 3/6-7 winner
May 5 - NCAA Championship (4 pm Pauley Pavilion)
BRUINS BY THE NUMBERS
• The Bruins are 16-1 this season (6-0 in MPSF play) in home matches. UCLA is 6-5 overall on the road, 3-3 in MPSF play.
• UCLA has hit at least .345 in each of the last eight matches.
• Christian Hessenauer has averaged 14.0 kills per match; Jake Arnitz has averaged 10.9 kills per match during the last eight matches.
• The Bruins have held 10 opponents this season under .200 hitting % for the match (King .103, Ohio St. .113, Penn St. .186, UCSD .160, Princeton .123, .195 at Concordia, .179 at Grand Canyon, USC .141, George Mason .123, UCSB .099).
• Daenan Gyimah, who had a team-high 15 kills in last week's win over Stanford while hitting .636, registered a career-high 17 kills in the home win over Pepperdine (Mar. 7) on a .889 (17-1-18) hitting percentage, just shy of the Bruin school record.
• UCLA has hit at least .400 in 12 matches this season, all wins --- .400 v. BYU, .412, .446 v. UCSB, . 493 v. George Mason, .412 v. Pepperdine, .458 v. USC, .494 at Grand Canyon, .400 at Concordia, .430 v. CSUN, .455 v. UC Irvine, .414 v. Princeton, .403 v. King.
• Senior Jake Arnitz has hit .391 while starting in the last seven matches (87-21-169).
• The Bruins hold a 60-32 advantage in service aces over the opponent in the last 10 matches ... The Bruins tied the school record with 15 aces in the match vs. Princeton earlier this season and also had tied the school mark for aces in a set, with seven, in that same match vs. Princeton.
• In last eight matches, UCLA is hitting .405 (384k-85e-739ta). The opponents are at a .211 clip (307k-148e-755ta) during that period.
• Only three opponents have recorded more aces than UCLA in a match --- Pepperdine (h) (3-5), BYU (1-3) and Ohio State (2-4).
• UCLA is 22-1 when it hits for a higher % than its opponent ... The only matches UCLA has had opponent hit for a higher % were in losses at BYU (.318/.214), at Pepperdine (.455/.203), at Hawai'i (.236/.209), Long Beach State (twice: home-.408/.315; away- .343/.191).
• The 14-1 start this season was the best by a Bruin team since 2005 squad, which advanced to NCAA final that season, began 15-1.
• This season will mark the 15th time UCLA has played host to the NCAA men's volleyball championship - 1970 (UCLA champ), 1971 (UCLA), 1975 (UCLA), 1977 (USC), 1979 (UCLA), 1984 (UCLA), 1985 (Pepperdine), 1987 (UCLA), 1989 (UCLA), 1993 (UCLA), 1996 (UCLA), 1999 (BYU), 2005 (Pepperdine), 2013 (UC Irvine). The Bruins have captured nine NCAA championships in Pauley.
• Micah Ma'a, 11th in NCAA (0.48) in aces/set to begin the week, has moved up to second at UCLA all-time in aces - he ranked 25th in NCAA last season (0.33) ... Ma'a has 16 aces in his last 6 matches.
• Seven freshmen have seen action this season - MB Ian Parish, L Garland Peed, Opp Colin Bailey played roles in the home win over UC Irvine. Redshirt freshman Sam Kobrine saw his first career action against Hawai'i (Jan. 26). True frosh Grant Maleski's first appearance came at Concordia (Feb. 8), while Alex Parks debuted at Long Beach (Feb. 17). Sam Jones saw action vs. BYU (Apr. 7).
• Christian Hessenauer has led/tied for team lead in kills in 16 matches --12-NJIT, 13-UC Irvine, 11-Penn St., 19-Ohio St., 20-at UHaw.2, 15-at UCI, 17 v. CSUN, 12 at Concordia, 14 at G. Canyon, 16 at Stanford, 8 at BYU, 10 v. George Mason, 18 vs. Concordia, 16 vs. Grand Canyon, 11 v. UC Santa Barbara, 22 at USC.
• Head Coach John Speraw secured victory milestones (100 wins at UCLA- vs. Penn State; and 300 career wins vs. Ohio State) at this season's AVCA Showcase ... His current records are 315-170 overall as a collegiate head coach and 116-59 as head coach at UCLA.
THIS WEEK'S AVCA POLL
1. Long Beach St. (25) 375 23-0
2. UCLA 328 22-6
3. UC Irvine 325 19-7
4. BYU 315 20-6
5. Pepperdine 276 15-7
6. Hawai'i 251 17-6
7. Ohio State 210 20-5
8. Loyola-Chicago 179 21-6
9. CSUN 176 13-10
10. Lewis 144 18-10
11. Ball State 132 17-11
12. UC Santa Barbara 115 10-11
13. Concordia 87 15-14
14. Grand Canyon 47 18-10
15. Fort Wayne 28 18-10
rec. votes - George Mason, Penn State
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