Photo by: Don Liebig/ASUCLA
MVB Picked Second In MPSF Coaches Pre-Season Poll
December 16, 2021 | Men's Volleyball
UCLA (15-6, 14-5 in MPSF in 2021) was voted second in the preseason tally of Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) men's volleyball coaches released on Thursday. Pepperdine, with five first-place votes, was picked for the top spot in the league with last year's champion from BYU securing third place.
Highlighting the list of returning players for the Bruins for 2022 are All-MPSF honorees opposite/hitter Cole Ketrzynski and middle blocker Merrick McHenry. Ketrzynski, a first-team selection, ranked seventh nationally in service aces per set (0.485) and was eighth in the NCAA in points per set (4.78). McHenry, who was named to the second team, ranked 12th in the nation in hitting percentage (.423) and was 18th nationally in blocks per set (1.02). They will join outside hitter Ethan Champlin who earned All-Freshman Team honors in 2021.
Each team is scheduled to play 12 regular season MPSF matches in 2022, beginning in mid-February. The regular season conference champion will be the MPSF's No. 1 seed and host the conference championship tournament in its entirety (Apr. 20-23). The MPSF Champion is crowned at the tournament and receives automatic entry to the NCAA Tournament which is set to be hosted this year by UCLA on May 5 and 7 in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom.
UCLA begins its 2022 season on Jan. 6-8 at the UC Santa Barbara Tournament. The Bruins open the home slate with a match against Princeton on Jan. 15 in the John Wooden Center.
2022 MPSF Pre-Season Coaches Poll
1. Pepperdine (5) 35 (13-7 overall, 11-5 MPSF record)
2. UCLA (2) 30 (15-6, 14-5)
3. BYU 25 (20-4, 17-3)
4. Grand Canyon 22 (9-11, 8-10)
5. USC 13 (5-13, 5-12)
6. Stanford 12 (3-14, 3-13)
7. Concordia 10 (3-14, 3-13)
Highlighting the list of returning players for the Bruins for 2022 are All-MPSF honorees opposite/hitter Cole Ketrzynski and middle blocker Merrick McHenry. Ketrzynski, a first-team selection, ranked seventh nationally in service aces per set (0.485) and was eighth in the NCAA in points per set (4.78). McHenry, who was named to the second team, ranked 12th in the nation in hitting percentage (.423) and was 18th nationally in blocks per set (1.02). They will join outside hitter Ethan Champlin who earned All-Freshman Team honors in 2021.
Each team is scheduled to play 12 regular season MPSF matches in 2022, beginning in mid-February. The regular season conference champion will be the MPSF's No. 1 seed and host the conference championship tournament in its entirety (Apr. 20-23). The MPSF Champion is crowned at the tournament and receives automatic entry to the NCAA Tournament which is set to be hosted this year by UCLA on May 5 and 7 in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom.
UCLA begins its 2022 season on Jan. 6-8 at the UC Santa Barbara Tournament. The Bruins open the home slate with a match against Princeton on Jan. 15 in the John Wooden Center.
2022 MPSF Pre-Season Coaches Poll
1. Pepperdine (5) 35 (13-7 overall, 11-5 MPSF record)
2. UCLA (2) 30 (15-6, 14-5)
3. BYU 25 (20-4, 17-3)
4. Grand Canyon 22 (9-11, 8-10)
5. USC 13 (5-13, 5-12)
6. Stanford 12 (3-14, 3-13)
7. Concordia 10 (3-14, 3-13)
Players Mentioned
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