Steller an All-American

Jon Steller Named Second Team All-America
Steller becomes UCI's 10th All-American

April 28, 2008

Irvine, Calif. - UC Irvine men's volleyball player Jon Steller has been named to the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-America Second Team.

This is Steller's first All-American distinction and is the 10th UC Irvine player garner the award.

Steller will be honored along with the other All-Americans and the four NCAA Championship teams at a banquet Wednesday at the UCI Student Center. The Player of the Year will also be announced at the banquet.

This season, Steller averaged 3.35 kills and 1.04 digs overall. After becoming a starter, 12 matches into the season, the opposite averaged 4.56 kills, 1.41 digs and 5.15 points per game. He fired a team-high 38 service aces this year which ranks fifth in the UCI season record books. Steller had the third most service aces by an MPSF player and is ranked 18th nationally with a 0.34 ace average.

The junior pounded 20 or more kills six times this year, including a career-high 29 kills against Hawaii which was the seventh most by an Anteater in the rally scoring era. He was named Sports Imports/AVCA National Player of the Week as well as MPSF Co-Player of the Week on Apr. 7 and MPSF Co-Player of the Week Feb. 11, 2008.

UC Irvine ended the season 16-15 overall and seventh in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation with an 11-11 record. The Anteaters are ranked eighth in the country.

UC Irvine will host the 2008 NCAA Men's Volleyball Championship May 1 and 3 at the Bren Events Center.

AVCA All-America First Team
Dan Alexander, Long Beach State, So., MB
Matt Anderson, Penn State, Jr., OH
Paul Carroll, Pepperdine, Jr., OPP
Russell Holmes, BYU, Sr., MB
Max Holt, Penn State, Jr., MB
Tony Ker, UCLA, Sr., L
Paul Lotman, Long Beach State, Sr., OH
Daniel Mathews, Ohio State, Sr., S
Eric Vance, Cal State Northridge, Jr., OH
Jonathan Winder, Pepperdine, Sr., S

AVCA All-America Second Team
Dean Bittner, Long Beach State, So., OPP
Dennis Del Valle, Penn State, Fr., L
Kyle Gramit, George Mason, Jr., OPP
Isaac Kneubuhl, Cal State Northridge, Sr., OH
Max Lipsitz, Penn State, So., MB
Cody Loe, Cal State Northridge, Fr., MB
Luke Murray, Penn State, Sr., S
Ivan Perez, BYU, Sr., OH
Kawika Shoji, Stanford, So., S
Jon Steller, UC Irvine, Jr., OPP

Webber's Finnish Team Takes Game 1 of Championships

Matt Webber, the former Anteater OPP is still banging cannon balls out in Finland. Here's a link to his video interview after taking Game 1 of the Finnish Championships!

http://www.yle.fi/media/asxgene.php?file=tvurheilu/Lentopallo_-_Santasport_nappasi_finaalien_kotiedun.wmv

Steller Sweeps POTW Honors!

Jon Steller Sweeps Player of the Week Honors
Steller named Sports Imports/AVCA Player of the Week for the first time

April 7, 2008

Irvine, Calif. - UC Irvine men's volleyball player Jon Steller has been named Sports Imports/AVCA National Player of the Week as well as Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Co-Player of the Week after averaging 6.00 kills, 1.29 digs, 1.43 blocks and 6.86 points per game in two wins last week. He shared the MPSF honor this week with USC's Juan Figueroa.

Steller, a junior opposite, posted 27 kills and a career-high seven block assists in an upset of No. 2 Cal State Northridge at home then led the Anteaters with 15 kills versus UC Santa Barbara on the road.

The junior fired an ace against Northridge giving him 36 on the year. His 36 aces ranks fifth in the UCI season record books, 11 shy of Matt Webber's record of 47 set in 2007.

It is Steller's first national award, becoming the 11th Anteater player to earn the AVCA distinction. It is his second MPSF honor, earning the accolade Feb. 11, 2008.

The Anteaters, who are currently ranked seventh nationally, travel to Pacific Friday and No. 11 Stanford Saturday to close out the regular season. UCI is tied for sixth place in the MPSF heading into the final week.

9th Ranked Eaters Upset 2nd Ranked CSUN

UCI dominated the net with 21 blocks

No. 9 UC Irvine Upsets No. 2 Cal State Northridge, 3-1
Anteaters play third longest game in MPSF history, 42-40

April 1, 2008

Final Stats

Irvine, Calif. - The ninth-ranked UC Irvine men's volleyball team upset No. 2 Cal State Northridge, 3-1 (28-30, 30-24, 42-40, 30-18) in the regular season home finale at the Bren Center Tuesday.

The Anteaters snap Northridge's 14-match winning streak and even their record to 13-13 overall and go to 9-10 in the MPSF, while the league-leading Matadors go to 20-5 overall and 15-4 in the MPSF.

Opposite Jon Steller led all players with 27 kills and a career-high seven block assists. Freshman outsie hitter Jordan DuFault added 16 kills, his second highest career kill total, a career-high 12 digs and a career-best seven block assists. Middle blockers Aaron Harrell and Kevin Wynne each recorded seven kills and a team-high eight block assists with Harrell adding a solo for a match-high nine total blocks. Libero Brent Asuka tied his season-high with 18 digs, while outside hitter Kevin Carroll came off the bench to play solid defense with seven digs to go with four kills and a .500 hitting percentage. Setter Anthony Spittle recorded 55 set assists and a career-high six blocks.

The Anteaters dominated the net, out-blocking Northridge 21-7.5. The 21 blocks was the second most for UCI this season.

Northridge had a balanced attack led by Isaac Knewubuhl and Eric Vance with 17 kills apiece. Kevin McKniff added 15 kills and Mike Gaudino recorded 11 kills. Libero Ali'i Keohohou led the team with 11 digs.

UCI led 10-8 early in game one, but Northridge battled back to take their first lead at 12-11. The Matadors would continue to lead opening up a 24-19 advantage on a kill by Mike Gaudino. The Anteaters rallied to close with 28-27 on a Jon Steller kill, but the teams would trade points until Northridge's Isaac Knewubuhl ended the game with a kill 30-28. The two teams combined for 19 service errors in the first game.

UCI used a 7-1 run to take control of game two, leading 27-20. The Anteaters would go on to take the game 30-24 on a Steller kill.

Cal State Northridge had a 15-11 advantage in game three and continued to lead at 23-21. UCI would score three unanswered to take the 24-23 lead. UCI would go ahead 28-26 on a pair of Steller kills and led 29-27 before the Matadors used kills by Kevin McKniff and Eric Vance to knot the score at 29-29. The marathon would begin with each team trading points until 40-40 when Aaron Harrell put away a kill in the middle was followed by a Matador attack that sailed wide to give UCI the game, 42-40, the longest game in UCI history and the third highest score in MPSF history. The top two (45-43, 43-41) also involved Northridge.

Game four was all UCI as they jumped out to a 5-1 lead and never looked back taking the set 30-18 and the match, 3-1. UCI hit .480 in the game compared to Northridge's .083.

UCI travels to No. 14 UC Santa Barbara Saturday for a 7:00 p.m. match at Robertson Gym.

No. 9 UC Irvine Hosts No. 2 Cal State Northridge In Regular Season Home Finale Tuesday

Senior, Aaron Harrell

No. 9 UC Irvine Hosts No. 2 Cal State Northridge In Regular Season Home Finale Tuesday
Seniors honored before the match

March 31, 2008


UC IRVINE HOSTS NORTHRIDGE; TRAVELS TO UC SANTA BARABRA: No. 9 UC Irvine (12-13, 8-10) will take on No. 2 Cal State Northridge Tuesday (Apr. 1) at 7:00 p.m. in the Bren Events Center before traveling to UC Santa Barbara Saturday (Apr. 5) at 7:00 p.m. in Robertson Gym.

Tuesday's match versus Northridge is the regular season home finale as UCI will play its last three matches on the road.

A senior ceremony will be held prior to the match.

VS THE OPPONENTS: Cal State Northridge leads the series with UCI, 24-15 all-time. The Matadors won the first meeting of the year, 3-0 in Northridge. Cal State Northridge leads the MPSF with a 15-3 record and are 20-4 overall this year.

UCSB holds a 29-14 advantage over the Anteaters all-time, but UCI has won the last two meetings of the year. UCI has won the last six meetings and nine of the last 10 outings. The Gauchos are 9-14 overall and 6-12 in the MPSF.

IN THE RANKINGS: UC Irvine stayed at No. 9 in the AVCA Coaches poll. The Anteaters have been ranked in the nation's top 10 for 48 consecutive weeks.

HARRELL SETS HITTING PERCENTAGE RECORD: Aaron Harrell set a new UCI match record for hitting percentage with a perfect 1.000 performance against UC San Diego. The middle blocker was 13 of 13 with no errors. Harrell takes the top spot from David Smith who hit .938 against UC Santa Barbara in 2007. The mark also ties the NCAA and MPSF records. This is the second match record Harrell has set this season, breaking the ace record with seven in the first match agianst Hawaii.

ASUKA MOVES UP SEASON RECORDS: Libero Brent Asuka has 245 digs this year which ranks third in the UCI season record book. Asuka holds the school mark with 336 set in 2006. He is 30 digs shy of Greg Ford's second place of 275 set in 2004. The junior has recorded 15 or more digs five times this year.

STELLER SWINGS AWAY: Opposite Jon Steller has averaged 22.40 kills over the last five matches. The junior has put-away double-digit kills in 13 of the last 14 matches, including hitting 20 or more kills five times. On the year, Steller averages 3.09 kills, 0.39 aces and 0.99 digs per game.

ANTEATERS GO 1-1 LAST WEEK: UCI upset No. 3 Long Beach State last week, 3-2 then was upset by UC San Diego, 3-2.

The win against Long Beach was only the ninth all-time and gave UCI a 21-14 lead in the Black & Blue Rivalry Series presented by Duke's of Huntington Beach.

Jon Steller led UCI in both matches with 26 kills versus Long Beach State and 22 against UC San Diego.

’Eaters surprise 49ers

Published Friday, March 28, 2008 12:00 AM PDT
Sports

’Eaters surprise 49ers
VOLLEYBALL: No. 9-ranked UCI rallies for five-game upset of No. 3 Long Beach State, now tied for the MPSF lead.
By Barry Faulkner

IRVINE — In accordance with finals week, the UC Irvine men’s volleyball team was presented with multiple choices during its 12-day layoff that ended Thursday against Mountain Pacific Sports Federation-leading Long Beach State.

The Anteaters could either pursue the promise Coach John Speraw has proclaimed for them all season — as a team that could ultimately beat any team in the nation — or merely continue its inconsistent path along the precipice of earning one of eight berths into the upcoming conference tournament.

After the first two games Thursday, it appeared the latter was in order as the visiting 49ers (19-4, 14-3 in conference), ranked No. 3 in the nation, posted a pair of impressive wins.

But No. 9-ranked UCI (12-12, 8-9) had another option in mind as it rallied for a 22-30, 22-30, 30-26, 30-27, 15-12 triumph that, as much as anything this season, shows them that in the proper time and place, they can defend their NCAA championship with purpose and poise.

“Long Beach is one of the top teams in the country and it’s playing well right now,” said UCI junior opposite Jon Steller, who led the winners with 26 kills and hit .500 for the match. “I think this gives us a huge confidence boost and, hopefully, we can carry that into this next week when we play [Cal State] Northridge, which is now No. 1.”

Steller was a consistent force at the net all night, but a lineup adjustment in which Speraw inserted Anthony Spittle at setter and Taylor Wilson at outside hitter after the first two games, seemed to help the Anteaters find their rhythm.

“I thought Anthony gave us some nice consistency,” Speraw said of the freshman who finished with a team-best 30 assists. “I thought he set a very nice match. And it wasn’t even that [junior Ryan Ammerman, who started and produced 25 assists] set a poor match. I don’t think we were passing very well [in the first two games]. It’s just that when you’re down, 0-2, you want to change things up.”

Speraw also wanted to see Wilson — a 6-foot-7 junior who started as a sophomore, but has battled ankle problems that have sidelined him for much of this season — in the lineup at the same time as the 6-7 Steller.

“We practiced that lineup this week, but we’d never seen it in a match, so I was glad to get a look at it,” Speraw said.

With Wilson’s passing (10 digs, bettered only by junior libero Brent Asuka’s 12) and his veteran hitting savvy (seven kills and a .278 percentage), the Anteaters finally asserted themselves.

UCI had led only once in the first game (3-2) and the second game (2-1), as the 49ers looked every bit the team that had already swept the ’Eaters twice this season.

But the hosts played the visitors virtually even in Game 3, before pulling away from a 20-20 deadlock on its way to a four-point triumph.

In Game 4, UCI pulled away after being deadlocked at 12, setting up a Game 5 that had not been kind to the ’Eaters all season.

“We’ve had four five-game matches before tonight and we’d lost all of them,” Steller said.

But this time, something was different.

“We had some poise and that was nice to see,” Speraw said. “I’ve always felt we have the potential to be a good volleyball team, we just need to put it together. That’s one of the better teams in the MPSF, and if we play good volleyball, we’re capable of beating anyone in the MPSF. We just need to play consistently high-level volleyball for long periods of time and we haven’t been able to do that very often this season.”

UCI freshman middle Kevin Wynne posted a kill to set up match point and, after a UCI serving error, freshman Cory Yoder (14 kills) caromed a kill off a blocker to give UCI its first five-game win this season.

“I sure hope this is a turning point for us,” said Speraw, whose team entered the match in seventh place in the MPSF. “I think finals week gave us a chance to take a breath and regroup and reevaluate where we are and where we need to go. We committed ourselves to these next [now five] matches [to conclude the regular season].”

49ers Upset by the Eaters!

No. 9 UC Irvine Rallies To Upset No. 3 Long Beach State, 3-2
Anteaters win in five after losing first two games

March 27, 2008

Final Stats


Irvine, Calif. - No. 9 UC Irvine rallied from a two game deficit to upset No. 3 Long Beach State, 3-2 (22-30, 22-30, 30-26, 30-27, 15-12) at the Bren Events Center Thursday.



The Anteaters win their first five-gamer (1-4) of the year and improve to 12-12 overall and 8-9 in the MPSF. Long Beach State goes to 19-4 and 14-3 in league play. Three of Long Beach's four losses this year have come in five games.



Junior opposite Jon Steller led UCI with 26 kills, hitting .500 for the match (26-5-42). Freshman outside hitter Cory Yoder totaled 14 kills and four blocks, while Taylor Wilson came off the bench to add seven kills and 10 digs. Libero Brent Asuka tallied 11 digs, while middle blocker Kevin Wynne had a match-high five block assists. Senior middle blocker Aaron Harrell recorded five kills and four blocks. Setter Anthony Spittle sparked UCI in the final three games with 30 set assists.



Long Beach State was paced by Paul Lotman with 27 kills, 11 digs and four service aces. Dean Bittner recorded 26 kills followed by Josh Riley with 11 kills and Dan Alexander with 10 kills. Alexander also had a team-high four blocks. Libero Dustin Watten had a match-high 13 digs.

In game one, Long Beach State jumped out to a 10-4 lead on the strength of its serving which included three aces. The Forty-Niners went on to a 30-22 win behind Dean Bittner's eight kills.

Long Beach led 7-6 in game two before going on a 3-1 run to extend the lead to 10-7. UCI would pull within 23-21 on a Jordan DuFault kill but another Bittner kill was followed by an Anteater attack error to give LBSU the 25-21 cushion. The Anteaters would get no closer than three the rest of the way as Long Beach took the second game 30-22 with the Forty-Niners ending the game with three consecutive blocks.

UCI led 16-13 in game three before Long Beach rallied on a 6-3 spurt to knot the score at 19-19. UCI used a Forty-Niner service and attack error followed by a Cory Yoder kill to go up 24-21. UCI would go on to win the game 30-26. Long Beach would record seven service errors in the set.

Game four saw the teams tied at 12-12 before UCI went on a 6-2 run to take a 18-14 lead. Long Beach would score three unanswered, the last a Paul Lotman service ace, to narrow the UCI advantage to 25-23 but Lotman would serve into the net on the next possession to end the Forty-Niner run. UCI would win 30-27 to force a fifth game.

A kill by Lotman gave Long Beach a 6-4 lead in game five but a pair of Yoder kills helped UCI take back the lead at 8-7. The Anteaters never trailed again with Yoder putting away the match winner, 15-12.

The win increases UCI's lead in the Black & Blue Rivalry Series presented by Duke's of Huntington Beach to 21-14.

UCI will travel to UC San Diego Saturday (Mar. 29) for a 7:00 p.m. first serve.

Eaters Blank the Buckeyes

Mac Waite Sealing the Deal in Game 1


Steller Enters UCI Record Book in 3-0 Victory Over Ohio State

The opposite fires a match record six service aces
Final Stats

Irvine, Calif. - Junior Jon Steller tied the UC Irvine match record with six aces as the 10th-ranked Anteaters defeated No. 10 Ohio State 3-0 (30-23, 30-25, 30-13) in a non-conference match at the Bren Center Friday.

Steller shares the top spot in the UCI match record book with Matt Webber (2004), Mike Rupp (1999) and Jarrett Jensen who recorded six aces twice in 2002. The opposite fired four of his career-high six aces in game three.

Steller led the Anteaters with 14 kills along with freshman Cory Yoder who also posted 14 kills in the win. Yoder hit .545 (14-2-22) for the match. Senior Aaron Harrell and sophomore Cole Reinholm each added seven kills with Reinholm totaling a match-high seven digs. Setter Ryan Ammerman tallied three kills and 41 set assists. Junior Mac Waite hit .600 adding three kills on five attempts without an error.

Ohio State was led by Brett Versen and Robbie Klein with 10 kills a piece. Kevin Heine recorded a match-high six block assists as the Buckeyes out-blocked UCI, 9.0-2.0.

UCI's offense ran at a .455 (51-11-88) clip for the match, while Ohio State hit just .188 (32-17-80).

UCI jumped out to a 10-3 lead in game one and never looked back as they took the set, 30-23 behind eight kills from Cory Yoder.

The Anteaters opened an 8-4 advantage in game two and continued to lead at 28-21. The Buckeyes then scored four unanswered to narrow the deficit to 28-24, but out of a UCI timeout Yoder put away a kill to set up game point. Following a UCI service error, Cole Reinholm pounded a kill to end the game, 30-25. Steller had eight kills and two aces in the frame.

Steller's serving was ignited in game three, rocketing four aces in a 6-0 run to give UCI a 26-12 lead. The Anteaters would out-score the Buckeyes 4-1 to end the game, 30-13 and the match, 3-0. The 17-point win is the largest margin of victory by an MPSF team this season.

The two teams will meet again tomorrow (Mar. 1) at 2:00 p.m. in the Bren Events Center.

STELLER the 2nd Eater to be MPSF Player of the Week!

Jon Steller Named MPSF Co-Player of the Week
Steller earns first conference accolade

Feb. 11, 2008

Irvine, Calif. -- Junior Jon Steller was named Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Co-Player of the Week after helping UCI to a pair of wins last week over No. 5 Pepperdine and No. 11 USC.

Steller recorded a season-high 21 kills and a career best nine digs versus Pepeprdine then hit .524 against USC adding 13 kills and two aces. For the week, Steller averaged 4.86 kills, 1.57 digs and 0.86 blocks.

Steller shared this week's honor with UC Santa Barbara's Theo Brunner. This is Steller's first conference accolade and the second for an Anteater player this year (Taylor Wilson, Jan. 28).

Sixth-ranked UCI will battle No. 1 BYU Friday and Saturday (Feb. 15 & 16) at the Bren Center. First serve for both matches is 7:00 p.m.

Video Unveiling of 2007 National Championship Banner

Hey eater fans! Check this out-- it's on The Daily Pilot website

http://www.dailypilot.com/articles/2008/02/09/video/doc47ad401a31f07420548899.txt

Just push play!

Eaters Sweep the Trojans

Cory Yoder led UCI with 14 kills

UC Irvine Offensive Attack Dominates In 3-0 Sweep of USC
National Championship Banner Unveiled

Feb. 8, 2008

Final Stats | Photo Gallery

Irvine, Calif. - No. 8 UC Irvine hit .500 as a team as the Anteaters swept No. 11 USC, 3-0 (30-28, 30-26, 30-22) in a Mountain Pacific Sports Federation match Friday at the Bren Center.

The Anteaters improve to 8-6 overall and 5-4 in the MPSF on the night that 2007 National Championship banner was unveiled at the Bren. USC falls to 6-7 overall and 5-5 in league action.

As a team, UCI hit a season-high .500 (47-7-80) for the match and out-blocked the Trojans, 9-0.

Freshman outside hitter Cory Yoder led UCI with 14 kills, hitting .542 (14-1-24), adding an ace and three blocks. Junior opposite Jon Steller ended the night with 13 kills, hitting .524 (13-2-21) and firing two aces. Senior middle blocker Aaron Harrell hit .636 on seven kills with no errors on 11 attempts and two blocks. Freshman Kevin Carroll also had seven kills, hitting .417 (7-2-12) for the match. Junior setter Ryan Ammerman dished a career-high 44 assists with five digs and three blocks. Freshman middle blocker Kevin Wynne hit .556 (6-1-9) and led all players with five blocks. Junior libero Brent Asuka tallied seven digs in the win.

Juan Figueroa was the only USC player in double-figures with 16 kills. Murphy Troy added nine kills, while libero Luke Morris had a team-high six digs. Senior Jimmy Killian recorded 32 set assists in the loss.

UCI led 9-4 in game one and continued to lead 29-26 before the Trojans scored two unanswered to narrow the lead to 29-28. The run was halted when a USC service error ended the game, 30-28.

The Anteaters started game two on a 5-1 spurt, before USC rallied to knot the score at 7-7. The game was closely contested after that point with never more than a two-point lead. With the score tied 25-25, UCI recorded two kills by Jon Steller followed by a Trojan hitting error to give the Anteaters a 28-25 cushion. Aaron Harrell would end the game, 30-26 on a service ace.

UCI scored four straight to take a 13-9 lead in game three and never looked back as they cruised to the 30-22 victory.

UCI will entertain No. 1 BYU next Friday and Saturday (Feb. 15 & 16) in the Bren Center at 7:00 p.m.

No. 8 UC Irvine Takes Down No. 5 Pepperdine

Ammerman post career numbers

Feb. 6, 2008

Final Stats

Irvine, Calif. - Junior setter Ryan Ammerman had a career-high 40 set assists to lead No. 8 UC Irvine to a 3-1 (25-30, 30-23, 30-25, 30-28) victory over No. 5 Pepperdine Wednesday at the Bren Events Center.

UCI improves to 7-6 overall and 4-4 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation, sweeping the season series with Pepperdine for the first time since 1995. Pepperdine goes to 5-4 overall and in conference play.

Ammerman posted a career-best 11 digs and career-high five block assists to go with the 40 set assists. Jon Steller recorded a season-high 21 kills and nine digs, while freshman Cory Yoder and Kevin Carroll each had 15 kills in the win. Yoder also recorded a career-high nine digs. Senior middle blocker Aaron Harrell recorded a career-high 10 block assists to go with six kills. Freshman middle blocker Kevin Wynne added seven blocks, while libero Brent Asuka totaled 13 digs.

The Anteaters recorded a season-high 17.5 blocks, while the Anteaters' 59 digs was the second most this season.

Cory Riecks led Pepperdine with 15 kills followed by Matt McKee with 11 and J.D. Schleppenbach with 10 kills. Jonathan Winder totaled 45 set assists and a match-high 16 digs. Mark Hulse had a team-high eight blocks, while libero Sean Grubbs added eight digs.

In game one, Pepperdine made a move after leading 11-10, scoring three unanswered points to extend the lead to 14-10. UCI narrowed the margin to 27-25, but the Waves would score three in a row to take the game, 30-25.

With the score tied 19-19 in game two, UCI went on an 8-2 run to go up 27-21. The Anteaters, who used three blocks and a pair of kills by Jon Steller in that run, ended the game on another Steller kill, 30-23.

Pepperdine led 19-16 in game three before the Anteaters went on an 8-1 spurt, which included back-to-back kills by Kevin Wynne to go ahead 24-20. Both teams combined for five service errors in the last 11 points as UCI went on to take the set, 30-25. UCI hit just .171 in the game, but the Waves hit -.097.

Game four was all Pepperdine as the Waves led 23-17. UCI would rally, out-scoring Pepperdine 6-1 to narrow the deficit to 24-23. Aaron Harrell had three consecutive blocks assists in that flurry. Another Steller kill tied the game at 26-26 and the Anteaters took their first lead of the game on a block by Jordan DuFault, 27-26. An Anteater attack error was followed by a Wave service error and attack error to give UCI match point, 29-27. Eric Liebert would put away a kill for Pepperdine before a block by Cory Yoder and Kevin Wynne sealed the victory, 30-28.

UCI will battle No. 11 USC Friday (Feb. 8) at 7:00 p.m. at the Bren Center. The team's National Championship banner will be unveiled at 6:55 prior to the start of the match.

Irvine Sweeps the 'Slugs

Jordan DuFault with a backside jack

FROM:
http://ucirvinesports.cstv.com/sports/m-volley/recaps/013008aab.html

If you haven't already you've got to check out Nick Spittle's blog in "Passing Time With Nick" at:

http://ucirvinesports.cstv.com/sports/m-volley/spec-rel/spittle-blog.html

Thornton was blogging last year and it looks like Nick will be kickin' down this year!
The 'Eaters saw everyone play this evening. It was great seeing ADP, Nick Spittle, "Chili" Ortiz, Kooter (Kohout), JD, Ammo, Steller and the rest of the boys get a couple swings at the ball!

Team Effort Gives UC Irvine Sweep Of UC Santa Cruz, 3-0
Nine different Anteaters record kills

Jan. 29, 2008
Final Stats

Irvine, Calif. - The UC Irvine (6-5) men's volleyball team swept UC Santa Cruz, 3-0 (30-22, 31-29, 30-24) in a non-conference match Tuesday at Crawford Court.

Game one was all UCI, opening up on an 8-2 run and never relinquishing the lead on the way to a 30-22 win. Freshman outside hitter Cory Yoder led the team with five kills, hitting .833 (5-0-6).

UC Santa Cruz (6-4) led 23-20 in game two before junior Jon Steller stepped back to the service line and fired three consecutive aces to knot the score at 23-23. The Banana Slugs opened another three-point advantage at 28-25 when Steller was the man again recording three of UCI's four kills in a 4-1 spurt to tie the score at 29-29. A block by Steller and Brett Kohout set up game point which was an ace fired by Jordan DuFault (31-29). The Banana Slugs out-hit UCI .310 to .207, but the Anteaters fired five service aces and had four blocks combined with six Santa Cruz service errors.

Game three was much like game one with UCI jumping out to an early lead and going on to a 30-24 victory.

Freshman Jordan DuFault led UCI with eight kills, while Jon Steller and freshman Alex DaPron each tallied seven kills. Steller fired five aces on the night which is tied for fifth in the UCI match record books. Sophomore Cole Reinholm added six kills, while Anthony Spittle recorded 30 assists. Yoder, and seniors Mike Ortiz and Brett Kohout ended the night with five kills with Kohout leading all players with seven blocks.

UC Santa Cruz has two players in double-figure kills led by Brad Sullivan with 12 and Bryan Shires with 10. Setter Eric Rowell had 31 assists and libero Justin Lam led all players with seven digs.

Ninth-ranked UC Irvine will travel to No. 4 UCLA Friday (Feb. 1) for a 7:00 p.m. match at Pauley Pavilion.

Taylor Wilson MPSF & AVCA Player of the Week!

Taylor Wilson Sweeps Player of the Week Honors
Junior earns first career National Player of the Week distinction

Jan. 28, 2008


Irvine, Calif. -- UC Irvine's Taylor Wilson, a 6-7 right side/opposite, swept the men's volleyball honors this week, earning Sports Imports/AVCA Division I-II Men's Volleyball National Player of the Week as well as Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Player of the Week distinction.

Wilson led his team to two road wins over nationally-ranked opponents last week, including an upset of then-No. 2 Pepperdine.

In the Anteaters' 3-1 defeat of the Waves, Wilson put away a career-high 24 kills in 47 attempts and only eight errors for a .340 hitting percentage. The junior also had four digs and three total blocks in the win. He recorded 19 kills, five digs and three total blocks in UCI's 3-1 win over No. 11 USC.

For the week, Wilson averaged 5.38 kills, 1.12 digs and 6.13 points per game. It is Wilson first National honor and the first for an Anteater player this year. Wilson becomes the eighth UC Irvine player to have earned the Sports Imports/AVCA Division I-II Men's National Player of the Week distinction.

The ninth-ranked Anteaters (5-5, 3-3) will host UC Santa Cruz in a non-conference match Tuesday (Jan. 29) at 7:00 p.m. before traveling to No. 4 UCLA Friday for a 7:00 p.m. match in Pauley Pavilion.

Trojans Upended By Anteaters @ Galen

Cory Yoder Risin' High

Freshmen Post Career-High Nights To Help No. 10 UC Irvine Past No. 11 USC, 3-1
Yoder; Wynne Post Career-High Kills

Jan. 25, 2008

Final Stats

Los Angeles, Calif. -- Freshmen Cory Yoder and Kevin Wynne posted career-highs in kills to help lead the Anteaters to a 3-1 (30-28, 30-26, 27-30, 30-24) victory over No. 11 USC at the Galen Center Friday.

The score was tied 26-26 in game one when two Trojan attack errors gave UCI the 28-26 advantage. An Anteater service error was followed by a kill by Taylor Wilson to give UCI match point, 29-27. A UCI attack error delayed the victory until Cory Yoder pounded a kill for a 30-28 game one win. The largest lead of game one was two points.

UCI built a 6-3 lead on consecutive kills by Wilson, Anthony Spittle and Yoder and led the rest of the way taking the second set 30-26. Wilson put away seven kills in game two.

Game three was all USC with the Trojans winning 30-27. USC opened the game on a 5-0 spurt. Murphy Troy sparked the Trojans with five kills.

The Anteaters opened game four on a 6-2 run. USC closed within 19-18, but the Anteaters rattled off four straight to give UCI a 23-19 cushion. The Anteaters won the game 30-24 and the match 3-1. USC hit .152 in the final game, while UCI hit .361.

UCI has won two in a row, evening its record to 5-5 overall and 3-3 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation. USC goes to 4-5 and 3-3 in league play.

Junior Taylor Wilson led UCI with 19 kills, but freshman Cory Yoder and Kevin Wynne shined posting career nights. Yoder recorded a career-high 16 kills, hitting .469 (16-1-32), while Wynne hit .533 (9-1-15), pounding a career best nine kills. Wynne and senior Aaron Harrell led the team with six blocks. Freshman Kevin Carroll added 12 kills and libero Brent Asuka had a team-high 13 digs. Freshman Anthony Spittle tallied 57 assists, while Jon Steller came in game four and had three kills.

Juan Figueroa paced the Trojans with 20 kills, while Troy Murphy recorded 17 kills. Setter Jimmy Killian totaled 50 assists and a team-high seven blocks. The Trojans out-blocked UCI 16-12.5.