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Men's Volleyball Tradition
2006-07
UC Irvine won the program's first national title with a 3-1 win over IPFW at the NCAA Championship in Columbus, Ohio. The Anteaters defeated Penn State, 3-1, in the semifinals. Senior Matt Webber, who led UCI with 22 kills in the championship match, was named tournament MVP. Seniors Jayson Jablonsky, Brian Thornton and David Smith were also named to the all-tournament team. Head coach John Speraw became the second person to win an NCAA championship as a player, head coach and assistant coach. The team, which garnered the program's first No. 1 national ranking at season's end, was honored at a White House reception June 18 in Washington, D.C. UCI set a single-season school record for wins in its 29-5 season. Smith, who led the nation with a school-record hitting percentage of .559, earned All-America first-team honors. Jablonsky, Thornton and Webber were named to the second team. Thornton ended his career as UCI's all-time leader in assists with 4,662. He set a school single-season record with 1,645. Webber recorded 47 service aces to set a school record and Jablonsky had 46 to tie the No. 2 mark. The Anteaters were 17-5 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation, finishing third in the regular season before winning the program's first MPSF Tournament with wins of 3-2 over Hawaii, BYU and Pepperdine. Smith was named first team All-MPSF, Jablonsky and Webber were second-team honorees, while Thornton, Aaron Harrell and sophomore Brent Asuka were third-team selections. Jablonsky and Jon Steller were named to the MPSF Academic All-Conference team. Aaron Harrell, Jablonsky, Brett Kohout, David Smith, Steller, Mac Waite and Matt Webber earned Big West Scholar-Athlete honors. Jablonsky was recognized as the Lauds & Laurels Senior Athlete of the Year, the most prestigious award given by the UCI Alumni Association.
2005-06
UC
Irvine carved a historic season as the Anteaters finished with a
school-record 27-5 mark overall and won the program’s first
Mountain Pacific Sports Federation regular-season title with a 20-2
league record. UCI won 21 consecutive matches and was ranked No.
1 in the nation for eight straight weeks. With the MPSF title, the
Anteaters received a bye into the conference tournament semifinals,
where Long Beach State upended UCI. The Anteaters earned the at-large
berth in the NCAA Championship Tournament and were seeded No. 1,
but lost in five games to host Penn State in a semifinal match.
UCI finished the season ranked No. 2 nationally. Junior outside
hitter Jayson Jablonsky was named the AVCA National Player of the
Year, the MPSF Player of the Year and UCI’s male Athlete of
the Year. Jablonsky averaged 4.89 points, 4.17 kills, 1.61 digs,
0.37 aces and 0.65 blocks per game. He was joined on the All-America
first team by freshman libero Brent Asuka, who also was named the
National and MPSF Newcomer of the Year. UCI’s John Speraw,
in his fourth season, was named the AVCA National Coach of the Year.
Juniors Brian Thornton and Matt Webber were named second team All-Americans.
Middle blocker Aaron Harrell improved on his school record for single-season
hitting percentage with a .463 mark. Matt Webber’s 4.66 kill
average ranked eighth nationally. Jayson Jablonsky and Brent Asuka
were named to the All-MPSF first team while Matt Webber and Brian
Thornton were selected to the second team. Aaron Harrell was a third-team
honoree and David Smith was an honorable mention choice. Brian Thornton
led the nation in set assists with a 13.70 average. Steffin Rangel
was named to the MPSF Academic All-Conference team while Jayson
Jablonsky, Brett Kohout, David Smith, Brian Thornton and Rangel
earned Big West Scholar-Athlete honors.
2004-05
UC Irvine finished with an overall record of 9-20 and 7-15 in the
Mountain Pacific Sports Federation for ninth place. The team was
ranked 12th nationally in the final American Volleyball Coaches
Association poll. Sophomore Jayson Jablonsky was named second team
All-MPSF after leading the team in kills at 4.03 and points (4.70)
per game to rank eighth in the league. Jablonsky was named a second
team ASICS/Volleyball Magazine All-American. His 415 kills were
the eighth-most in UCI history for a single season. His 814 attack
attempts rank 10th in school history. He had five service aces in
a match against Cal State Northridge to tie for the second-best
in the UCI record book. He hit .750 versus UC Santa Barbara to rank
sixth in single-match history at UCI. Freshman Aaron Harrell set
a new school record for best hitting percentage in a season at .457
as he hit .500 or better in 13 matches. That .457 percentage ranked
No. 15 in the nation. Sophomore David Smith had a .401 hitting percentage
for third-best in school history. Sophomore setter Brian Thornton
ended the season ranked seventh in UCI career set assists at 1,469
and fourth in a single season with 1,320 assists. Libero Brandon
Mel tallied 182 digs for the ninth-best mark in a single season.
Freshman Jon Steller was named to the Elephant Bar Invitational
All-Tournament team at UC Santa Barbara to open the season. The
Anteaters swept UCSB during the season when the Gauchos were ranked
seventh and fifth nationally. Last summer, Jayson Jablonsky, David
Smith and Matt Webber competed for the USA Junior National team
at the NORCECA Championships in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. UCI’s
John Speraw was the head coach for Team USA. Conference Scholar-Athletes
were Dillon Fitch, Brett Kohout, Peter Salatich, Jon Steller and
Nic Vislay.
2003-04
UC Irvine ended the season 14-18 overall and 8-14 in the Mountain
Pacific Sports Federation. The Anteaters placed eighth in the MPSF
standings, qualifying for the MPSF Tournament for the second consecutive
year and the fourth time in UCI history. UCI finished the season
ranked eighth in the final national AVCA ranking. The 14 wins tied
the second most wins in UCI history.UCI ended the year winning six
of their last nine matches, including upsets over No. 6 Hawaii,
No. 8 UC Santa Barbara and No. 5 Cal State Northridge. Senior Jimmy
Pelzel was named American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA)
second team All-America becoming UCI’s only men’s volleyball
player to be named All-American twice after earning first team recognition
in 2003. The outside hitter ended his UCI career as the all-time
leader in kills (1,703) attack attempts (3,587) and service aces
(96). He also holds the school record for most kills in a season
with 593 set in 2003. He also ranks in the top 10 in 10 other UCI
records. This season, Pelzel led the nation, totaling 578 kills
and was ranked sixth nationally in kills per game with a 4.62 average.
He recorded 37 kills against Stanford in January, which was the
second most kills in the nation during the season. Pelzel was named
second team All-MPSF. Senior middle blocker Kyle Weichert set the
career record for block assists with 374, including a single-season
record of 153. He broke Chris Harger’s mark of 372 from 1994-97.Senior
libero Greg Ford topped his own career mark for digs with 275 this
season. He ranks eighth all-time (518) in digs at UCI. BJ Fell,
Dillon Fitch, Greg Ford, Brett Reid and Kyle Weichert were named
Conference Scholar-Athletes, while Jimmy Pelzel was recognized as
the Lauds & Laurels Senior Athlete of the Year. Kyle Weichert
was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-America All-District VIII Men’s
At-Large First Team and he was named a MPSF Scholar-Athlete.
2002-03
Under first-year head coach John Speraw, UCI recorded the best season
in school history with a 20-11 overall and 12-10 MPSF mark for fifth
place. Speraw was one of four finalists for the American Volleyball
Coaches Association (AVCA)/Tachikara National Men's Volleyball Coach
of the Year award. UCI was ranked No. 1 for the first time in school
history and ended the season ranked fifth. The team advanced to
the MPSF semifinals for the first time in school history with an
upset victory over Stanford. The team's 20 wins were a school record
for wins in a season, passing the 1999 mark of 14. The Anteaters'
12 league wins set a new school record for conference wins, surpassing
the 1999 record of 11-8. UCI opened the season on a 10-game winning
streak, the best start in the program's history. The Anteaters were
also 9-4 at home, also a new school best. When the Anteaters were
ranked No. 1, UCI lost to No. 2 Hawaii before a UCI-record crowd
of 3,235 at the Bren Events Center, then swept the Warriors before
a capacity crowd of 700 in Crawford Hall the next night. Six single-season
school records fell during the year. Freshman Nic Vislay set the
school record for best hitting percentage .411 (236-54-443) and
most block assists (133). Junior Jimmy Pelzel broke the season record
for kills (593) and David Kniffin bettered the school mark in set
assists with 1,632. Greg Ford now holds the school record for digs
in a season (243) and Spencer Bemus owns the service aces mark with
46. Pelzel was one shy (1,179) of the season record for attack attempts
held by Leland Quinn in 1995 and trailed Bemus for most service
aces (35). Jimmy Pelzel was named first team All-America by the
American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA), becoming the first
men's volleyball player to be named to the first team in UCI history.
Nationally, he ranked second in points (6.37) and fourth in kills
(5.16) per game, while setting the single-season school record for
kills with 593 this year. He earned MPSF Player of the Week three
times and AVCA National Player of the Week once. He became only
the seventh Anteater player to break the 1,000-kill plateau and
currently ranks sixth (1,125) all-time. Pelzel also was featured
in Sports Illustrated's "Faces in the Crowd" section in
a May issue. Jimmy Pelzel was named first team All-Mountain Pacific
Sports Federation (MPSF), becoming only the third Anteater player
in history to receive the honor. Junior libero Greg Ford earned
third team honors, while senior outside hitter Monte Tucker garnered
honorable mention selection. Big West Conference Scholar-Athletes
were Dillon Fitch, Greg Ford, Jerome Gemise-Fareau, Jarett Jensen,
David Kniffin, Monte Tucker and Kyle Weichert. Kniffin and Weichert
were named Academic All-Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Scholar-Athletes.
2001-02
UC Irvine finished the season with an overall record of 12-17 and
6-16 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation for 10th place. The
12 wins marked the third-highest total in the program's history.
Season highlights included defeating USC three times, featuring
a first-ever road win versus the Trojans. The Anteaters also defeated
12th-ranked Long Beach State late in the season. Senior Erick Helenihi
was named to the All-MPSF third team after closing his UCI career
as the program's all-time leader in kills with 1,418 and hitting
percentage (.347). He shares the career mark in service aces (93)
and ranks second in career block assists (365) and third in attack
attempts (2,753). Senior Brenden Watumull and sophomore Jimmy Pelzel
were selected to the All-MPSF honorable mention squad. Watumull
ended his Anteater career tied for second in block assists (365).
This marked the last season for Charlie Brande as head coach, as
he will concentrate on the women's program at UCI. Sophomore Kyle
Weichert was named a Academic All-MPSF Scholar-Athlete. Conference
Scholar-Athletes were Wade Ichinose, David Kniffin, Chuck Niemoth,
Devin Shea, Casey Swenson and Kyle Weichert.
2000-01
The Anteaters ended the season with an overall record of 13-13 and
were 8-9 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation to finish fourth
in the Mountain Division. UCI advanced to the MPSF Tournament for
only the second time in history and lost in four games at BYU, the
eventual NCAA champion. The Anteaters finished with a national ranking
of No. 7, highest in the program's history. During the season, UCI
upset No. 3 USC, No. 5 Pepperdine and No. 5 Stanford. Junior middle
blocker Erick Helenihi was named second team All-American and first
team All-MPSF. Helenihi was selected as AVCA Player of the Week
once and MPSF Player of the Week twice during the season. He led
the Anteaters with an average of 3.84 kills per game. Todd Steinert
and Monte Tucker were named honorable mention All-MPSF. Steinert
averaged 12.62 assists per game and Tucker averaged 1.66 digs.
1999-2000
The Anteaters ended the season with an overall record of 10-17 and
were 4-15 in the Mounatin Pacific Sports Federation to finish seventh
in the Mountain Division. Ty Loomis led UCI with 450 kills, Erick
Helenihi had 358 kills and a team-high 87 blocks. Steve Cavella
recorded 222 kills, Josh Richardson had 212 kills and 86 blocks,
and Kevin Reid notched 210 kills and a team-high 125 digs. Cory
Hinkle led the team with 1,212 set assists. During the year, the
Anteaters defeated No. 3 BYU, No. 10 Pacific and No. 13 Ball State.
1998-99
UCI recorded the most successful season in the program's history,
setting a school record for most wins with a 14-11 overall mark.
The Anteaters were 11-8 in league play to finish fourth in the Mountain
Division of the Mountain Pacific Sports federation. UCI advanced
to the postseason MPSF Tournament for the first time and lost to
Long Beach State. Head coach Charlie Brande was named MPSF Coach
of the Year and outside hitter Donnie Rafter was named to the All-MPSF
first team, the first Anteater to receive that honor. Rafter set
a single-season record with 219 digs and tied the school record
for service aces with 33. He had 525 kills for the third best total
in UCI history. Rafter was a second team All-American by the American
Volleyball Coaches Association and was named National Player of
the Week after leading the Anteaters to victories over then-No.
1 Long beach State and No. 7 Hawaii. UCI also defeated No. 2 UCLA
at Pauley Pavilion. Senior Outside hitter Mike Rupp and freshman
middle blocker Erick Helenihi were named to the All-MPSF honorable
mention squad. Cory Hinkle set a school record with 1,618 set assists.
1997-98
UCI tied the school record for single-season wins with an overall
mark of 9-15, winning eight of its first 10 matches. The Anteaters,
who were ranked as high as No. 14 in the nation, had a 5-14 mark
in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation for seventh place in the
Pacific division. Middle blocker Cory Weber led the team with 396
kills. Gabe Burt had a .365, second best in school history. Donnie
Rafter recorded 190 digs and 28 service aces.
1996-97
UCI finished the season 6-18 overall and 4-15 in the Mountain Division
of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation to tie for sixth place.
Senior middle blocker Chris Harger was named second team All-American
by the American volleyball Coaches Association, UCI first such honoree
in history. Harger ended the season ranked third in the nation in
kills (556) total blocks (145) and service aces (21). Harger set
a single-match record with 54 kills against Pacific. He was also
named third team All-MPSF. Mike Rupp was second on the team in kills
(233) and Jon Habben was third with 229.
1995-96
UCI ended the season with an overall record of 8-17 and finished
seventh in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation with a 3-15 mark.
The Anteaters opened the season with four straight wins and were
ranked as high as No. 8 in the nation. Junior Chris Harger led the
team with 373 kills, 118 block assists, 22 solo blocks and 29 service
aces. Harger was named MVP of the UCI "First Serve" Tournament
after leading UCI to three wins. Junior Jon Habben was second on
the team with 317, while freshman setter Cory Hinkle added 1,260
set assists and 98 digs.
1994-95
UCI set a school record for most wins in a season with a 9-14 finish.
The Anteaters also notched a school record six conference victories
(6-13) in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation. Senior Leland
Quinn had a school record 592 kills in 1,180 attempts for a .303
hitting percentage. He had 50 kills against Cal State Northridge.
Quinn was named third team All-MPSF. Sophomore Chris Harger followed
with 225 kills, sophomore Evan Alexander had 218 and John Arata
205. Senior setter Jason Hinchman had a school record 1,293 assists
for the year, setting a single-match record with 103 March 18 versus
Northridge. UCI opened their conference season with a first-ever
win against Pepperdine. Head Coach Andy Read was selected as an
assistant coach for he 1995 World University Games in Japan.
1993-94
The Anteaters finished with an overall mark of 2-20 and were 1-18
in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation. Senior Chad Milling led
UCI with 225 kills and was second in block assists with 52. Freshman
Evan Alexander ranked second on the team with 179 kills. Junior
Jason Hinchman led UCI with 781 assists, block assists (54) and
digs (79). Leland Quinn, plagued with a rotator-cuff injury, had
109 kills in nine matches.
1992-93
The Anteaters finished the season at 2-20 and 1-18 overall in the
Mountain Pacific Sports Federation. Junior Chad Milling broke the
single-match record with 12 block assists against Loyola Marymount.
Milling led UCI with 248 kills on the season. Setter Jason Hinchman
recorded 889 assists while Alex Huang finished the year with 204
kills. In his second collegiate start, Huang had 30 kills against
Loyola Marymount. Senior co-captain Jeff Uhrig led the team with
113 digs and was third with 182 kills.
1991-92
UCI ended the season with a 5-19 overall record and a final ranking
of 18th. UCI was 2-14 in the Western Intercollegiate Volleyball
Association. Sophomore Leland Quinn set a new school record with
412 kills for the season and his 895 attempts was also a new school
mark. Quinn had 20 matches of double-digit kills. He had a season-high
32 kills against San Diego State. Sophomore Chad Milling hit .398
for the season, whole Jason Hinchman totaled 986 set assists. James
Felton ended his four year career with 821 kills, 2,210 attempts
and 542 digs.
1990-91
UCI finished with a 5-16 overall record and 3-12 for fifth place
in the Burt DeGroot Division of the Western Intercollegiate Volleyball
Association. The Anteaters ended the year with a final national
ranking of 18th. Senior middle blocker Steve Florentine led the
Anteaters with 320 kills, 33 service aces, 28 solo blocks and 75
block assists. He was named third team All-WIVA and was a Volleyball
Magazine honorable mention All-America. Freshman Leland Quinn recorded
317 kills during the season and was named WIVA Player of the Week
after leading UCI over third rankled Cal State Northridge with 31
kills and eight digs. Senior setter James Davis led the team with
1,157 set assists and 161 digs.
1989-90
UCI finished with an 8-14 overall record and a 3-14 mark in the
Western intercollegiate Volleyball Association, placing fifth in
the Burt DeGroot division. The Anteaters had a final ranking of
14th. Junior Steve Florentine, a third team all-conference choice,
led the team with 379 kills. Senior Scott Recknor had 260 kills
and 104 blocks. UCI claimed league victories over BYU, Cal State
Northridge and third ranked Long Beach State.
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