UCLA Is Aiming for Another NCAA Title in Volleyball

After winning last year’s national championship, the UCLA men’s volleyball team was not expected to be as strong this season with two freshmen and a sophomore in the starting lineup.

But Coach Al Scates knew that all UCLA needed was time to come together behind senior All-American setter Stein Metzger. The Bruins lost two of their first six matches but now are ranked second nationally with a 16-3 overall record, 11-2 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation. A repeat championship is no longer a longshot.

The Bruins, who have won five consecutive matches, will host USC tonight at Pauley Pavilion in the first meeting of the season between the two teams.

“We’ve been trying to work toward the playoffs all season long,” said Scates, the winningest collegiate coach with an 884-136 record in 34 years at UCLA. “We know the road [to repeating] will not be easy because it is tough enough just to get out of league.”

Metzger has been a dominant force. He is third nationally with a .551 ace average and over the last four matches, he has averaged 16 assists per game.

“He’s really matured a lot,” Scates said about Metzger. “He’s a real threat at the net. It’s really rare to have a setter have as many as 10 kills in a match. But that’s what I want from him.”

Paul Nihipali, a junior opposite, and Brian Wells, a senior swing hitter, have also played well for the Bruins.

Nihipali set a school record with 39 kills in a loss to No. 1 Hawaii early this month and has 1,216 kills, third on UCLA’s all-time list. Wells had 17 kills and 11 digs against Brigham Young on March 13.

UCLA has defeated nine consecutive times. “We’ve been running a pretty good streak against them,” Scates said. “I point toward SC for many reasons. Let’s just say that I’m very happy when we can beat them. It’s a match that we take very seriously.”

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Before losing to Loyola Marymount last weekend and to Long Beach State on Tuesday night, Pepperdine had won six of seven MPSF matches.

Pepperdine (12-8, 7-7) is ranked 10th in the coaches poll and Coach Marv Dunphy is optimistic his young team can qualify for the eight-team MPSF championship tournament to be held next month.

“The team is continuing to get better, and that is an encouraging sign,” said Dunphy, whose Waves have been led by junior Kevin Barnett and freshmen George Roumain and Peter Kodascy.

The Waves play at Stanford and Pacific this weekend.

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USC’s Kristine Quance, a junior from Northridge, led the Trojans to fourth place at the NCAA women’s swimming championship last weekend in Ann Arbor, Mich. Quance was the meet’s high scorer after winning the 200- and 400-yard individual medley and the 200-yard breaststroke. Quance will compete for the United States this summer at the Olympic Games in Atlanta in the 200-yard individual medley and the 200-yard breaststroke.

USC freshman Lindsay Benko won the 500-yard freestyle and the 200-yard backstroke.

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UCLA will retire the jersey number of former All-American volleyball player Ricci Luyties before the Bruins host Cal State Northridge April 5 in a men’s volleyball match.