‘Eaters improve chances

It has been more than a month since the UC Irvine men’s volleyball team enjoyed some competitive home cooking. But it was a recipe of postseason scenarios that gave the Anteaters even more meaningful to sink their teeth into Thursday night against visiting Cal State Northridge.

UCI, which entered tied with the Matadors and Cal Baptist for eighth place in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation, played with a hunger for urgency in recording a 25-17, 25-18, 25-23 sweep that dramatically helps the Anteaters’ bid for the final berth in the eight-team MPSF Tournament.

A loss would have negated any postseason hopes for the No. 15-ranked ‘Eaters (10-18, 7-14 in conference). But by sweeping, UCI earned the tiebreaker advantage against the No. 10-ranked Matadors (13-15, 6-15), who are now out of MPSF Tournament options.

Cal Baptist, which won both matches against UCI this season, visits No. 9-ranked Hawaii on Friday and Saturday.

A UCI win Saturday over visiting Long Beach State, combined with at least one Cal Baptist loss, would give UCI the No. 8 seed in the MPSF Tournament.

Should Hawaii sweep Cal Baptist, UCI could earn the berth even with a loss against Long Beach State.

“I was doing the math the whole time.” UCI Coach David Kniffin said of Thursday’s match, which UCI entered needing to make up an 11-point differential, had it now swept, since Northridge beat UCI in four games at home on Feb. 17. “What was really nice about this match was that we knew it might come down to points, if it went to four games, so we knew every point mattered. And tonight was actually the first time that I saw our team embrace that point-to-point mentality. I love playoffs and pressure moments, because it forces that mental sharpness, so I’m pretty grateful for the scenario.”

The lineup scenario is also vastly different for UCI since last it played at the Bren Events Center on March 4. Junior All-American Tamir Hershko, made his first start in 19 matches at opposite, after having come off the bench to end an 18-match absence in Sunday’s sweep at USC.

Hershko led the ‘Eaters with 14 kills, hit .458, and made no passing errors while fielding 27 serves. Hershko struggled in the passing department early in the year, but was strong in that area against CSUN.

“Tamir is a phenomenal volleyball player and having him on the court really changes a lot of things,” said junior Michael Saeta, who had shifted from setter to outside hitter during Hershko’s absence and remains in that role.

Saeta had 10 kills, hit .471, and whistled four of UCI’s seven aces Thursday.

Senior Marty Ross, who has emerged as a starter at middle blocker, continued his solid play with a team-best five block assists to help UCI forge a 10-7 advantage in total blocks.

UCI hit .400 as a team, 147 points better than the Matadors, and dominated the visitors in the serving statistics. In addition to UCI’s seven aces, six more than CSUN managed, the ‘Eaters had just seven serving errors, four fewer than the Matadors.

“There is a psychological lift having Tamir back,” said Kniffin, who is using psychology to motivate his entire roster.

“The way we have drawn this thing up, USC was our first elimination match,” Kniffin said. “As I see it, we are 2-0 in a nine-match playoff run right now [that would ultimately result in a national championship]. It’s a gift to be able to say ‘Here we are, with our backs against the wall.’ If we get in, we’ll be the No. 8 seed [and will visit the No. 1 seed in the MPSF Tournament quarterfinals to open the postseason]. But wherever we go, we’ll be ready to throw all in.”

Junior Thomas Hodges had seven kills and hit .364, while freshman Dante Chakravorti had 32 assists.

Hershko led the winners with six digs, followed by Saeta and Hodges with four apiece.

“It’s good to be back in the Bren,” Saeta said. “This is my first time [playing outside hitter] in the Bren, but whatever we need … I’m here to get as many W’s as possible and right now we need a bunch of them.”