‘Eaters take on Cardinal

Steve Virgen

The fifth seed versus the fourth usually produces intrigue and the

total playoff atmosphere in most any tournament. That common trait is

expected to apply to the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Men’s

Volleyball Tournament, which has No. 5 UC Irvine playing at Stanford

at 7 tonight.

UCI (19-10), which spent two weeks at No. 1 in the USA

Today/American Volleyball Coaches Association poll earlier this

season, was swept by Stanford (17-11), which was ranked 10th at the

time and has now shot up to No. 4. The games were very tight, yet the

Cardinal pulled out the 30-27, 30-27, 32-30 victory at Crawford Hall

April 12. Stanford also defeated UCI Feb. 21, yet the ‘Eaters scored

a 3-1 win over Stanford Jan. 10.

The Anteaters are ranked No. 6, same as last week, and their 12

MPSF wins this season are a school record for conference wins. UCI

experienced highs and lows this season, as it opened the year with a

10-match winning streak, the best start in the program’s history. But

the ‘Eaters went 10-9 the rest of the way, including a three-match

losing streak in mid-March. Still, The Anteaters’ 19 wins this season

are also a school single-season record.

“It has been a really interesting, yet good learning process for

this team,” UCI first-year coach John Speraw said. “We were really

hot out of the gate and we had to get used to the fact that when you

climb to the top, everyone is shooting for you. I think the team has

been motivated by that. We were much more prepared in February and

early March. We had the typical midseason blues. But we made a nice

little final push and I think we’re on an upswing.”

Stanford has been peaking as of late and is one of the hottest

teams in the nation, winning seven of its past eight matches. The

Cardinal has won six of its past seven since the return of senior

Curt Toppell, a 6-foot-8 opposite and one of the most electric

performers in the nation. Toppell had been out since Feb. 6 because

of an abdominal strain.

“He’s definitely a terminator,” Stanford Coach Don Shaw said.

“When you take a guy like that out of your lineup and then put him

back in, that just adds another dimension to the team. Think if UCI

didn’t have [Jimmy] Pelzel and then got him back. That’s how it is

for us.”

Pelzel, a 6-6 junior outside hitter, has been the leader for the

Anteaters this season, averaging 4.98 kills per game. He has led UCI

in kills in 21 of 29 matches this season. The ‘Eaters are also

bolstered by seniors David Kniffin, a setter, and senior outside

hitters Jarett Jensen and Monte Tucker.

“We were close when we last played [Stanford],” Speraw said.

“We’ll take a good look at what we did. We’re getting to know them a

lot better. We’ll be a little more even coming into their gym

[tonight].”

The Cardinal also feature redshirt sophomore setter Kevin Hansen,

a former standout at Corona del Mar High. Hansen was named MPSF

Player of the Week after leading Stanford to victories over Pacific,

UCLA and UCI last week.

“Kevin has had a great year, as good as anyone in the league,”

Shaw said. “What stands out about us is that we were still

competitive without Curt. Kevin did a great job of setting with guys

who are not really serious put-away guys, so that says a lot about

him.”