UCI tops UCLA in four in MPSF quarterfinal

For some time, UC Irvine junior Aaron Koubi was the missing ingredient to the Anteaters’ late-season surge. But more and more the 6-foot-5 outside hitter from France is emerging as the defining spice for the Anteaters.

Koubi had a match-high 19 kills and hit .625 to lead No. 5-ranked and No. 4-seeded UCI to a 23-25, 25-23, 25-21, 25-22 victory over No. 6-ranked and No. 5-seeded UCLA in the quarterfinals of the MPSF Tournament on Friday in front of 1,902 at the Bren Events Center.

The win propels UCI (20-6), which owns the nation’s longest winning streak at nine matches, into Thursday’s semifinals at top-seeded Long Beach State, which topped USC in four games Saturday at home.

UCI senior outside hitter Tamir Hershko had 12 kills and hit .304, while senior opposite Thomas Hodges chipped in 10 kills for the winners, who settled down after some late first-set struggles to eliminate the Bruins (17-10), who lost their final three matches.

Scott Stadick, UCI’s 7-foot middle blocker and the MPSF Freshman of the Year, had seven kills, hit .700 and chipped in a match-high five block assists to go with one solo stuff. The solo block gives him 23 for the season, matching Aaron Harrell (2006) atop the UCI single-season record book.

UCI Coach David Kniffin said there was some irony in the starring role for Koubi, with whom UCI is 11-1 since he joined the starting lineup.

“I was telling Aaron the entire match the outcome of this wasn’t dependent on his play, but the confidence he gave to his teammates,” said Kniffin, who earned career victory No. 101. “I guess there are various ways to instill confidence.”

UCI appeared to build confidence as the match went on, though there were some nerves in the opening set.

“We did settle down,” Kniffin said. “It’s almost nice to get that loss out of the way sometimes and get the jitters out and remind ourselves we just need to play one-point-at-a-time volleyball.”

UCI led most of the opening set, before UCLA closed on a 6-3 run to snatch victory.

UCLA was more efficient at the net in the first two sets (hitting .321 and .323, respectively, to UCI’s .261 and .292), but the Bruins had 15 of their 21 service errors in the opening two sets.

UCI hit .458 and .464 in the final two sets to finish at a .374 clip, 115 points better than the Bruins.

Senior setter Michael Saeta had 44 assists and converted all three of his kill opportunities. He also shared the team lead with seven digs, matching libero Dillon Hoffman.

UCLA posted a 4-0 edge in aces, and also came out on top in team blocks (8.5-8).

UCI had 16 missed serves.

“I thought the difference had a lot less to do with serving than people thought coming in,” Kniffin said. “Both teams are known for having guys who can light you up from the service line, but I thought we kind of neutralized each other pretty well in that respect.”

UCI won the season series with UCLA, coached by former Anteater head man John Speraw, 2-1, and is now 8-5 against Speraw’s Bruins in five seasons with Kniffin at the helm. UCI has won all four meetings with UCLA in the MPSF Tournament.

UCI, which has won 12 of its last 13, will try to earn its first win this season against Long Beach State (24-3).

The 49ers, coached by Marina High and Orange Coast College product Alan Knipe, swept UCI at the Bren on Feb. 10, and won in four at the Pyramid on March 1.

UCI most likely needs to win the MPSF Tournament to earn a spot in the six-team NCAA Championships.

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Twitter: @BarryFaulkner5