Men’s Volleyball: ‘Eaters remain perfect

The UC Irvine men’s volleyball team is in position to be 5-0 for only the second time since 2007.

And, frankly, anything less would have been disappointing.

The No. 8-ranked Anteaters improved to 4-0 with a 25-20, 25-19, 29-27 nonconference triumph over Grand Canyon on Friday at the Bren Events Center.

All four wins, including three sweeps, have come against unranked teams, a rarity this deep into the season for a program with four NCAA championships.

“It just happened that way,� UCI Coach David Kniffin said of an atypically soft early season schedule that included Division II Concordia, Indiana Purdue Fort Wayne and UC San Diego. “It was kind of: Who can play us early and who was willing to make the trip? We’ve got some significant travel on our schedule, so we weren’t interested in going anywhere this early. We’ll get our road [tests] later.�

Kniffin did acknowledge that coming off an injury-plagued 10-20 campaign last season, an early winning streak is foundational.

“Especially coming off last season, when there were so many injuries and question marks going into the season, just to grab a few wins early certainly feels good from a morale standpoint,� Kniffin said.

Senior outside hitter Tamir Hershko had a match-high 13 kills and posted a .632 hitting percentage to lead the winners, who visit No. 12-ranked UC Santa Barbara on Wednesday and travels to No. 3-ranked UCLA on Thursday.

Scott Stadick, a 7-foot freshman middle blocker, had eight kills and hit .462, while senior outside hitter Thomas Hodges also had eight kills and hit .353 for UCI.

UCI hit .404 as a team, with senior setter Michael Saeta (seven kills), freshman middle blocker Matthew Younggren and sophomore outside hitter David Parker (six kills apiece) and sophomore opposite Karl Apfelbach (five) also adding to a balanced attack.

Saeta had 28 assists and both of UCI’s aces, while Stadick posted a team-best three block assists.

Junior libero Dillon Hoffman paced the winners with 18 digs, followed by Apfelbach (11), as well as Hershko and Parker (10 each).

Grand Canyon, playing its season opener after posting a program-best 17 wins in 2016, led in the first and third sets, but couldn’t avoid the broom.

“[The Antelopes] had some lineup changes late and found a couple holes that we have, and we had some swings that for whatever reason, we didn’t execute on,� Kniffin said. “But ultimately, I don’t think anybody on our bench ever got nervous, whether we were going to grind it out and win in three games, four games or five. These are great opportunities to grow early. We’re looking to cultivate that mentality and then win, in that order.�

UCI opened 4-0 in 2014 and won its first five matches in 2013 on its way to a fourth national title. The ‘Eaters won their first NCAA crown in 2007, after opening 9-0.

“I’d say most of the time [the outcome wages] on our side of the net anyway, but especially in these early matches,� Kniffin said. “It’s all about us playing our game and responding and correcting, based on what [the opponent] throws at us. As the season goes on, we’ll know more about our opponents, which will allow us to be better prepared for matches.�