Monday, 4/21/97 Bruins tame Tigers en route to easy playoff
victory UCLA wins match vs. Pacific with stellar passing, serving
and hitting
By Jennifer Kollenborn Daily Bruin Contributor The top-ranked
UCLA men’s volleyball team came out hot against the University of
Pacific. UCLA (22-3 overall, 18-2 Mountain Pacific Sports
Federation) hammered Pacific (16-11, 9-11) 15-8, 15-7, 15-10 and
outhit them .368 to .237, giving the Bruins their first win in the
MPSF playoffs. The Bruins dominated the Tigers in every aspect of
the match. The story was not one of what the Tigers failed to do
but what UCLA did to shut down Pacific in three easy games. UCLA’s
Ben Moselle came out on fire with 18 kills and .500 hitting for the
night. Freshman Adam Naeve had 15 kills, 12 digs and three blocks,
and Tom Stillwell had a stellar serving performance. "(Pacific)
served us off the court last time," UCLA head coach Al Scates said.
"But, I think that we did a much better job passing, which was the
key. The serving was better and the passing was better. If we can
serve well and pass well, we’ll be pretty tough to beat." In the
first game of the evening, the Bruins jumped off to an early 4-1
lead when Stillwell got into a groove serving. Fred Robins followed
Stillwell’s lead by serving up the next four points for the Bruins,
giving UCLA an 8-2 lead at which point Pacific head coach Joe
Wartmann called a time-out. However, the pep talk did not seem to
help the Tigers and only fired up UCLA, as the Bruins pushed their
lead to 12-6, once again in large part thanks to Stillwell’s
serving. The pressure appeared to be too much for Pacific, and the
Tigers finally gave the game to the Bruins when Vladimir Andric hit
three balls long in a row. The Tigers managed to put up more of a
fight in Game 2; after falling behind early, they were able to
close the deficit to 8-6. But UCLA would go on to win the next
seven points for a 15-6 victory. The streak had a lot to do with
the play of Paul Nihipali. Nihipali’s performance increased his
kill record to 2,000. UCLA was hot and Pacific could not seem to
break the Bruins’ rhythm, and the second-game loss pinned the
Tigers’ tail to the wall. "Our downfall was not being able to put
the ball in the court," Pacific’s head coach Joe Wartmann said.
"It’s hard to stop (UCLA’s) middle because they can pass well and
they’re big. I think that is the biggest difference: their middle
blockers." The Bruins came out quickly in the finale, opening up
with more of Stillwell’s winning serves. The Tigers did not stand a
chance against the enthusiastic UCLA squad, and Nihipali’s diving
save at 9-3 proved that the Bruins were not going to let their
intensity slip. UCLA went on to take the third game 15-7. The
Bruins swept the first round of the playoffs, but the next match
will not be as easy. UCLA hosts fourth-ranked UC Santa Barbara on
Thursday in Pauley Pavilion. The Bruins played the Gauchos last
Saturday and barely beat them, 19-17, in the fifth game. "Santa
Barbara is the hottest team in the tournament besides us," Scates
said. "We are probably expecting another five-game match."
GENEVIEVE LIANG/Daily Bruin Ben Moselle’s net play helped spark
UCLA’s offense.