Welcoming Party

UC-Irvine wins its first ever NCAA Men's Volleyball Championship.

May 6, 2007

By Spencer Elliott

Special to CSTV.com

COLUMBUS, Ohio - St. John Arena had been good to IPFW. After upsetting Ohio State and top-ranked Pepperdine there in consecutive weeks, the Mastodons were three games away from a national championship, but some Anteaters had other ideas.

Coach John Speraw and second-seeded UC Irvine claimed their first NCAA men's volleyball national title Saturday night in Columbus, OH, beating the IPFW Mastodons 3-1 (30-20, 24-30, 30-23, 30-28). In a back and forth match that saw both sides dominate in turns, IPFW couldn't hold on to force a fifth game against a tough Anteaters squad.

"That last point was like a dream that I was watching" said an emotional Speraw after the match. "This is just enormous for me."

In a hotly contested fourth game, IPFW's senior setter Colin Lundeen found himself serving on match point for UC Irvine, the Anteaters' crowd only a few feet behind him. His serve was just long, and the error gave the match and the championship to UC Irvine. Anteaters setter Brian Thornton credited the team's focus in helping them overcome IPFW's rally in the deciding set.

"Honestly, at that point, we were just trying hard to think about how we were going to side out that next play," Thornton said.

Anteaters' opposite Matt Webber led UC Irvine with 22.5 points, recording 22 kills and hitting .457 on his way to being awarded Most Outstanding Player of the tournament. His teammates and fellow seniors Thornton, David Smith, and Jayson Jablonsky joined him on the All-Tournament team. For IPFW, outside hitter C.J. Macias and Lundeen were also named to the team, as was Pepperdine's Paul Carroll.

Game one belonged to the Anteaters from the early goings. They opened up a six point lead when miscommunication on the IPFW side let a weak tap from Webber dropped between several players, making the score 10-4. The Mastodons took a timeout, but it was too late to stem the tide. Senior outside hitter Jason Jablonsky repeatedly sent kills blazing down the middle of the IPFW side, racking up six of them in the first game. At game point, Mastodon outside hitter Jason Yhost sent a spike into the antenna and the Anteaters took a 1-0 lead in the match.

IPFW answered in the second game, thanks in large part to outside hitter C.J. Macias. The Mastodons opened up a quick 3-0 lead after Jablonsky met Stewart and Yhost at the net and had his shot blocked. Macias recorded his first block of the match minutes later, stuffing Webber to make the score 7-5 in favor of IPFW. After falling in a seven point hole, UC Irvine rallied back within three after Vitor Oliveira's spike failed to make it over the net, cutting the Mastodon lead to 26-23. It was as close as the Anteaters would get, however, and Jablonsky once again found himself on the wrong end of a block at game point. Stewart and Lundeen's stuff evened the match score to 1-1.

Game three looked like a repeat of the first, with the Anteaters establishing an early lead that IPFW was never able to overcome. Webber hit seven kills, including the game winner, and the Mastodons hurt their own cause by committing six service errors and failing to convert during long rallies.

"They touched and dug a lot of balls and were able to make some pretty good swings and I thought we touched and dug a lot of balls but we didn't make really good swings when we had a chance," IPFW coach Arnie Ball said.

The Mastodons knew they couldn't drop game four, but UC Irvine could taste the title. Both teams traded points throughout, neither building a significant lead. The Anteaters went ahead 26-22, but once again IPFW answered, storming back to tie when Josh Stewart and Macias stonewalled Smith's kill attempt at the net. UC Irvine set up match point with a kill by Webber, but David Smith's ensuing serve went into the net and IPFW trailed by only one, 29-28. But Lundeen's serve went long and untouched, ending the match.

For the Mastodons, second place was a poor consolation, but they stood for an ovation from their fans after the match and Ball said they had nothing to be ashamed of.

"This Irvine team is obviously a very good volleyball team, but I thought our kids certainly made a quality statement not only for our team, our program, but our part of the country."

UC Irvine's 2007 title is a continuation of the dominance of western teams in the championship game. Lewis was the last non-MPSF team to win a title, in 2003, which they have since vacated. The only other non-MPSF champion was Penn State in 1994. But all of that mattered little to the Anteaters as they stood on the court after the match, sporting new national champions shirts and hats.

"We've definitely come a long way, and I couldn't be happier," Webber said.