Guess the Bruin opposite: Today it’s Nihipali
Strong week of play propels Nihipali
to starting opposite, Stillwell debuts
By Lawrence Ma
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
By the time you read this, UCLA coach Al Scates may just have
himself a new starting opposite for the next match.
The top-ranked Bruins began the season with Matt Noonan opposite
the setter. The redshirt sophomore challenged Jeff Nygaard at that
position all last year and finally got his chance at the start of
1995.
And he was effective. In the Bruins’ first three matches, Noonan
averaged 6.2 kills per game.
But it’s easy to lose your job around Men’s Gym, where Scates
runs grueling practices that determine the starters for the next
match. Paul Nihipali, another sophomore, has been pushing Noonan
for the starting position at opposite, after being moved out of the
middle where he started last season.
Nihipali got his chance in the second match of the Hawaiian
Tournament two weeks ago. Then, a case of strep throat knocked
Noonan out of practice for a couple days, and Nihipali was elevated
to the starting role.
Nihipali didn’t make much noise in his debut against Hawaii, a
15-9, 15-11, 16-14 Bruin victory. Usually a high-flyer with spikes
planted at blockers from undiggable angles, Nihipali hadn’t been
the same since a broken jaw sidelined him last fall.
"Nihipali hadn’t worked out all fall," Scates said. "He wasn’t
even lifting because he had his jaw wired shut. So he wasn’t
strong. He was tentative. I’ve never seen him play that way."
But against Pepperdine last Friday at the Kilgour Cup, Nihipali
finally regained his form, as UCLA swept the match, 15-4, 15-4,
15-10. He blocked three balls and dug five in the back row. More
impressively, Nihipali hit .609 for 16 kills, most of which were
undiggable.
"His ball handling was good. He put up some digs from the back
court where we can take a swing at," Scates said. "His jump is
back. He’s skying again. So I think he’s looking real good."
Compared to Nygaard, who played himself into the Player of the
Year honors in the opposite slot last year, Nihipali is not quite
the all-around player.
"Paul is all power," Scates said. "Jeff will go up, see two
blockers up, and put down a dink shot somewhere. Paul doesn’t have
that experience yet. He bangs hard everytime he can. But they’re
both effective. But they’re styles are a lot different. Jeff knows
how to cut and dice. Paul will know that in a couple of years."
Nihipali did in fact bang away at the block, when he didn’t jump
over the blockers. He says he’s still trying to learn the
position.
"Opposite is pretty new for me," Nihipali said. "I played a
little bit of it in the fall. I’m starting to get the swing of
things and I’m starting to understand a little more. I’m learning
everyday, and the coaches have something new every day. I’m
starting to understand the offensive role."
If he actually starts to understand everything, Nihipali will
probably end up starting for the rest of the season. It appears
that way for now, but should Nihipali slip just a little bit, or
catch an unfortunate cold, Noonan can very well start again.
Scates is probably very pleased with the highly competitive
situation at opposite right now. He talks constantly about a
similar situation in 1993, when Mike Diehl and Dan Landry battled
each other at that position. That year, UCLA won the NCAA
Championships, with Landry being named a first-team
All-American.
"Right now, Paul is the starter," Scates said. "Noonan’s been
sick. He’s a little weak physically and he had missed a lot of
practice time. So Paul is the starter, but that’s not to say that
Noonan can’t come back and turn things around later.
"I’d like the both of them ready, just like 1993, when we had
Diehl and Landry going at it every day in practice. That’s the kind
of situation I love."
Nihipali says he’s not going to think about the situation.
"I’m not going to even worry about that," Nihipali said. "If I
start worrying about that, that’s when I’m going to be on the
bench.
"I just want to play. I thought I’d like opposite, because I
thought I’d be able to block well there. And the middle I like
because I thought I’d be able to hit. I don’t care. As long as I’m
on the court."
* * *
Redshirt freshman Tom Stillwell hasn’t played in a significant
volleyball match in a while, not since his prep All-American days
at Notre Dame High School in the valley.
A 6-foot, 8-inch middle blocker, Stillwell was a highly sought
player. He sat out last season and saw some action at the 1994
Olympic Festival.
Stillwell got his chance to play when senior middle blocker John
Speraw pulled a groin last week. Stillwell started against
Pepperdine, and hit .625 for nine kills. He also got in on three
blocks and dug five balls.
"It felt good out there," Stillwell said. "In the beginning I
was a little nervous, but I felt good after a while. I felt normal.
I just felt like playing volleyball. You kind of forget about
everything. You just play. Just worry about winning.
"I played alright, nothing special. I didn’t think I hit that
well, but overall, it was alright for the first time."
"Tom did a great job," Scates said. "We’re working on his
blocking, trying to get his hands up quick. But he did some real
athletic things. I thought we should have scored behind his serve,
which was going over just about an inch over the tape. I like his
serve. He made some digs. He looked good."
One of the reasons why Stillwell sat out last season was his
weight. He checked in at an anemic 160 pounds last fall. After a
few months on a Shawn Bradley diet, or binge, Stillwell got his
weight up to 180 pounds. Against Pepperdine last week, Stillwell
was playing at about 192.
"Man, 6-8, 162, that’s just way too skinny," Stillwell said.
"All I’m doing is eating everything. I’m still skinny as hell. I’m
just coming into normalcy now. I’m always going to be thin, but I
won’t be like a rail like I was before."
Stillwell is still trying to pack on more weight and he is
working out in the gym to turn the excess calories into muscle. As
far as the effects of the added bulk to his frame goes, Stillwell
thinks he might be jumping higher than before.
"Actually, I don’t think the weight is that effective,"
Stillwell said. "But, hey, I just feel better as a person. I feel
like I can hit the ball a little harder."