Spikers squeak by in sweep
No. 3 Bruins prevail in three close games against underdog
Anteater squad
By Ruben Gutierrez
Daily Bruin Staff
Had UC Irvine been playing horseshoes or throwing hand grenades,
last night would have been a different story. Instead, the No.14
Anteaters succumbed to the No.3 UCLA men’ s volleyball team 16-14,
15-12, 17-16.
The scrappy Anteaters showed UCLA (11-2 overall, 8-1 Mountain
Pacific Sports Federation) the evening would be no cakewalk through
an improbable comeback in the first game. The Bruins scored the
first seven points and led 13-4 before Irvine (7-8 overall, 2-8
MPSF) answered with nine points of their own.
UCLA head coach Al Scates decided to make two key substitutions
at that juncture, and both proved instrumental in the outcome of
the match.
Senior Matt Taylor was brought in to replace swing hitter Brian
Wells, and Eric Vallely came in to serve for quick hitter James
Turner. Vallely came out firing with an ace before setter Stein
Metzger put away the next ball and the game.
"It was good to see Matt Taylor come off the bench and play a
real great match," Scates said. "His passing was right on and he
was hitting well, too.
"Eric Vallely also came in and got some crucial points with his
jumper late in each game. It’s a good thing to see him come
through."
Though All-American Paul Nihipali paced the Bruins again last
night with a match-high 22 kills, he was challenged often by
Anteater middle blocker Chris Harger, who finished with a team-high
19 kills on the evening for UC Irvine.
"They were blocking really well," Scates said. "(Harger) is a
great big middle blocker. He was keying on Paul and he got Paul a
few times."
In the second game, UC Irvine broke open a deadlock at four
apiece with five straight points. After falling behind 9-5 in the
second, the Bruins then scored six straight to take a lead they
would never relinquish.
Complaints to the officals from both teams abounded throughout
the night, and the discontent of the participants manifested itself
in the final game. The final proved to be a one-point thriller
played to the 17-point cap. Four yellow cards were handed out in
the emotion-fueled game due to the banter from both the sidelines
and across the net.
"Every time we come over here, they open up a can of worms,"
Metzger said. "If they want to open up a can of worms, I just like
to bring a bigger can."
FRED HE/Daily Bruin
Paul Nihipali led the men’s volleyball team with 22 kills on
Tuesday night in UCLA’s 16-14, 15-12, 17-16 sweep of the
Anteaters.
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