The UCLA men’s volleyball team has lost two of its most
heralded recruits in the span of three days. Middle blockers David
Russell, the nation’s top-rated recruit entering the 2002
season, and Patrick Nihipali, the No. 2 overall recruit in the
top-ranked 2003 class, have both left the team. Russell, a
sophomore from Simi Valley, played sparingly in his two seasons and
was given two weeks off to think about his status with the team. He
informed coach Al Scates of his decision Jan. 5. “(Russell)
came in, said he’s been in organized sports since he was four
and just wanted to take some time off,” Scates said.
“He lost the edge in practice. He didn’t have the
passion for the game. “He’s an engineering major and
wants to get all As. The study load and hard work he did (in
volleyball) got to be too much for him. I respect that.”
Scates added that Russell, who was set to redshirt the season,
would be welcomed back to the team next year. Three days later,
Scates learned that freshman middle blocker Nihipali will transfer
to a junior college for academic reasons. He hopes to gain re-entry
into UCLA for winter quarter 2005. Nihipali, who was recruited out
of Loyola High School in Los Angeles, is the brother of former UCLA
All-American Paul Nihipali, who led the Bruins to consecutive
National Championships in 1995 and 1996. Patrick Nihipali never
officially made a single appearance on the court. He played one
game of one fall pre-season match before medically redshirting the
season due to an undisclosed illness. Junior outside hitter Parker
Smith, another highly sought-after recruit, left the team in the
fall.
DIGGING IT: Senior Adam Shrader became
UCLA’s all-time dig leader on Saturday, breaking Brandon
Taliaferro’s previous mark of 831. To put the record in
perspective, Shrader is the first Bruin to start four years at
libero, a position established in 2000 that was restricted to the
back row. Shrader had 822 kills going into the three-match Elephant
Bar Invitational, where he eventually made the all-tournament team.
Though no official statistics were kept during UCLA’s first
two matches, he broke the record, according to team spokesman Rich
Bertolucci.
QUICK SETS: Junior outside hitter Jonathan
Acosta, who had surgery to remove his burst appendix last Tuesday,
was released from UCLA Medical Center on Saturday. He is not
expected to return to action until February. Hawaii is still in the
process of making a proposal to host the entire Mountain Pacific
Sports Federation tournament for this season, according to the
Honolulu Star-Bulletin. The MPSF executive committee will decide on
it later this month. Incoming freshman middle blocker Jamie
Diefenbach, currently a senior at Newport Harbor, suffered a
season-ending injury to his left knee during a slam-dunk contest in
Alaska, according to the Juneau Empire. He is expected be at full
strength by July.