MEN’S VOLLEYBALL PREVIEW vs. MPSF
Semifinals Today 4 p.m. Smith Fieldhouse Provo, Utah Radio
broadcast
By Diamond Leung
Daily Bruin Contributor
It’s playoff time. If you win, you advance. If you lose,
your season is done. But for the seniors on the UCLA men’s
volleyball team, a playoff loss ends their UCLA career.
Seniors Mark Williams and Adam Naeve hope to avoid that fate as
they lead the No. 3 seeded Bruins (21-7) into the semifinals of the
MPSF Tournament to take on No. 2 Long Beach State (18-6) tonight at
Smith Fieldhouse in Provo, Utah.
“I’m looking at the playoffs differently than last
year,” Williams said. “Now, when I play, I want to win
the last game to go out well.”
It was the senior leadership that willed UCLA to an emotional
five-game victory over Stanford in the first round to advance the
Bruins into the semifinals.
“Before Stanford, Adam and I looked at each other and
said, “˜We don’t want to lose our last-ever match at
Pauley,'” Williams said.
“We weren’t going to lose ““ plain and
simple,” Naeve said.
Apparently not, because the two were absolutely unstoppable.
Williams slammed 26 kills (.511) while Naeve had 19 (.607), both
season highs. When the Bruins had their backs against the wall,
Williams came up with two clutch kills in the deciding fifth game,
each saving match point.
Naeve was also not about to end his career with a home loss.
“He started hammering serves in practice from Tuesday,
Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and I knew he was going to be
good,” UCLA Head Coach Al Scates said.
Naeve served five aces against Stanford, leaving him only one
ace away from tying the all-time record.
He will get the chance to break that record against Long Beach,
but it will have to be done in treacherous serving conditions in
Provo. The notoriously high altitude causes balls to travel farther
than normal.
“I don’t know if it’s a problem or if we make
it a problem,” Williams said. “Playing Long Beach it
shouldn’t matter anyway because we’re in the same
boat.”
But Long Beach is the only team to win in Provo this year
against BYU. Led by senior opposite David McKienzie, the 49ers have
the second-ranked offense in the nation.
“We have to stop McKienzie,” Williams said.
“That’s the key to beating them as a team. If you can
stop him by playing good defense or blocking, you can win the
match.”
When Long Beach defeated UCLA in five games March 17, Williams
was out with an injury and McKienzie was on fire, pounding 40
kills, the most in a match this season.
The Bruins came back with Williams to beat the 49ers on the road
in four games Jan. 26.
A win against Long Beach will send the Bruins to the MPSF
finals, and probably secure them a spot in the NCAA Tournament. The
seniors know this; they don’t want their careers to end so
soon.
“The game means a lot to us,” Naeve said.
That’s why they’re turning it up a notch for the
playoff drive.