Men’s volleyball looks to bounce back at home


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The men’s volleyball team has had a rough last couple of matches. USC (9-4, 8-4 MPSF) dropped from No. 3 to No. 7 nationally. Hence, having a week off could not have come at a better time for the Trojans. They look to come back from their week off with back-to-back wins at home against No. 3 UC Irvine (16-3, 11-2) and UC San Diego (2-15, 0-12 MPSF) Tuesday and Wednesday.

The Trojans have been practicing hard during their week off, honing fundamentals and focusing on their serving and passing skills that have been struggling recently. It should have served as a nice break for the Trojans, who have been constantly traveling and played the full five sets in three of their last six games.

Following the team’s loss to UC Santa Barbara, head coach Bill Ferguson noted that it is critical in future matches that the Trojans focus on one point at a time while on court.

UC Irvine will prove to be a tough match for the Trojans. In their last match in Irvine, the teams battled out to a full five sets (28-30, 25-17, 21-25, 25-23, 15-13). Both teams were undefeated in conference and USC was undefeated overall, and the Trojans went into the match as the underdogs. Pulling out the win in Irvine propelled the Trojans back onto the national stage. The UC Irvine match served as a test for the Trojans, and they passed with flying colors.

Coming into the match as the underdogs once again should motivate the Trojans to regain their victorious mentality and readjust their technique, so they can beat the Anteaters once again.

Junior opposite Josh Kirchner dominated the net for USC with a team-high 15 kills against UCI. Senior setter Micah Christenson and Kirchner both had a team-high two aces. Similar production from the USC offense and service line should translate into slew of points for the Trojans, pushing them to a victory at home.

The two teams have had a vastly different last couple of weeks: UCI has won their last seven matches, while USC has gone 3-4. Hopefully, the Trojans can make a complete 180-degree switch and turn their play into high gear.

If the Trojans can limit sophomore opposite hitters Tamir Hershko and senior Zack La Cavera, they should be able to slow down UC Irvine’s dominant offense. Both make up the teams 13.77 kills per set average and .355 hitting percentage.

USC’s match tomorrow night is against UC San Diego. In their previous match, USC won easily in three-straight sets (25-14, 25-16, 25-19). UCSD has lost in three sets against all conference opponents except two this season (UCI and Stanford). If the Trojans can get back to their fundamentals tonight, then they should ride that momentum for back-to-back wins at home.

A decisive set of wins for the Trojans will help put the team back on the right track as they head into the back end of their schedule with their eyes set on the MPSF and NCAA Tournaments.

See the Trojans take the court at 6 p.m. Tuesday against UC Irvine and Wednesday at 7 p.m. against UC San Diego.