by Brice Nixon
Editorial Director
For the third time this season, the University of La Verne men’s volleyball team had the daunting task of facing a top-five ranked Division I opponent. And for the third time, the Leopards came away with little to show for their effort, in terms of wins and losses.
“I know the guys aren’t as pleased with themselves as I am,” said head coach Jack Coberly. “The growth from the beginning of the year has been tremendous. It doesn’t show a lot in wins and losses, but it’s still there. The guys are still in good spirits and really coachable. We just have to step up and do the job.”
As the defending Division III National Champions, ULV is not supposed to be able to compete with the Division I powerhouses. On March 2, Long Beach State, currently ranked second in Division I, had no qualms about quickly disposing of the Leopards, 15-3, 15-2 and 15-5, at the Pyramid in Long Beach.
“We have to play with a lot of heart and a lot of desire to [play against top Division I schools],” said Coberly. “And tonight we did not do that. So I think we did a lot of things well. We need to do a lot of things a lot better.”
But that was not the case against USC.
When La Verne visited USC, the Trojans were ranked second in the country. But ULV stole the first game, 17-16, and was tied 13-13 before falling in the third game, eventually losing in four. As of the latest poll, released Tuesday, USC is ranked third.
In their second match of the season, the Leopards traveled to Pepperdine, which at the time was ranked behind only UCLA, Long Beach State, and Indiana-Purdue Fort Wayne in Division I. The Waves won in three games, 15-5, 15-2 and 15-4. Pepperdine is currently the top-ranked team in the country.
Against Long Beach (12-2), however, La Verne could not make it a close match, and the team continues to look for its first win this season after 10 matches, although the Leopards are ranked No. 5 in Division III [March 7 poll].
The 49ers won the first game, 15-3, and reeled off 13 straight points to take a quick 14-1 lead in the second game. An ace by ULV freshman setter Harshil Thaker made it 14-2, but Long Beach closed out the game.
Three times in the game, freshman outside hitter Jake Swann recorded kills for sideouts, stopping a Long Beach run. But each time, ULV was unable to put together a successful attack.
Swann had a match-high 13 kills, but was the only Leopard to record in double figures.
In the third game, a kill by senior outside hitter Dave Spegon and a block by sophomore middle blocker Thomas Hilton gave ULV a 2-0 lead.
Then the 49ers, paced by two kills from junior outside hitter Corey Peters, came back with eight straight points.
A block by Thaker and freshman middle blocker Nate Silva, and an ace by junior libero Agke Grow reduced Long Beach’s lead to 9-5.
But a 6-0 run by the 49ers’ attack put away the match.
Peters led the Long Beach attack, which hit .460 for match, with 11 kills. Five other 49ers had six or more kills.
The Leopards’ attack percentage was only .062 and they had 23 errors compared to eight for Long Beach. The only other Leopard with more than six kills was Spegon, who had seven.
Coberly was unhappy with numerous aspects of La Verne’s game.
“We need to be a lot better on the back-row attack right now. We need to be a lot better in transition, getting set up, digging the ball and then putting the ball away,” he said. “A lot of our drills are based on that right now. I think we’re starting to get that idea of doing that, but we don’t do it well all the time.”
Coberly was happy with one thing, however.
“I’m actually really pleased with the blocking,” he said. “Our blocking’s coming along. It’s not like we’re putting down a lot of blocks, but we’re getting our hands on a lot, and that’s a really major thing.
ULV freshman 6’6″ middle blocker Nate Silva had three block assists against the 49ers. The Leopards’ only other listed middle is 6’2” sophomore Thomas Hilton.
“Our middles are brand new. And first year playing at this level, the middle’s really, really tough. You’re playing against guys that are 6-6, 6-8. So I’m real pleased about that.”
Coberly said the game against Long Beach provided an opportunity for the Leopards to start playing better and spelled out what he hoped to accomplish in the match.
“Our basic objective was just to start playing well and digging a lot of balls and trying to stay in the match and trying to succeed in doing a lot of the things that we’ve been working on: getting our blocks up correctly, getting the footwork down, a lot of basic stuff.”
The coach also pointed out the one thing that has been missing in the team’s play this season.
“I think what we need to understand and do a lot better is play with a lot more heart. We’re not a big team, we’re not an experienced team and we have to make it up in other places. And it’s tough.
“In the meantime, we need to toughen up our serve. Tonight, I didn’t think our passing was very good. We need to get our passing and our digging numbers up.”
But when he took into consideration the competition La Verne has faced, Coberly was a bit more pleased.
“But I think we’re hitting better and I think we’re blocking better. And I think those are real pluses for us against teams that are averaging 6’6″, 6’8″ to our 6’1.”
