Men's volleyball spiked by Trojans
Campus Times
March 26, 1999
The University of La Verne men's volleyball team clashed with the University
of Southern California on Wednesday, and it was a classic case of David
vs. Goliath. But this time, Goliath triumphed.
The Leopards lost in three straight, 15-5, 15-3 and 15-7.
La Verne, a Division III school, was, of course, the underdog. USC,
the 10th-ranked Division I school, was the imposing bully.
"We were missing two starters," said head coach Jack Coberly.
"We just didn't have anyone that could pass."
ULV had 11 receiving errors to the Trojans' three. Those passing errors
led to more difficult sets, tougher attacks, more errors and a lower attack
percentage.
The Leopards best attacking game was the first. They hit 45.2 percent
as a team and had only two attack errors. Defensively, however, they were
not very successful and managed only five points.
Sophomore Alex Lienert led La Verne with 12 kills but his statistics
mirrored the team's struggles. He hit 33.3 percent and he had 5 attack errors.
USC was most dominant in the second game. Although neither team produced
many attacks, the Trojans did not have to. La Verne hit only 6.3 percent
and committed five attack errors.
Eli Fairfield had a dominant match for USC with 20 kills. He and Lienert
were the only players to record double figures in kills.
The third game was the closest for the Leopards. Although they committed
seven errors, their highest total of the three games, the 15-7 score was
also the closest of any game of the match.
In what has become a common occurrence, ULV (8-9) was again snubbed
by the East Coast voters in Tuesday's coaches' poll.
Despite the fact that La Verne handily defeated Division I Rutgers University,
the Leopards moved up only one spot in the rankings, to No. 3. Coberly was
not surprised.
One school did not even vote La Verne in the top 10. This is significant
because the Leopards are only 10 points behind No. 1 Juniata in the poll.
Both schools ranked above ULV, Juniata College and New York University,
lost to Rutgers while La Verne has been streaking, winning three straight
before the USC match.
The Leopards play a crucial match at UC San Diego tomorrow at 7 p.m.
before hosting Harvard University on Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the Supertents.
