Jan. 12, 2006

This Week's Schedule

Friday, January13, 7:05 p.m.

No. 7 Hawaii vs. No. 8 UCSB

Saturday, January 14, 7:05 p.m.

No. 7 Hawaii vs. No. 8 UCSB

The Skinny

Santa Barbara enters this weekend's matches trailing Hawaii 19-35 in the all-time series.

In 2005, UCSB and Hawaii split its two matches. Needing a win to clinch an MPSF Tournament berth, the Gauchos dropped the first match but redeemed themselves in the second, clinching a postseason berth on the home floor of the Rainbows. In that game, then-sophomore Evan Patak tallied 31 kills en route to a five-game victory.

Patak-ular

In the UCSB/Elephant Bar Invitational this past weekend, junior opposite Evan Patak demonstrated why he was selected as an All-American last season. The Pleasanton, Calif. native racked up 57 kills in three matches, hitting for a .268 clip while averaging 5.18 kills per game. Patak has also been effective at the serve, recording 10 aces in 11 games for a 0.91 ace per game average. Defensively, Patak, along with junior David Kennedy, recorded three block solos for the Gauchos who, as a team, struggled to build a consistent blocking attack, registering 1.55 blocks per game collectively.

True to His Start

True freshman setter Max Klineman made his collegiate volleyball debut this past weekend, dishing out 111 assists in ten games played for an 11.10 assists per game average. In three matches, Klineman attempted 234 sets, thus qualifying his .474 setting average.

Long Distance Brunner

Sophomore middle blocker Theo Brunner might have been the most efficient player for the Gauchos in the Elephant Bar Invitational. The Ridgefield, Conn. native registered a team-high.400 hitting percentage in 11 games played for Santa Barbara. Moreover, the jump-server's .921 serving percentage was tops for Gauchos who played at least six games.

The Opponent

This will be Hawaii's first match of the 2006 season. Last year, the Warriors were ousted in the quarterfinals of the MPSF Tournament by Long Beach State after entering the tourney seeded fifth. Returning from that team is senior libero Alfred Reft, an MPSF and AVCA All-American first team selection from a year ago. The Oxnard, Calif. native tied for third in the nation in digs per game with 2.67 while playing in all 102 matches for UH.