Men's Volleyball Begins MPSF Play
June 21, 1999 | Men's Volleyball
January 19, 1999
LOS ANGELES - The USC men's volleyball team (7-2 overall, 0-1 NCAA, 0-0 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation)--coming off a second place finish at the UC Santa Barbara Collegiate Invitational--opens MPSF play when it hosts UC San Diego this Tuesday (Jan. 19) and then San Diego State on Friday (Jan. 22), with both matches beginning at 7 p.m. in the North Gym.
RANKINGS - USC, UC San Diego and San Diego State are not ranked.
OPPONENTS - UC San Diego (1-3 overall, 0-3 MPSF) was swept in its last 3 matches (at Pepperdine and twice at Hawaii) after winning its opener against Stevens Tech. USC holds a 16-1 mark over the Tritons. San Diego State (0-0) opens its season with the USC match. The Trojans hold a 49-14 record over the Aztecs.
LAST MATCH - After beating Cal Baptist, 3-0, earlier in the week in the Lancers' first-ever match (Eli Fairfield had 15 kills and 5 blocks to lead Troy), the Trojans finished second at the UC Santa Barbara Collegiate Invitational, losing a heartbreaker in the final to Long Beach State, 15-9, 13-15, 12-15, 15-5, 20-18, despite playing mainly reserves. Craig Dennis had a match-high 25 kills, while David Grimm had 15 kills, Will Nelson 13 and Ryan Hill 12. Donald Suxho and Trevor Julian made the All-Tournament teams. Earlier in the tourney, USC posted 2-0 wins over UC Santa Cruz, Fresno State, La Verne, Pacific (twice) and Cal State Northridge.
COACH PAT POWERS - Legendary Olympic gold medalist, collegiate All-American and pro beach star Pat Powers returned in 1997 to his alma mater - which he led to the 1980 NCAA championship as a player - to become the USC men's volleyball head coach and help bring the Trojans back to national prominence. In 1997, his first season, Powers put USC back on track, with its first winning season since 1994 at 18-14. Last year, his Trojans went 17-17 and missed the MPSF Tournament by just one win. The 6-foot-5 Powers is regarded as one of the greatest players in international volleyball history. He was a member of the U.S. National Team for nine years (1978-86) and started at outside hitter on a squad that won America's first-ever "Triple Crown": the 1984 Olympics, the 1985 World Cup and the 1986 World Championships.
DONALD SUXHO - Setter Donald Suxho, who is starting for his third season, is the team's veteran. He was named to the All-Tournament team at the 1999 UC Santa Barbara Collegiate Invitational. Now an All-American candidate, the 6-5 junior from Albania was an All-MPSF third teamer in 1998 while averaging 15.3 assists a game. He also led USC in digs (214), tied for the team lead in aces (27) and was third in blocks (103). He set a since-broken NCAA record for most assists in a match (129 versus Ohio State in 1997).
ELI FAIRFIELD - Another All-American candidate is 6-7 sophomore outside hitter Eli Fairfield, who was a Freshman All-American in 1998. This season, he led USC is kills (15) and blocks (5) at Cal Baptist. He was second on the Trojans in kills (389) while starting all of last season, and also joined Suxho in topping Troy in aces (27), plus he was third in digs (149) and fourth in blocks (65). He played for the USA Volleyball Junior National team in the summer of 1998.
BROOK BILLINGS - Highly-regarded 6-5 freshman Brook Billings, who was the MVP of Volleyball magazine's 1998 Fab 50 prep list, has earned a starting spot at outside hitter. In his first match as a Trojan, he posted a match-high 23 kills and added 6 digs. A slight ankle sprain sidelined him for the Cal Baptist match and the UC Santa Barbara Collegiate Inviational. He played for the USA Volleyball Junior National team in the summer of 1998 after making the 1998 All-CIF Division II first team as a senior at San Marcos High in Santa Barbara, Calif.
TREVOR JULIAN - Trevor Julian, a 6-5 sophomore, returns as a starting outside hitter. He was named to the All-Tournament team at the 1999 UC Santa Barbara Collegiate Invitational, hitting .375 against Long Beach State in the finals. Last year, he was third on the Trojans in kills (275), second in digs (172) and fifth in blocks (62).
MIDDLE BLOCKERS - Another of USC's veterans, 6-5 junior Omar Rawi is starting at middle blocker for his second season. Last year, he was second on the squad in blocks (104) and fourth in kills (223) while hitting .299. Joining him in the middle is 6-7 sophomore Tony Knopp, who saw limited action in 16 matches last spring. He hit .412 with 10 kills against Long Beach State in the finals of the UC Santa Barbara Collegiate Invitational. Last year, he had 49 kills while hitting .324 along with 32 blocks. He'll fill the spot vacated by 4-year starter Szilard Kovacs, who All-American honorable mention and All-MPSF third team notice in 1998 while hitting .368 and leading Troy in kills (396) and blocks (150).
NOTES - With the emergence of Brook Billings, 2 co-starters from 1998--6-3 sophomores Ryan Thurlow and Craig Dennis--now provide USC with experienced depth coming off the bench. Last year, Thurlow posted 181 kills and Dennis added 180...USC sports a brother act with junior middle blocker Omar Rawi and his 6-5 freshman outside hitter/middle blocker brother, Beau Rawi...Here's a rarity in the world of men's athletics. One of USC's assistant coaches is a woman, Laura Ames, who was the women's head coach at both Aurora (1993-95) and Benedictine (1996-97)...Junior outside hitter David Grimm has performed the national anthem on his electric guitar before USC home matches...Freshman middle blocker Cam Land is majoring in biochemical engineering...Ryan Thurlow's father, Toby, lettered for USC's 1962 national championship football team and his grandfather, Leavitt, lettered in football from 1934 to 1936...Trojan greats Dusty Dvorak and Steve Timmons (along with ex-USC women's star Paula Weishoff) were inducted into the U.S. Volleyball Hall of Fame in 1998...USC's 3-year drought from post-season action (1996-98) is the longest in its history.
