No. 10 USC Men's Volleyball Gets First MPSF Road Tests at No. 2 GCU

LOS ANGELES – The 10th-ranked USC men's volleyball team (10-4, 2-0 MPSF) heads to the Copper State for a pair of pivotal MPSF matchups with No. 2 Grand Canyon (11-0, 2-0) this weekend. The two contests will be the Trojans' last two outside of California and are against the highest-ranked opponent this spring. Coming off two wins over Concordia to open conference play, USC ranks second in the league for both blocks (2.75 bps) and hitting (.362).

THIS WEEK
No. 10 USC (10-4, 2-0 MPSF) vs. No. 2 Grand Canyon (11-0, 2-0 MPSF)

MATCH #15 • Friday, Feb. 23 • 6 p.m. MST / 5 p.m. PT
Global Credit Union Arena at GCU • Phoenix, Ariz.
LIVE STREAM: ESPN+

MATCH #16 • Saturday, Feb. 24 • 4 p.m. MST / 3 p.m. PT
Antelope Gymnasium • Phoenix, Ariz.
LIVE STREAM: None

SERIES RECORD: USC trails, 6-10 (.375)
LAST MEETING: L 3-1 (Feb. 17, 2023 • Galen Center)
STREAK: Lost 2 • LAST 10 MEETINGS: 3-7
OPPONENT WEBSITE: GCULopes.com

FIRST SERVE (TL;DR)

USC is led by ninth-year head coach Jeff Nygaard, a three-time Olympian in indoor and beach volleyball and a two-time NCAA champion. His next victory will be the 100th in his career.
The Trojans are ranked 10th in the AVCA/NVA Coaches Poll, a season-high position. This year's poll is expanded to include 20 teams for the first time.
USC has reached double-digit blocks in nine matches and has had more blocks than its opponent in 12 of 14 contests. The Trojans' 2.75 blocks per set ranks second in the MPSF and is third in the nation.
The Trojans have out-hit their opponent in 12 matches. USC's .362 hitting percentage ranks second in the MPSF and is fourth in the NCAA.
Freshmen Wesley Smith (MB), Jakobi Lange (OH), Jack Ebertin (OH), Brad Pan (LIB), and transfer Josh Friedman (S) were rated the No. 1 recruiting class by VolleyballMag.com. Smith was the No. 1-ranked individual player.
Fr. S Caleb Blanchette signed to be a part of the Trojans' 2025 freshman class in November, but completed high school requirements and reclassified to join USC's 2024 class in time to compete in the spring.
Five Trojans rank in the MPSF's top 20 for blocks led by Sr. MB Kyle Paulson who is third in the league (eighth, NCAA) for blocks (1.15 bps).
So. OH Dillon Klein leads the MPSF in both hitting percentage (.362) and kills per set (3.52 kps). He is third for points at 4.03 points per set.
Klein and fellow So. OH Riley Haine are Nos. 1 and 2 in the MPSF for hitting percentage at .362 and .356 respectively.

FOLLOW THE TROJANS: Home matches at Galen Center are streamed live for free, with links available at USCTrojans.com, except for matches televised by Pac-12 Networks. Follow USC matches on live stats with links at USCTrojans.com.

LAST TIME OUT: USC improved to 35-20 all-time in league openers with a 3-0 sweep of Concordia on Valentine's Night and then improved to 2-0 in the MPSF with a hard-fought five-set win over the Golden Eagles in a rematch at Galen Center. OPP Jack Deuchar and OH Dillon Klein led the Trojan offense in each outing. LIB Austin Stuard posted back-to-back matches in double-digit digs and MB Wesley Smith had 12 kills while hitting .857 in the second meeting. Setter Caleb Blanchette put up career-high marks with 55 assists and 13 digs for his second-career double-double in the five-setter against Concordia.

HAPPY HOME PARADISE: USC opened the season with four straight matches at home. The Trojans hosted HBCUs Fort Valley State and Morehouse College and then welcomed Harvard and Lincoln Memorial. In all, USC plays 15 of its 26 regular season matches at Galen Center and hosts both the SIAC Tournament to open the spring and the Pac-12/Big Ten Challenge in March. The Trojans' home arena will also serve as host to the 2024 MPSF Tournament, April 17-20.

POLL POSITION: The Trojans were ranked No. 12 in the AVCA/NVA Preseason Coaches Poll. 2024 marks the expansion of the poll to 20 teams (previously 15). USC is currently ranked a season-high No. 10 in the Feb. 19 poll.

BIG BLOCK ENERGY: The Trojans' 2.75 blocks per set ranks second in the MPSF and is third in the nation. USC has produced nine matches in double-digit blocks and set a season-high mark with 15.5 blocks against No. 4 Ohio State on Jan. 20. During a four-match stretch from Jan. 11-19, USC progressively finished with a higher block total; and had 12.5 against Harvard (Jan. 11), 13.0 against Lincoln Memorial (Jan. 13); and then put up 15.0 against Ball State (Jan. 19) before the 15.5 against the Buckeyes. In all, USC has out-blocked its opponent in 12 of 14 matches this spring. In one other match (vs. UC Irvine, Feb. 10) the Trojans had the same block total as the Anteaters (13.0).

HIT 'EM HIGH: USC has hit better than its opponent in 12 of 14 contests. In fact, USC has hit better than .300 in 11 contests and had a season-high .614 hitting percentage in a win over Morehouse College (Jan. 6). The Trojans have also hit .400 or better six times and have recorded two matches over the .500 mark. USC's .362 hitting ranks second in the MPSF and is fourth nationally.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Caleb Blanchette

Jack Deuchar

Jack Ebertin

Josh Friedman

Riley Haine

Dillon Klein

Jakobi Lange

Brad Pan

Kyle Paulson

Wesley Smith

Austin Stuard