Monday, May 4, 1998
From second
to first, again
For the fourth time,
By Cindy Luis
UCLA wins the NCAA men's
volleyball championship after
finishing second the
previous year
Star-BulletinIt's a cliche. But it's true.
You can take the local boy out of the country, but you'll never take the country out of the local boy.
Fred Robins celebrated UCLA's 17th national men's volleyball championship yesterday much as he did when he helped Kamehameha Schools to a state title: in typical, low-key Waimanalo style. It was breakfast at Zippy's and dinner at home with family to help replay Saturday night's 15-11, 15-11, 15-7 victory over Pepperdine at the Stan Sheriff Center.
It was Robins' second title in three years, hardly comparable to the 17 in 21 tries for UCLA coach Al Scates. But it was special for both -- Robins because it happened in Hawaii and Scates because it gave him the NCAA record for titles.
"This one was better than my freshman year," said Robins, who had 17 kills en route to being named to the all-tournament team. "It feels more special because I worked hard for this one. My play was not up to par earlier this season and I worked hard to improve.
"He (Scates) never mentioned anything (before the match Saturday) about us losing last year. He didn't have to say anything. We all remembered how we felt after losing."
"This one was better than my freshman year.
It feels more special because I worked hard . . ."
Fred Robins
UCLA volleyball player
But just in case the Bruins needed help jogging their memories, the hero of Thursday's semifinal victory over Lewis again came to the rescue. Reserve Danny Farmer brought a copy of the UCLA school newspaper with the account of the loss to Stanford, having saved it for an entire year.It proved to be an effective fuel to fire up UCLA. The Bruins dropped Game 1 on Thursday to Lewis, the first time they had lost the opening game in 21 national tournament appearances.
That didn't happen Saturday, with UCLA winning the sideout battle despite being outhit, .475-.441.
The Bruins then began ripping the Waves' serve-receive pattern to shreds. With Game 2 tied at 2 and Pepperdine blocker Chris Jacobson on the bench with a sprained ankle, UCLA scored eight straight points for a 10-2 lead.
Pepperdine would rally to 14-11, but UCLA held onto the momentum. It was over in another 40 minutes as the Bruins continued to frustrate national player of the year George Roumain (22 kills) by digging his best heaters, and all-tournament selection Brandon Taliaferro continued to fool the Waves' vaunted block.
"All year we've dug some holes and were always able to come back," said Pepperdine blocker Rick Tune, who finished with 17 kills and an all-tournament plaque. "This time we couldn't dig ourselves out of a hole and it ended up being our grave.
"It's the first time all season we lost in three. I don't think it was because of the pressure. It was the combination of us not playing well and UCLA playing one of its best matches of the year.
"I'd like to thank the crowd. They showed why they're the best in the world."
The 8,564 fans (a record 9,822 tickets issued) were decidedly pro-Pepperdine. But the crowd didn't forget the home team, chanting "Rain-Bows" long after the awards ceremony.
Robins ran up to the top of the arena to lead some 40-plus ohana members in the traditional UCLA 8-Clap. Then he and the other five Hawaii prep products -- Pepperdine's Tune, J.J. Riley, Scott Wong, Pono Kahale and Craig Gamble -- departed into the night, looking like they had left a graduation ceremony, leis draped around their necks.
Graduation will affect the Waves (23-5) some as they lose Tune and Jacobson, two of the top blockers in the country. The Bruins (28-4) also lose two starters -- Tom Stillwell and Ben Moselle -- but Scates said he isn't worried.
"We're going to be pretty tough next year," said Scates, who for the fourth time won the title after finishing second the previous year. "Plus, we're hosting it. The hardest thing is winning the conference and being in a position to compete in the final four. You have to peak at the right time. I think these guys have the experience to do it again."
NOTES: UCLA sophomore middle Adam Naeve had a match-high 23 kills and three of his team's nine service aces as he earned tournament MVP honors . . . UCLA will host the 1999 men's national tournament May 7-9, with the 2000 tournament probably going to a Midwest site. The volleyball committee has expressed interest in having Hawaii host in 2001 . . . Although the home team wasn't involved, single-match and two-day attendance records were set. There were 9,822 tickets issues Saturday night, breaking the 1984 mark of 9,809 for the UCLA-Pepperdine final at UCLA. The two-day total was 18,901, broke the mark of 15,495 set at Indiana-Purdue-Fort Wayne in 1994.
All-Tournament team
Fred Robins UCLA
*Tournament MVP
