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Redshirt freshman Futi Tavana was named MVP of the BYU Tournament for his performance this weekend. (BYU Photo/Mark Philbrick)
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PROVO, Utah (Dec. 6, 2008) – With it’s 28-30, 30-27, 30-27, 30-28 win over UC Irvine Saturday night, the BYU men’s volleyball team remained undefeated on the weekend and was named BYU Tournament champion. The Cougars also defeated Utah Valley University 30-22, 30-23, 30-24 Saturday morning.
At the conclusion of the final match, redshirt freshman Futi Tavana was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player and was honored as a member of the All-Tournament team. Joining him was fellow Cougar Kent Tuttle, along with UVU’s Clay Salazar, UNI’s Jordan DuFault and Cory Yoder and Devon Van Nistelrooy from Southern Alberta Institute of Technology.
“Futi did extremely well this weekend,” said BYU head coach Shawn Patchell. “Two months ago he was an opposite and I didn’t even know if he’d make the team. I decided to experiment and move him to middle blocker and it’s really paid off. I’m ecstatic he’s found his niche.”
Junior outside hitter Andrew Stewart racked up a team-high 24 kills against the Anteaters, while UCI’s Carson Clark lead all players with 26. Tavana lead BYU with five blocks, while junior libero Joel Silva came away with 11 digs.
The night’s first set was close from the start as the two teams traded 13 points before BYU took a two-point lead at 8-6. The Cougars managed to stay ahead of the Anteaters thanks to seven kills by Tuttle. With BYU ahead by one, a sideout by UCI tied the score at 28-28. Mistakes late in the set cost the Cougars the 30-28 win.
In the next set, BYU lead until the 7-7 mark, when the Anteaters’ Cole Reinholm’s block tied things up. UCI tied the set again at 24, but the Cougars were able to pull ahead for the 30-27 win.
BYU jumped out to a quick 7-1 lead to start the third set, the largest lead by either team on the night. Even though the Anteaters put up a tough fight—with Clark contributing four kills—BYU’s Stewart proved too much for UCI as he continued to dominate, tying the score at 23-23 and giving the Cougars the lead for good. BYU clinched the third game on an Anteater service error.
Even as BYU tried to put the match away with a win in the fourth set, the two teams continued to trade points back-and-forth. Kevin Sagers’s kill tied the score at 21-21, but strong offensive play by both teams kept the score close and tied it four more times. A big block by Tavana and kill from Stewart pushed the Cougars ahead to 28-25. With match point on the line, Sagers stepped up and delivered the winning kill.
“I’m proud of the way our team responded to that loss in the first set,” said Patchell. “We came out and improved a lot with our unforced errors and showed good consistency on the court.”
In the morning match against the Wolverines, Reed Chilton’s serving skills provided much needed boosts at the beginning of each set. In the first, Chilton served an ace on the opening play as the Cougars quickly built a 3-0 lead. Sophomore Jeff Robinson had back-to-back kills to give BYU a 10-4 advantage. Several UVU service errors helped maintain a comfortable lead for the Cougars. Kills by Mat Taylor and Chilton set up a set-winning ace by Robinson (30-22).
BYU’s second set win, 30-23, was a tougher battle, as the Wolverines managed to keep things close, tying the score at 8-8 and coming to within one point as late as 19-18. The Cougars pulled away and secured the set with consecutive kills by Tavana.
“This weekend was definitely good for me,” said Tavana. “I have a lot to improve on, but the support from my coaches and teammates has really helped my confidence.”
An early 5-0 lead in the final set put the Cougars in position to put the match away, but the Wolverines never wavered, thanks to strong offensive efforts by Kolby Kimball and Tyler Robertson. Back-to-back kills by Stewart put BYU up 15-9 and helped the Cougars hold onto their lead and clinch the match with a 30-24 set win.
With the preseason over, the Cougars will resume play when they travel to the UC Santa Barbara E-Bar Tournament on Jan. 9-10. BYU is scheduled to play Stanford in its opening match of the tournament.
