AVCA Division I/II men’s volleyball All-Americans named

Good god, it is a content-gasm this week. In advance of the Final Four next week, the AVCA have announced their Division I/II men's volleyball All-American teams. There's no honourable mention list, and it's just a first and second-team rather than first, second, and third like the ladies.

Here are the picks, starting with the first team:

Michael Brinkley, L, UC Irvine, SOPH
Levi Cabral, OH, Cal Baptist, SR
Brian Cook, OH, Stanford, JR
Taylor Crabb, OH, Long Beach State, JR
Dylan Davis, MB, UC Santa Barbara, SR
Ben Patch, OPP, BYU, FR
Gonzalo Quiroga, OH, UCLA, JR
Taylor Sander, OH, BYU, JR
Kevin Tillie, OH, UC Irvine, SR
Matt West, S, Pepperdine, SOPH

That, folks, is an MPSF whitewash of the first team. It's hard to argue any of the picks, though. The National Player of the Year will be selected from this group of players, as announced at an awards banquet on May 1 (the day before the national semifinals). I'm hoping for Kevin Tillie, as I really didn't think Taylor Sander had that great a year (some nights he was brilliant, but some nights he just wasn't there), though just as for MPSF Player of the Year Sander's really the safe choice. A choice you could disagree with, but it wouldn't be a travesty. Patch was named Newcomer of the Year, as if you needed me to tell you that.

Sander and Tillie both reprise their First-Team All-American selections from a year ago, when the list had a lot more seniors on it.  Here's the second team:

BJ Boldog, S, Lewis, JR
Steven Irvin, OH, Stanford, JR
Russ Lavaja, MB, BYU, SR
Collin Mehring, MB, UC Irvine, JR
Evan Mottram, L, UCLA, JR
Connor Olbright, S, Long Beach State, JR
Geoff Powell, OH, Lewis, SOPH
Spencer Rowe, MB, UCLA, JR
Joe Smalzer, OPP, Loyola, JR
Maurice Torres, OH, Pepperdine, SR

And that's nearly an MPSF whitewash of the second team. No one whatsoever from the EIVA attained All-American status, but you know what, I'm good with that. I'd be hard pressed to place an EIVA team in my overall top 10, and whoever will represent that conference at the Final Four will have their hands full.

I would have picked Pacific's Javier Caceres as the second-team libero, and maybe a little love for the nation's top block-earners Matt Leske and Taylor Gregory might have been nice, but otherwise it's tough to dispute the second team selections either. And I love seeing so many underclassmen on both lists. Last season to this, there were only about 4 players in the entire nation who returned as All-Americans — Sander, Tillie, Boldog, and Jay Petty if memory serves (and while I know he was hurt for a chunk of it, talk about a season that fell off a cliff for Petty). Next season, there will be up to 15. I say "up to 15" because there's been talk that Ben Patch will be away from the BYU team for a year or perhaps even two for his Mormon mission. Scary to think he might still have some more growing into his body to do, and how strong he'll be after that point.

The lists also make me think of a few stars that have fallen over the course of the season (Petty's being one), but I think it's best not to linger on those and congratulate the young men who did make these lists. It's an achievement to be proud of.