Heyo. Hopefully no one was concerned when I didn't post for a week there. I'm fine, just really really busy. Also having some troubles with my home internet connection, so I didn't even try to stream any matches this past week. Maybe I'll try again this coming week.
Skipping this post last week was deliberate, as I felt at the time that I just haven't seen enough of this season to make an informed "vote," but I gotta break the schneid. This'll be a little recap post, too. So let's dive in.
1. Loyola. Hard to see how they won't be unanimously #1 now. Yeah, they play in a second-rate conference (which is absolutely not an insult to the MIVA — it would be next to impossible for a Midwest or Eastern league to be as strong top-to-bottom as the MPSF), but they haven't lost since the Carter administration, and "results have to matter" (one of my favourite mantras) cuts both ways. If all you do is win, that means something. The Ramblers were idle this past week, and kick off a three-week homestand this Thursday. First guests are the George Mason Patriots.
2. BYU. Even with the loss to Long Beach State, the Cougars won't fall far. Considering that in last week's actual poll they were #2 (but only because their own coach voted them fifth), they may not lose any ranks at all. They're still the overwhelming force, and somewhat surprisingly so, in the MPSF. After falling to the 49ers in four, BYU next defeated the CSUN Matadors in four, both on the road. They're home for the next three weeks also, facing UC Irvine on Friday and UC San Diego on Saturday.
3. Long Beach State. Gotta give props to the team you likely never see unless you live in the LA area (get with the program, Beach. Stream your danged matches~!). Beating BYU means a lot more this year than I would have thought back in December, so up they come. They followed that win up with a three-set sweep over Cal Baptist, which is normal service. Next up is the "Active Ankle Classic," where the 49ers play host to Ohio State and Penn State (and CSUN, but they will only play the two Big Ten teams).
4. UCLA. It's lean times for the Bruins. After getting swept by Hawaii on 28 February and 1 March, they came back to the mainland to drop a three-setter to UCSB. Now, they are battling injuries — part of the reason it's such lean times for the blue and gold — but word came shortly before that UCSB match that head coach John Speraw, the not-too-arguably best coach going right now, ended practice early because he was dissatisfied with the effort his men were putting forth. Ultimately, they're answerable to no one but themselves (not even to Coach Speraw) and I like their chances to get their ducks in a row and start playing winning volleyball again, but you can't deny that this is probably the nadir of the season for UCLA. They are past controlling their own destiny with regards to the MPSF tournament — matter of fact, if they lose to Pepperdine on Tuesday they could very well not end up hosting at all, let alone not hosting the whole thing. They've got their work before them. On Saturday comes the rivalry match with USC.
5. Pepperdine. A loss to Stanford last week keeps them from checking in any higher. But really, it's arguable once you reach the MPSF's second tier (which starts way higher than I ever would have guessed it would). UCLA, Pepperdine, and UCSB are within a half-match of each other right now, and only two of them will end up hosting in the MPSF tournament (unlesss Long Beach go into the tank). So that makes the Waves' week this week pretty crucial, facing both UCLA and UCSB. Both matches are on the road.
6. UC Santa Barbara. They may be higher in the real poll, I'm not sure. They're going really well right now, winners of three in a row, 7 of 9, and 9 of 12. And, well, 12 of 17, that being their season mark. The latest victims were UCLA and UCSD, both at home. The homestand for the Gauchos continues this week as they welcome USC and Pepperdine to town.
7. Stanford. Just when I start to give up on a team I've been gushing about for going on two years now, they decide to play some winning volleyball. All right, I know it's not that simple, but wins over opposition the quality of Pepperdine and USC on the road arguably make it look so. They're home for the next three weeks of competition (there's one bye week sprinkled in) and could realistically win all six matches (Hawaii double shot, Pepperdine and USC again, Pacific and Baptist), and that would do wonders for their MPSF tournament status. People are still saying look out for Stanford if they're a 5, 6, or 7 seed in the MPSF's, and maybe I should be one of those people.
8. USC. Meh kind of a week for the Trojans, as they swept aside Pacific before being swept by Stanford, both in the Galen Center's friendly confines. They're in the midst of a scheduling oddity, 7 consecutive weeks of going home-road-home-road, though for an LA-area team it doesn't really matter so much. They face UCSB and UCLA this week, both on the road. They're smack in the second logjam in the MPSF standings, with them, Irvine, Hawaii, and Stanford all more or less tied. In that first logjam (UCSB, UCLA, Pepperdine) one team won't host in the MPSF's. In this one, one team won't make it at all. Only a couple of relative cupcakes left on the Trojans' schedule, so their work is before them.
9. UC Irvine. The Anteaters played themselves back into contention with a two-night sweep over the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors this past Friday and Sunday. Pretty clear reasoning why they should come before the island boys on the rundown, too. Two matches for UCI this week, both on the road, one easy and one not so much — Cal Baptist and BYU.
10. Hawaii. Yeah, that's a near MPSF whitewash of these rankings, but I have a tough time seeing it any other way. Hawaii are on the brink right now with Irvine, Stanford, and USC. As ever, I'll put my heart on my sleeve — I hope they make it. But it's real tenuous right now. The Rainbow Warriors now have arguably the toughest part of their schedule, playing four matches in five days on the mainland, against Stanford and Pacific. How they stand after that gauntlet will tell us much.
ALSO UNDER CONSIDERATION (in alphabetical order): IPFW, Lewis, Penn State.
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