Follow
Off the Blocked selected and seeded the 65 players in a bracket, and now it is up to the fans to determine who should win the Off the Block Fan Choice Player of the Year.
The Fan Choice Player of the Year recognizes the best individual performances from NCAA Division I-II men’s volleyball players during the season and gives volleyball fans from around the world the chance decide the winner through online voting.
The seven-round tournament continues Wednesday with first-round matches in the Ryan Millar and Matt Anderson regions.
Online voting for these first-round matches will end at 11 p.m. (EST) Wednesday. In addition, voting for first-round matches in the Reid Priddy and Clay Stanley regions will begin Thursday.
RYAN MILLAR REGION FIRST ROUND
[polldaddy poll=6252529]
No. 1 seed Taylor Sander – BYU, outside attacker
Despite missing a month with a hand injury, Sander ended the season leading the MPSF and second in the nation with a 4.89 kills per game average. The sophomore was a First-Team All-American selection and helped BYU finish tied for second in the MPSF and reach the conference tournament semifinals.
No. 16 seed Brandon Rorer – King, libero
Rorer in his senior season led the Conference Carolinas and was fourth in the nation with a 2.64 digs per game average. King ended the year in fifth place in the Conference Carolinas and did not qualify for the four-team conference tournament.
[polldaddy poll=6252533]
No. 2 seed Futi Tavana – BYU, middle attacker
Tavana, an Off the Block Blocker of the Year finalist, was second in the nation with a 1.59 blocks per game average and set the BYU rally scoring record for career blocks. The senior was also named a First-Team All-American as BYU finished tied for second place in the MPSF and reached the conference tournament semifinals.
No. 15 seed Scott Warren – Limestone, outside attacker
Warren, the Co-Conference Carolinas Player of the Year, led Limestone and was in the nation’s top 35 with a 3.07 kills per game average. The junior also earned First-Team All-Conference Carolinas honors as Limestone finish in second place in the conference and reached the conference tournament semifinals.
[polldaddy poll=6252536]
No. 3 seed Thomas Amberg – UCLA, middle attacker
Amberg was among the conference leaders and seventh in the nation with a 1.41 blocks per game average and was fourth in the nation with 148 blocks. The senior also was a First-Team All-American selection as UCLA advanced to the MPSF Tournament quarterfinals.
No. 14 seed Michael Kvidahl — George Mason, outside attacker
Kvidahl was in the nation’s top 35 with a 3.05 kills per game average and was fourth in the nation with a 0.55 aces per game average, including a match-high seven aces in the EIVA championship against Penn State. Kvidahl was a First-Team All-EIVA selection as George Mason finished in third place in the EIVA.
[polldaddy poll=6252540]
No. 4 seed Evan Barry – Stanford, setter
Barry led the nation with a 12.04 assists per game average and helped guide the Cardinal offense to a .338 attack percentage — second best in the nation. The senior was named a Second-Team All-American as Stanford finished tied for second place in the MPSF and reached the conference tournament championship match.
No. 13 seed Taylor Hughes – Pacific, outside attacker
Hughes was among the MPSF leaders and in the nation’s top 25 with a 3.45 kills per game average. The junior earned Honorable Mention All-MPSF honors as the Tigers finished the MPSF in 10th place and missed the conference tournament.
[polldaddy poll=6252543]
No. 5 seed Steven Shandrick – USC, middle attacker
Shandrick was among conference leaders and in the nation’s top 25 with a 1.06 blocks per game average. The senior Second-Team All-American selection also was a co-captain of USC, which won the MPSF regular season championship and reached the NCAA Tournament championship match.
No. 12 seed Matt Gallik – Lewis, middle attacker
Gallik was among the MIVA leaders and in the nation’s top 15 with a 1.14 blocks per game average. The senior also was named to the Second-Team All-MIVA as the Flyers won the MIVA championship and reached the Final Four for the first time in eight years.
[polldaddy poll=6252544]
No. 6 seed Cody Kessel – Princeton, outside attacker
Kessel, the 2012 EIVA Newcomer of the Year, led the EIVA and was seventh in the nation with a 4.00 kills per game average. The freshman was a First-Team All-EIVA selected and helped lead Princeton to a spot in the four-team EIVA Tournament.
No. 11 seed Matt Leske — Ball State, middle attacker
Leske led the MIVA and was eighth in the nation with a 1.32 blocks per game average. The sophomore also was a Second-Team All-MIVA selection as Ball State finished tied for fourth place in the MIVA and advanced to the MIVA Tournament semifinals.
[polldaddy poll=6252546]
No. 7 seed Ivan Matos – IPFW, outside attacker
Matos was second in the MIVA and in the nation’s top 10 with a 3.82 kills per game average. The senior also earned First-Team All-MIVA and National Player of the Week honors as he helped IPFW finish tied for fourth place in the MIVA and reach the conference tournament quarterfinals.
No. 10 seed Miles Evans — UC Santa Barbara, outside attacker
Evans was among MPSF leaders and in the nation’s top 20 with a 3.46 kills per game average. The junior also was third on the team with a 1.74 digs per game average as UC Santa Barbara finished tied for 10th place in the MPSF and did not qualify for the conference tournament.
[polldaddy poll=6252551]
No. 8 seed Alex Kane — St. Francis, outside attacker
Kane was among the EIVA leaders and in the nation’s top 20 with both a 3.51 kills per game average and .327 attack percentage. The senior was also named to the First-Team All-EIVA as the Red Flashes finished tied for fourth place in the EIVA but missed the four-team conference tournament.
No. 9 Brian Cook – Stanford, outside attacker
Cook was in the nation’s top 20 with both a 3.50 kills per game average and a .308 attack percentage. The sophomore also earned Second-Team All-MPSF honors as Stanford ended the year tied for second place in the conference and reached the MPSF Tournament championship match.
MATT ANDERSON REGION FIRST ROUND
[polldaddy poll=6252561]
No. 1 seed Carson Clark — UC Irvine, outside attacker
Clark was among MPSF leaders and 12th in the nation with a 3.73 kills per game average and was third in the nation averaging 0.55 aces per game average. The senior was also named a First-Team All-American as the Anteaters won the NCAA championship — the program’s second national title in the last four years.
No. 16 seed Steven Battaglia – Quincy, middle attacker
Battaglia was among the MIVA leaders and seventh in the nation with a .345 attack percentage while adding a team-high 0.88 blocks per game average. The sophomore was a Second-Team All-MIVA selection as Quincy ended the season in last place in the conference.
[polldaddy poll=6252565]
No. 2 seed Brad Lawson – Stanford, outside attacker
Lawson was fifth in the nation with a 4.10 kills per game average and in the nation’s top 15 with a .327 attack percentage. The First-Team All-American selection also was one of 10 players in the nation with at least 40 aces and ended his senior season helping Stanford reach the MPSF championship match.
No. 15 seed D.J. White – Harvard, outside attacker
White was in the nation’s top 15 with a .319 attack percentage and among the nation’s top 50 with a 2.76 kills per game average. The freshman also was a First-Team All-EIVA selection as Harvard was nationally ranked for the first time in program history and reached the EIVA Tournament.
[polldaddy poll=6252568]
No. 3 seed Maurice Torres — Pepperdine, outside attacker
Torres was eighth in the nation with a 3.98 kills per game average and tied for ninth in the nation with a 0.42 aces per game average. The junior and Second-Team All-American was also among the nation’s top 20 with a .307 attack percentage as Pepperdine reach the eight-team MPSF Tournament.
No. 14 seed Efrain Negron — Lees-McRae, libero
Negron was second in the Conference Carolinas and fifth in the nation with a 2.58 digs per game average. The sophomore also was a First-Team All-Conference Carolinas selection as Lees-McRae ended the season in fourth place in the Conference Carolinas and reached the conference tournament semifinals.
[polldaddy poll=6252570]
No. 4 seed Joe Sunder — Penn State, outside attacker
Sunder, the back-to-back EIVA Player of the Year, was among the conference leaders and in the nation’s top 20 with a 3.52 kills per game average. The senior Second-Team All-American selection also was in the nation’s top 10 with a .330 attack percentage. Penn State won its 14th consecutive EIVA championship and reached the NCAA Tournament semifinals.
No. 13 seed Carl Eberts — UC San Diego, outside attacker
Eberts led UC San Diego and was in the nation’s top 35 with a 3.29 kills per game average. The junior also was a Honorable Mention All-MPSF selection as UC San Diego finished the MPSF in ninth place to miss the conference tournament.
[polldaddy poll=6252576]
No. 5 seed Henry Cassiday – USC, libero
Cassiday was among the conference leaders and in the nation’s top 20 with a 2.19 digs per game average. The sophomore was a Second-Team All-American selection as the Trojans won the MPSF regular season title and advanced to the NCAA Tournament championship match.
No. 12 seed Taylor Crabb — Long Beach State, outside attacker
Crab was second on Long Beach State and in the nation’s top 50 with a 2.75 digs per game average. Crabb was a Second-Team All-MPSF selection as Long Beach State finished in sixth place in the MPSF and reached the conference tournament quarterfinals.
[polldaddy poll=6252578]
No. 6 seed Steven Hunt — Hawai’i, outside attacker
Hunt was second in the MPSF and third in the nation with a 4.15 kills per game average. The senior was also named to the Second-Team All-MPSF and was the only Warrior to earn all-conference honors as Hawai’i finished in last place in the MPSF.
No. 11 seed Robert Feathers – USC, middle attacker
Feathers, the 2012 Off the Block Blocker of the Year, led the nation with a 1.60 blocks per game average and was one of two players in the nation with more than 150 total blocks. He also was named to the All-MPSF Freshman Team as USC won the conference regular season title and advanced to the NCAA Tournament championship match.
[polldaddy poll=6252580]
No. 7 seed Mike Bunting – Loyola, outside attacker
Bunting, the 2011 Off the Block Fan Choice Player of the Year, was in the nation’s top 15 with a 3.64 kills per game average. The senior also earned First-Team All-MIVA honors as the Ramblers finished in third place in the conference and advanced to the MIVA Tournament semifinals.
No. 10 seed Robb Stowell – BYU, outside attacker
Stowell was in the nation’s top 35 with both a 3.32 kills per game average and a .258 attack percentage. The senior also earned Second-Team All-MPSF honors as BYU finished the regular season tied for second place in the MPSF and advanced to the conference tournament semifinals.
[polldaddy poll=6252593]
No. 8 seed Ben Ponnet — Grand Canyon, outside attacker
Ponnet was among the MIVA leaders and in the nation’s top 15 with a 3.63 kills per game average and was in the nation’s top 50 in attack percentage. The sophomore also was named to the First-Team All-MIVA as Grand Canyon finished tied for fourth place in the MIVA.
No. 9 seed Piotr Dabrowski — George Mason, middle attacker
Dabrowski led the nation with 157 blocks and was fourth in the nation with a 1.48 blocks per game average. The junior was a Second-Team All-EIVA selection as George Mason finished in third place in the EIVA and reached the conference tournament championship match.