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A nationwide voting committee selected nine players to the annual Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. Freshmen All-American Team.
The Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. Freshmen All-American Team honors the top NCAA Division I-II men’s volleyball freshmen players from the regular season. It is also the only Freshmen All-American Team presented in college men’s volleyball.
Long Beach State set a record in the three-year history of this award with three players selected to the Freshmen All-American Team. In addition, outside attacker TJ DeFalco received the most votes, while setter Josh Tuaniga and Kyle Ensing were among the top-five vote-getters.
Coker, CSUN, Hawai’i, Lewis and Pepperdine each had one player earn Freshmen All-American Team honors.
Players eligible for the Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. Freshmen All-American Team had to be on an active roster of a NCAA Division I-II men’s volleyball team and be listed as a freshman or redshirt freshman.
A player earning a spot on the Freshmen All-American Team had to be among the top 10 vote-getters and appear on at least one-third of all the fully submitted voting ballots.
The more than 25-member voting committee was comprised of college men’s volleyball head coaches and volleyball reporters from around the nation.
Off the Block is a national-award winning website that launched in 2011 and is among the nation’s leaders in college men’s volleyball coverage.
Off the Block annually presents national college men’s volleyball awards to recognize outstanding individual performances in the sport. Along with the Freshmen All-American Team, Off the Block and Springbak, Inc. during the regular season present the National Freshman of the Week award.
Springbak, Inc. is the official sponsor of the 2016 Freshmen All-American Team and produces high performance footwear used by professional athletes from the NFL, NBA, MLB and U.S. Olympic teams and the top college teams in the nation.
2016 OFF THE BLOCK/SPRINGBAK, INC. FRESHMEN ALL-AMERICAN TEAM
Setter: Micah Ma’a, UCLA
Setter: Josh Tuaniga, Long Beach State
Opposite: Kyle Ensing, Long Beach State
Opposite: Mitch Perinar, Lewis
Opposite: Joao Victor Santos, Coker
Opposite: Stijn van Tilburg, Hawai’i
Outside attacker: TJ DeFalco, Long Beach State
Outside attacker: Dimitar Kalchev, CSUN
Outside attacker: David Wieczorek, Pepperdine
Others receiving multiple votes: Royce Clemens, Penn State; Julian Moses, Lewis; Sam Porter, CSUN; Davis Gillett, UCLA; Vasilis Mandilaris, Barton; Adam Wessel, Ball State; Erik Arroyo, Alderson Broaddus; Aleksa Brkovic, Barton; Trevor Dow, Harvard; Gabe Woffindin, St. Francis; Kekaulike Alameda, Barton; Dante Chakravorti, UC Irvine; Jordan Ewert, Stanford; Collin Mahan, Loyola; Will Tischler, Loyola Joe Worsley, Hawai’i
FRESHMEN ALL-AMERICAN TEAM PLAYER BIOS
TJ DeFalco, Long Beach State — DeFalco ended the regular season seventh in nation with a 4.28 kills per game average and had eight matches with at least 20 kills. He also was a four-time recipient of the Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. National Freshman of the Week and the 2016 MPSF Freshman of the Year as he helped Long Beach State finish in third place in the MPSF.
Kyle Ensing, Long Beach State — Ensing is among the nation’s freshmen leaders with a 3.09 kills per game average and had 17 regular season matches with double-digit kills. He also was in the nation’s top 40 with a 1.90 digs per game average as Long Beach State earned the No. 3 seed for the MPSF Tournament.
Dimitar Kalchev, CSUN — Kalchev was eighth in the nation with a 0.45 aces per game average and in the nation’s top 50 averaging 3.03 kills per game. The outside attacker also was an Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. National Freshman of the Week selection and helped CSUN almost earn a berth in the MPSF Tournament.
Micah Ma’a, UCLA — Ma’a running UCLA’s 6-2 offense guided the team to the nation’s sixth best attack percentage at .309 and earned the Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. National Freshman of the Week four times this season. The All-MPSF setter also had double-digit kills in nine matches and was fourth in the nation with a 0.51 aces per game average to help the Bruins earn the No. 2 seed for the MPSF Tournament.
Mitch Perinar, Lewis — Perinar finished the regular season among the MIVA leaders and in the nation’s top 50 with a 3.03 kills per game average. The 2016 MIVA Freshman of the Year also hit more than .300 to help Lewis earn the No. 4 seed for the MIVA Tournament.
Joao Victor Santos, Coker — Santos ended the regular season in the nation’s top 15 with a 3.73 kills per game average and had five matches with more than 20 kills. The opposite also was in the nation’s top 10 with a 0.42 aces per game average and was an Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. National Freshman of the Week selection.
Stijn van Tilburg, Hawai’i — van Tilburg was in the nation’s top 30 with a 3.32 kills per game average and had double-digit kills in 18 matches during the regular season. The opposite also was twice named the Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. National Freshman of the Week and helped the Rainbow Warriors earn a postseason berth.
Josh Tuaniga, Long Beach State — Tuaniga finished the regular season leading the MPSF and third in the nation with an 11.12 assists per game average. The setter also guided the 49ers’ offense to the nation’s fourth best attack percentage at .331 and helped Long Beach State earn a top-five nationally ranking throughout the regular season.
David Wieczorek, Pepperdine — Wieczorek ended the regular season in the nation’s top 20 with a .337 attack percentage and had a 2.86 kills per game average. The All-MPSF selection also was among the conference leaders with a 0.36 aces per game average and helped the Waves earn a berth to the MPSF Tournament.
No Middles?