Long Beach libero Briggs wins 2023 Erik Shoji Award

Photo courtesy of Long Beach State athletics

It’s a repeat for Long Beach State libero Mason Briggs.

Off the Block announced Tuesday that a nationwide voting committee selected Briggs for the second straight year as the winner of the Erik Shoji Award.

The Erik Shoji Award, which is named after the former Stanford All-American and U.S. Olympian libero, is presented to the nation’s best libero in NCAA Division I-II men’s volleyball during the regular season.

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Briggs led the Big West and was fifth in the nation averaging 2.38 digs per game, including having double-digit digs in 11 matches. The finalist for the Steve Shondell Award as the nation’s best passer also had 453 service receptions and a 94.8 percent successful passing rating en route to helping the Beach reach the NCAA Tournament semifinals.

The voting committee for the Erik Shoji Award was comprised of more than 30 college men’s volleyball head coaches and volleyball reporters from around the nation. The top three vote-getters were named finalists for the Erik Shoji Award.

Briggs received 67 votes — more than the combined vote totals of the other two finalists. Penn State libero Ryan Merk finished in second place with 25 votes, while Hawai’i libero Brett Sheward ended in third place with 24 votes.

This is the eighth year that Off the Block has presented the Erik Shoji Award.

Off the Block is a national award winning website that launched in 2011 and is the nation’s leader in college men’s volleyball coverage.

2023 Erik Shoji Award voting results

1. Mason Briggs, Long Beach State – 48 votes
2. Ryan Merk, Penn State – 25 votes
3. Brett Sheward, Hawai’i – 24 votes
4. Justin Lui, Stanford – 17 votes
T-5. Troy Gooch, UCLA – 14 votes
T-5. Victor Scherer, Central State – 14 votes
7. Cole Power, UC Irvine – 6 votes
8. Trevor Treser, Mount Olive – 4 votes
9. Kyle Deutschmann, Lindenwood – 3 votes
10. Clint Forbes, Benedict – 2 votes
11. Trey Cole, Pepperdine – 1 vote