Spikers cleared for take-off against Lewis

Thursday, May 2, 1996

Nihipali closes in for kill as he enters third NCAA tournament
in a rowBy Ruben Gutierrez

Daily Bruin Staff

As UCLA prepares to take on Lewis University in an NCAA
semifinal match at Pauley Pavilion tonight, several Bruins feel
fortunate to even be participating in the championship they are
hosting.

"I wouldn’t be in the training room right now if it weren’t for
Paul Nihipali," UCLA setter Stein Metzger said yesterday. "There is
no possible way we would have beaten Santa Barbara if he hadn’t
gotten 52 kills. The rest of the team was a little flat, to tell
you the truth. We were really tired and Paul’s legs just kept
working.

"When the rest of us were petering out, he was still jumping as
high as ever, hitting balls over the block. So definitely, he’s the
most important factor late in the season right now for our
team."

If Nihipali’s back is a little sore, maybe it’s because the
junior opposite hitter carried UCLA to its 19th NCAA berth with a
staggering 52-kill performance against UC Santa Barbara. After UCLA
dropped two to the Gauchos in the regular season, Nihipali hit a
zone early in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation finals match,
putting away 17 balls after only one game. Nihipali says after the
first phase of the match, he knew he was on track for an
extraordinary evening.

"I don’t know how I would describe it," Nihipali said. "I was in
a zone. I wanted the ball. I remember at one point I got a set that
I didn’t think I could hit and I kind of just tossed up a tip, but
it wasn’t even a well placed tip and it went down. At that point, I
just said ‘Wow, things are going my way tonight. It’s going to be a
good one.’"

Despite his superlative outing a week ago, the season has not
always been so pleasant for Nihipali. Early in the year, Nihipali
battled a cartilage tear in his shoulder which he still receives
daily treatment for. Deepening his predicament, he was manning the
quick hitter spot, not his customary opposite hitter position.

Although he began his UCLA career playing quick hitter as a
freshman, Nihipali prefers blocking on the outside and the more
numerous sets which come with the territory. Eventually, Nihipali
moved back to opposite and sophomore Tom Stillwell became a regular
starter en route to becoming the leading blocker in the nation this
year.

Even back at the spot where he garnered All-American honors in
1995, the road was still bumpy for Nihipali. UCLA head coach Al
Scates did not schedule any matches for two weeks late in March and
gave his players a week off to prepare for winter finals. While the
time off had a therapeutic effect on most of the squad, it
adversely affected Nihipali’s game.

"He just took a heck of a lot of time getting his rhythm back,"
Scates said. "It was like starting the season all over again. Most
of the guys benefited from the rest, but Paul, he had no rhythm, no
timing, Stein and he weren’t connecting. Paul is best when he plays
a lot."

Fortunately for UCLA, Nihipali came out of his slump when the
Bruins needed him most. In their final regular season foray against
UC Irvine, Nihipali popped up with a match-high 18 kills in the 3-0
sweep. The hot streak continued into the post-season, as evidenced
by the UCSB match.

"He’s their big stick, no question about it," University of
Hawaii head coach Mike Wilton said. "He’s their go-to guy. He’s a
great player and he’s fun to watch him play."

The pressure to produce in the athletic arena is nothing new for
Nihipali, though. As a prep at Esperanza High School in Yorba
Linda, Nihipali earned seven varsity letters in four different
sports, sometimes having his seasons overlap. Volleyball was
definitely his strong suit, however, and he earned CIF MVP and
Volleyball Monthly All-American honors as a senior. Along with
Metzger, the AVCA co-Player of the Year with Hawaii’s Yuval Katz,
Nihipali is playing in his third straight final four and they are
the only Bruins with NCAA championship experience.

Despite his experience and uncanny ability to single-handedly
take control of a match, the Bruins, a team which traditionally
enjoys spreading the wealth, are wary of relying on Nihipali alone
to take them to the promised land given the intense atmosphere of
an NCAA championship.

"I’m really stoked he had a game like he did, because he’s
ready," UCLA swing hitter Brian Wells said. "I don’t want to get to
a position where he’s carrying us though. I want to see Stein
distributing the ball between all of us. That means a couple of
guys on our team are going to have to step up and have good games
to relieve some of the pressure on him. We don’t want to have three
guys camping on him all weekend."

Nihipali, for one, is not worried. The catalyst remains
confident that if the Bruins play up to their potential, they can
capture yet another NCAA title on their home court.

"I think mentally, we’re going to be fine since we have the most
experience as far as being there (in the Final Four) of any of the
four teams," Nihipali said. "We can score and when the big games
come down to who is tired, the teams that can block always beat the
teams that are better at digging and we’re a blocking team. So as
long as we’re able to sideout, Stein is setting well and us hitters
are putting the ball away, I think we can bring the 16th
championship to UCLA."

ANDREW SCHOLER/Daily Bruin

The Bruins wouldn’t be playing in Pauley Pavilion tonight
against Lewis in the NCAA semifinals without Paul Nihipali’s 52
kills against UCSB last Saturday.