Trojans Host Two Top-15 Teams
January 21, 2003 | Men's Volleyball
Jan. 21, 2003
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THE FACTS
The USC men's volleyball team (1-3 overall, 0-1 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation), looking for its first MPSF win, hosts a pair of Top 15 teams this week: No. 5 Cal State Northridge (5-1, 1-0) on Wednesday (Jan. 22) in the North Gym and No. 12 UC Santa Barbara (2-4, 0-1) on Saturday (Jan. 25) in the Lyon Center. Both MPSF matches begin at 7 p.m.
ON THE AIR
All of USC's home MPSF matches are broadcast live over the internet on www.usctrojans.com. Justin Unell and Scott Lembke are mikeside.
RANKINGS
USC is not ranked in the initial USA Today/AVCA coaches poll. Cal State Northridge is fifth and UC Santa Barbara is No. 12.
OPPONENTS
USC holds a 37-10 lead in its series with Cal State Northridge, but the Matadors have won the last 2 meetings. The Trojans own a 42-33 series edge over UC Santa Barbara, but have dropped the past 3 to the Gauchos
LAST MATCHES
USC fell to No. 8 Pepperdine, 30-20, 30-22, 30-17 at home on Friday (Jan. 17) in the MPSF opener for both teams. Pepperdine, which never trailed in the match, hit .435 and had 14.5 blocks, while Troy hit just .129 and got 3.5 blocks. USC's Mark Dusharme had a match-best 14 kills while hitting .346 and teammate Jeff Bailey added 9 kills as he hit .346. The match was the first home appearance in 2003 for the Trojans and new head coach Turhan Douglas. It also marked the team's return to the Lyon Center for the first time since 1997.
TOUGH AT HOME
USC is 214-72 (.748) in home matches in its 27-year history. From 1999 to 2001, the Trojans had a school-record 19-match home winning streak in the quaint North Gym.
NORTH GYM/LYON CENTER
For the first time since the 1997 season, USC is returning to the Lyon Center on a regular basis for most of its 2003 home matches. The Trojans will play 8 of their home matches in the 1,300-seat Lyon Center, while the other 4 will be played in the quaint 1,000-seat North Gym (USC's home the past 5 years).
VOLLEYBALL SCHOOL
Besides the 4 NCAA crowns (1977-80-88-90) that USC's men have won, the Women of Troy have captured 5 national volleyball titles. USC's women won the AIAW trophy in 1976, 1977 and 1980, and the NCAA crown in 1981, all under coach Chuck Erbe. Then, coach Mick Haley's 2002 Women of Troy squad captured the NCAA title this past December.
COACH TURHAN DOUGLAS
Turhan Douglas, an assistant coach the past 3 seasons at USC, was promoted to head coach in May of 2002. Being a head coach is nothing new to the 33-year-old Douglas. In fact, he already exhibited his head coaching ability at USC before this season. When Pat Powers-his predecessor at Troy-missed USC's home match against BYU in 2001 to be with his ill mother, Douglas stepped in and directed the Trojans to a 3-1 upset over the top-ranked, undefeated Cougars. Douglas was a successful junior college and club coach before he came to USC for the 2000 season. He was the men's head coach at Pierce Junior College in Woodland Hills (Calif.) for 2 seasons (1998-99) and guided his squad to the South Coast Conference title both years while going 43-9. His 1999 team was the state runner-up and he was named the conference's Coach of the Year. He also was the head coach of Pierce's women's team for 6 seasons (1993-98). He also spent 6 years (1996-2001) as the director and coach of the Santa Monica (Calif.) Beach Club. In 1998, his team won the USA Junior Olympics Boys 17-and-Under championship. He was an assistant with the Santa Monica Junior College men's team for 4 years (1992-95). Douglas was a reserve middle blocker on the 1991 Long Beach State team that won the NCAA title (defeating USC in the final). He also played 2 seasons at Pierce (1987-88). The 1987 Pierce squad won the state crown and the 1988 team was the state runner-up.
ASSISTANT COACHES
There's a familiar face among USC's 3 first-year assisant coaches. Donald Suxho, one of Troy's greatest players, returned to his alma mater after spending time playing with the USA national team (2000-01), professionally in Poland (2001-02) and on the AVP beach tour (2000 and 2002). The Albanian native was the AVCA National Player of the Year as a Trojan senior setter in 2000. The 2-time (1999-2000) All-American first teamer holds the USC career record for aces (164). Joining him on the 2003 staff are Nabil Mardini, a native of Lebanon who was the women's head coach at Pierce J.C. in Woodland Hills (Calif.) the past 4 seasons (1999-2002)-Pierce was the league champ the last 2 years-and the director and coach of the boys' and girls' teams for Santa Monica (Calif.) Beach Club the last 8 years (1995-2002), and Mark Cruz, a former player under Turhan Douglas at Pierce and then a high school and club coach in Southern California (most recently, guiding the girls' team at Hart High in Newhall).
RETURNING STARTERS
USC returned 4 starters from 2001 middle blockers Josh Day and Phil Small, setter Miles McGann and outside hitter Mark Dusharme. Gone from last year are prolific outside hitter/opposite hitter Brook Billings, a 2000 All-American first teamer who had 2,075 career kills while starting for four seasons, and opposite hitter/middle blocker Beau Rawi, who started 75 matches in his career (plus 3-year starting libero Greg Burden).
TALL TEAM
USC might field the tallest roster in the country, with seven players at least 6-7, led by the inappropriately-named Phil Small (at 6-11, the tallest player in Trojan history).
JOSH DAY
Third-year starter Josh Day, an effective 6-5 senior middle blocker, led USC's regulars in hitting percentage (.329) and blocks (86) and was second in kills (194) in 2002.
- He had 12 kills while hitting .611 vs. UCLA (1-10).
- He had 8 kills (hitting .400) and 2 blocks vs. Long Beach State (1-11).
- He had 10 kills, 5 digs and 4 blocks vs. Pacific (1-11).
MILES McGANN
Steady third-year starter Miles McGann, a 6-5 senior setter, led USC in assists (805) and was second in aces (21) in 2002.
- He had 41 assists, 5 digs, 2 aces and 2 blocks vs. UCLA (1-10).
- He had 40 assists, 3 kills and 3 digs vs. Long Beach State (1-11).
- He had 61 assists, 7 digs and 3 kills vs. Pacific (1-11).
- He had 35 kills and a team-best 7 digs vs. Pepperdine (1-17).
MARK DUSHARME
Mark Dusharme, a 6-8 senior with 54 starts at middle blocker and opposite hitter the past 2 seasons, likely will start at outside hitter in 2003. He was third on USC in aces (20) in 2002 to rank ninth in the MPSF in ace average (.345).
- He had a match-best 14 kills while hitting .346 vs. Pepperdine (1-17).
IN THE MIDDLE
Competing for the other middle blocker spot are sophomores Phil Small, the tallest player (6-11) in USC history, 6-10 Chris McKniff and 6-8 Jeff Bailey. Each started some matches last season in the middle (20 by Small, 5 by McKniff and 2 by Bailey). Small had 62 blocks in 2002.
- McKniff had 4 kills and 3 blocks vs. UCLA (1-10).
- Bailey had 4 kills vs. Long Beach State (1-11).
- McKniff had 9 kills (hitting .571), 3 aces and 4 blocks vs. Pacific (1-11).
- Bailey had 9 kills while hitting .375 vs. Pepperdine (1-17).
THE GILMOUR BROTHERS
Challenging Miles McGann at setter is 6-7 soph J.T. Gilmour, who started 11 times last spring and had 366 assists. J.T.'s older brother, 6-9 junior Marcus Gilmour, is fighting for time at an outside hitter spot. Marcus has tremendous potential, but he has been bothered by knee injuries in his Trojan career and has seen only limited action.
ALSO ON THE OUTSIDE
Also in the mix to start at outside hitter are 6-3 junior Peter Jordan, who started 13 times last year at libero, and 6-4 sophomore Blake Tippett, a member of the 2002 USA men's junior national team who started 4 times at opposite hitter and outside hitter for USC in 2002 and also saw action at libero.
- Jordan had 8 kills vs. UCLA (1-10).
- Jordan had 4 kills vs. Long Beach State (1-11), while Tippett added 3 kills.
- Tippett had 4 kills vs. Pepperdine (1-17).
IAN GALLAGHER
The opposite hitter job could go to 6-6 junior Ian Gallagher, who started 13 matches at outside hitter last year (he came to USC as a setter).
- He had a team-best 15 kills and 4 blocks vs. UCLA (1-10).
- He had a team-high 10 kills and 3 blocks vs. Long Beach State (1-11).
- He had a team-high 22 kills (hitting .351) with 5 digs and 3 blocks vs. Pacific (1-11).
OTHER RETURNEES
The other returning squadmen have limited USC experience 6-7 junior outside hitter Phil Peterson, 6-4 sophomore outside hitter Charley Witt, 6-2 sophomore opposite hitter Owen Hanson and 5-10 redshirt freshman libero Evan Burden. Peterson (a part-time starter at San Diego State in 2000) saw brief action last year, Witt has yet to play while slowed with a foot injury, Hanson also has not seen action yet at USC and Burden (the younger brother of USC's former 3-year starting libero, Greg) redshirted in 2002.
- Burden had 5 digs vs. Pacific (1-11).
- Burden had 5 digs vs. Pepperdine (1-17).
FRESHMEN
USC's three new freshmen could have an immediate impact6-4 outside hitter Derek Otte and a pair of Brazilians in 6-5 opposite hitter Thiago Barbosa and 6-2 libero-outside hitter Joao Grangeiro. Otte, a two-time All-CIF first teamer who made Volleyball magazine's Fab 50 list, joined Tippett on the 2002 USA men's junior national team. Grangeiro was a member of Brazil's junior national team that won the 2001 World Championship, while both he and Barbosa played on several Brazilian state championship club teams.
- Grangeiro had a match-best 14 digs vs. UCLA (1-10).
- Grangeiro had a team-best 6 digs vs. Long Beach State (1-11), while Otte added 5 kills.
- Grangeiro started at outside hitter vs. Pacific (1-11) and had 18 kills and a match-best 13 digs, while Otte had 8 kills, 7 digs and 2 blocks.
- Grangeiro had 7 digs while playing both libero and outside hitter vs. Pepperdine (1-17).
NOTES
Miles McGann is a business major at USC with a team-best 3.83 GPA...Several USC players have Trojan relatives Evan Burden's brother, Greg, was USC's libero for 3 seasons (2000-02). Miles McGann's brother, Grant, played water polo at USC in 1997. Several dozen of Marcus and J.T. Gilmour's relatives attended USC, including his mother and father. Charley Witt is a fourth generation Trojan his father, Bob, played water polo at USC and his great grandfather (John Elmore, who lettered at fullback in 1914 for the Trojan football team) and grandfather are Trojan alums. Blake Tippett is a third generation Trojan (his uncle, Hunt Williams, played soccer at USC). Peter Jordan's grandparents and an aunt attended USC. Derek Otte's sister, Luzanne, is a USC grad...Charley Witt's brothers, Andy and Larry, played volleyball at Stanford...Chris McKniff's parents were athletes his father, John, played basketball at Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, while his mother, Sharon (Callahan), placed ninth in the high jump for the U.S. at the 1968 Olympics as just a 16-year-old...Joao Grangeiro's father, Joao, played volleyball for Brazil in the 1980 Olympics...Mark Dusharme's sister, Michelle, played softball at Doane.
