No. 10 USC Men's Volleyball Visits Anteaters, Hosts Gauchos in Home Opener

LOS ANGELES – The 10th-ranked USC men's volleyball team (4-1) rides a four-match win streak as it takes on a pair of ranked Big West opponents this week. The Trojans head to Irvine, Calif., for a Wednesday-night meeting (Jan. 18) with No. 7 UC Irvine (3-0) at 7 p.m. PT and then host No. 12-ranked UC Santa Barbara (1-4) in their home opener on Thursday (Jan. 19) at Galen Center. The first 1,000 fans in attendance at Galen Center on Thursday receive a special promotional T-shirt.

MATCH #6 • Wednesday, January 18 • 7 p.m. PT
No. 10 USC (4-1) at No. 7 UC Irvine (3-0)
Bren Events Center • Irvine, Calif.
SERIES RECORD: USC leads, 42-34 (.553)
LAST MEETING: W 3-2 (Jan. 28, 2022 • Irvine, Calif.)
STREAK: Won 2 • LAST 10 MEETINGS: 4-6
TV/STREAM: ESPN+
OPPONENT WEBSITE: UCIrvineSports.com

MATCH #7 • Thursday, January 19 • 7 p.m. PT
No. 10 USC (4-1) vs. No. 12 UC Santa Barbara (1-4)
Galen Center • Los Angeles, Calif.
SERIES RECORD: USC leads, 58-57 (.504)
LAST MEETING: L 1-3 (Jan. 5, 2023 • Santa Barbara, Calif.)
STREAK: Lost 1 • LAST 10 MEETINGS: 4-6
TV/STREAM: USC Live Stream (Max Kelton)
OPPONENT WEBSITE: UCSBGauchos.com

FIRST SERVE (TL;DR)

USC is led by eighth-year head coach Jeff Nygaard, a three-time Olympian in indoor and beach volleyball and a two-time NCAA champion.
The Trojans are currently ranked 10th in the AVCA Div I-II Coaches Poll. USC is 0-1 against ranked opponents this season (No. 7 UCSB, Jan. 5).
USC enters this week on a season-long four-match win streak and has won nine sets in a row.
Jr. S Nate Tennant was chosen as the Off the Block National Setter of the Week after leading USC to back-to-back 3-0 wins last week.
USC returns All-American OPP Simon Gallas who ranks eighth in the MPSF for points (3.50 pps) and is 10th in kills (2.72 kps).
The Trojans add All-American OH Kevin Kobrine; a grad transfer from UCLA this season. He was an All-MPSF choice in 2022 and follows brother Sam Kobrine who also transferred after four years at UCLA in 2021.
USC MB Lucas Frassrand returns after an All-America honorable mention campaign as a junior. His .467 hitting percentage is third in the MPSF.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Lucas Frassrand

Simon Gallas

Kevin Kobrine

Sam Kobrine

Nate Tennant