Ohio State Sweeps MIVA Decade Awards
12/12/2019 3:40:54 PM | Men's Volleyball
ADDITIONAL INFO
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COLUMBUS, Ohio – Pete Hanson, Nicolas Szerszen and the 2017 Buckeyes were all named the past decade’s best in the MIVA according to Off the Block. Hanson was tabbed as the MIVA Coach of the Decade, Szerszen as MIVA Player of the Decade and the ’17 Buckeyes as MIVA Team of the Decade.
Off the Block Releases:
Retired Ohio State coach Hanson named MIVA Coach of the Decade
Former Ohio State outside Szerszen named MIVA Player of the Decade
2017 NCAA champs Ohio State named MIVA Team of the Decade
Three NCAA national championship trophies made their way to Columbus in the 2010’s, including back-to-back crowns in 2016 and 2017.
Current Ohio State head coach Kevin Burch garnered three votes, fourth most among the MIVA Coach of the Year candidates. Burch ended seven consecutive academic years a national champion from 2010-17 for OSU, Springfield College, UC Irvine and Penn State (women).
Shawn Sangrey nabbed a vote for the MIVA Player of the Year as well.
*award winner bios from Off the Block below
Hanson in 2011 guided the Buckeyes to the program’s first NCAA championship and then to back-to-back NCAA titles in 2016 and 2017. The Buckeyes under Hanson also won a conference-best five MIVA championships during the decade.
Hanson earlier this year following his 35th season with Ohio State announced his retirement and concluded his tenure as the winningest coach in program history with 700 career victories.
The Buckeyes since 2010 have seven seasons with at least 20 wins and a cumulative record of 216-85. In addition, Ohio State set a MIVA record winning 42 consecutive matches from 2016-17 and that included sweeping BYU in the 2016 NCAA Tournament finals.
Final voting results:
Pete Hanson (Ohio State) | 21 votes
Shane Davis (Loyola Chicago) | 7 votes
Dan Friend (Lewis) | 7 votes
Kevin Burch (Ohio State) | 3 votes
Szerszen set the Ohio State record with both 1,678 career kills and 238 aces. The French outside attacker also was third in school history with 783 career digs, the most for any non-libero, and was in the program’s top 15 with a .373 career attack percentage.
Szerszen as a junior finished in the nation’s top 10 with both a 3.73 kills per game and a .389 attack percentage and averaged a nation-best 0.64 aces per game. In addition, Szerszen had a match-high 16 kills while hitting .480 as Ohio State swept BYU in the 2017 NCAA Tournament finals to repeat as national champions.
In sophomore season, Szerszen became one of the youngest players in college men’s volleyball history to win the National Player of the Year. The three-time All-American ended that season in the nation’s top 10 averaging 4.31 kills per game and 0.53 aces per game, including having a combined 45 kills in the Buckeyes’three NCAA Tournament matches.
Szerszen during his senior season won his third consecutive MIVA Player of the Year honor and led the Buckeyes to their third consecutive MIVA championship.
He also concluded that year among the national leaders with a 3.76 kills per game average and a 2.19 digs per game average.
Final voting results:
Nicolas Szerszen (Ohio State) | 20 votes
Thomas Jaeschke (Loyola Chicago) | 15 votes
Geoff Powell (Lewis) | 2 votes
Shawn Sangrey (Ohio State) | 1 vote
The Buckeyes set single-season program records 32 victory and a .941 winning en route to winning their second consecutive national championship.
Ohio State was ranked No. 1 throughout the entire season and opened the year on a 19-match winning streak, including victories against then-No. 2 UCLA and then-No. 4 Long Beach State. The team went undefeated in conference play and defeated Quincy, Ball State and Grand Canyon in the MIVA Tournament to repeat as conference champions.
In the NCAA Tournament that took place at their home arena, Ohio State hit more than .350 in sweeps against Hawai’i and BYU.
Final voting results:
2017 Ohio State | 16 votes
2014 Loyola Chicago | 10 votes
2016 Ohio State | 7 votes
2015 Loyola Chicago | 3 votes
