Sani; Grigoriev Earn Big West Weekly Acclaim
April 03, 2023 | Men's Volleyball
Opposite Francesco Sani was named Big West Offensive Player of the Week, while middle blocker Maxim Grigoriev was tabbed Freshman of the Week after the Anteaters swept No. 15 CSUN twice last week.
Sani was named Big West Offensive Player of the Week for the second time in his career after averaging 6.17 points, 5.67 kills and 1.33 digs, while hitting .397 (34-7-68) over two wins against the Matadors. The junior was dominant in Northridge with a match-high 23 kills, while hitting .475 (23-4-40). It is the second time this season he has recorded 23 kills, which is tied for fifth most by a Big West player in 2023. He also added four digs. Sani started the week with 11 kills, two aces, four digs and two block assists against the CSUN at the Bren Events Center.
He joins Hilir Henno (Jan. 9 and March 20) and Cole Gillis (Jan. 23) who garnered the honor early this season.
Grigoriev picked up his third Big West Freshman of the Week award, hitting .556 (5-0-9) last week and averaging 1.42 points, 0.83 kills and 0.83 blocks per set in victories over the Matadors. He started with four kills on five attempts without an error (.800) in the first meeting plus added three block assists for 5.5 total points. In the rematch, the middle blocker had a kill, two block assists, one ace and a dig.
UC Irvine has captured a league-best five Big West Freshman of the Week awards in 2023, with William D'Arcy a two-time recipient on Jan. 16 and Feb. 13. With three awards to his name, Grigoriev now shares the individual lead with UC San Diego redshirt freshman Josh Schellinger.
No. 5 UC Irvine, who is 16-6 overall and is the lone unbeaten team in The Big West at 6-0, travels to No. 1 Hawaii this week for a pair of matches, beginning Friday (Apr. 7) at 10:00 p.m. PT.
Sani was named Big West Offensive Player of the Week for the second time in his career after averaging 6.17 points, 5.67 kills and 1.33 digs, while hitting .397 (34-7-68) over two wins against the Matadors. The junior was dominant in Northridge with a match-high 23 kills, while hitting .475 (23-4-40). It is the second time this season he has recorded 23 kills, which is tied for fifth most by a Big West player in 2023. He also added four digs. Sani started the week with 11 kills, two aces, four digs and two block assists against the CSUN at the Bren Events Center.
He joins Hilir Henno (Jan. 9 and March 20) and Cole Gillis (Jan. 23) who garnered the honor early this season.
Grigoriev picked up his third Big West Freshman of the Week award, hitting .556 (5-0-9) last week and averaging 1.42 points, 0.83 kills and 0.83 blocks per set in victories over the Matadors. He started with four kills on five attempts without an error (.800) in the first meeting plus added three block assists for 5.5 total points. In the rematch, the middle blocker had a kill, two block assists, one ace and a dig.
UC Irvine has captured a league-best five Big West Freshman of the Week awards in 2023, with William D'Arcy a two-time recipient on Jan. 16 and Feb. 13. With three awards to his name, Grigoriev now shares the individual lead with UC San Diego redshirt freshman Josh Schellinger.
No. 5 UC Irvine, who is 16-6 overall and is the lone unbeaten team in The Big West at 6-0, travels to No. 1 Hawaii this week for a pair of matches, beginning Friday (Apr. 7) at 10:00 p.m. PT.
Players Mentioned
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