[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 88 (Wednesday, June 19, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E917-E918]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




CONGRATULATING THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE'S MEN'S VOLLEYBALL 
                                  TEAM

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JOHN CAMPBELL

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 19, 2013

  Mr. CAMPBELL. Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate the 
University of California, Irvine's (UCI) men's volleyball team for 
winning the 2013 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) 
Division I Men's Volleyball National Championship. This is UCI's fourth 
Men's Volleyball Championship in the last seven years. They previously 
won in 2007, 2009 and 2012. UCI is the first school to win back-to-back 
NCAA Championships since UCLA in 1995 and 1996. This marks the 28th 
overall NCAA Division I Championship for UC Irvine overall.
  UCI, which swept USC in the final a year ago, is the first school to 
sweep in the NCAA Championship match in back-to-back years since UCLA 
in 1982 and 1983. UCI joins UCLA, Pepperdine and USC as the only 
programs to have won four titles. UCI is now 4-0 in NCAA championship 
matches and 8-1 all-time in the NCAA Tournament.
  UCI' s Connor Hughes was named the tournament's Most Outstanding 
Player. He joined Chris Austin, Michael Brinkley, Collin Mehring and 
Kevin Tillie on the All-Tournament Team. Hughes, Austin and Tillie were 
selected for the second consecutive year.
  UCI was 25-7 overall, the second most wins in the country this 
season. They finished second in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation 
(MPSF) with an 18-6 mark. The Anteaters' 25 wins this year are fifth 
most in a season, while the 18 league wins were third. They began the 
year ranked No. 1 and end the year ranked No. 1. They were also ranked 
either No. 1 or No. 2 for 13 of 17 weeks this season.
  UCI was 21-0 on the year when producing more kills than its opponent 
and 25-0 when out-hitting its opponent. They had 17 blocks in the title 
match, the second most in a match this season. The Anteaters hit .500 
against

[[Page E918]]

Loyola in the semifinals, their second-best hitting percentage on the 
year.
  Sophomore libero Michael Brinkley had 290 digs this season which was 
third on UCI's single-season digs list. Kevin Tillie and Michael 
Brinkley were named first team All-Americans, while Collin Mehring was 
a second team All-American selection. Tillie and Brinkley were also 
named to the All-MPSF first team, while Mehring and Scott Kevorken were 
named to the second team.
  UCI started the season by winning the UCSB Invitational where Collin 
Mehring was named MVP. Jeremy Dejno was named AVCA National Player of 
the Week on Jan. 8, while Klye Russell garnered the award on April 9.
  Congratulations to head coach, David Kniffin, who is just the second 
coach in the 44-year history of NCAA men's volleyball to coach a team 
to the NCAA Championship in his first season, and the men's volleyball 
team of UCI, for winning the 2013 NCAA Division I Men's Volleyball 
National Championship. I am proud to recognize the achievements of the 
players, coaches, students, alumni, and staff who were instrumental in 
helping UCI win the national title.
  It is an honor to represent University of California, Irvine, under 
the leadership of Chancellor Michael V. Drake, M.D., as it continues to 
establish itself as a world-class research university, and as one of 
the top universities in the Nation.

                          ____________________