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Six players based on your votes have an opportunity to win a college men’s volleyball national award for their outstanding performances in February.
George Mason’s Johnny Gomez, Lincoln Memorial’s Pedro Carvalho Long Beach State’s Kyle Ensing, Pepperdine’s David Wieczorek and UCLA’s Daenan Gyimah and Micah Ma’a all advanced to the championship round of the Off the Block/Springbak, Inc. National Player of the Month.
The Off the Block/Springbak National Player of the Month recognizes the best individual performances from NCAA Division I-II men’s volleyball players during the month. In addition, it gives volleyball fans from around the world the chance to determine who was the best player through online voting on the Off the Block website.
The National Player of the Month is a two-round event with the opening round consisting of finalists being placed into one of five ballots based on their position. The five winners on the position ballots advanced to the championship round, along with the runner-up who received the most votes.
Ensing, Gomez, Gyimah, Ma’a and Wieczorek all won their opening-round ballots to reach the finals, while Carvalho received the most votes among the runner-ups on all the ballots.
Online voting for the championship round is underway, and the polls will close at 10 p.m. (CST) Saturday. The individual receiving the most votes will be the National Player of the Month for February.
While there are several weekly awards in college men’s volleyball, this is the only monthly national award presented in the sport.
Springbak, Inc. is the official sponsor of the National Player of the Month and the Fan Choice National Player of the Year at the end of the season. Springbak, Inc. produces high performance footwear used by professional athletes from the NFL, NBA, MLB and U.S. Olympic teams and the top college teams in the nation.
Check out the finalists below for the National Player of the Month in February Individuals can vote using at the poll below or by visiting offtheblockblog.com/playerofmonth.
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Pedro Carvalho, Lincoln Memorial
Carvalho had at least five blocks in four February matches, including a match-high nine blocks in a four-game victory against Coker on Feb. 9. The middle attacker also had a season-high 10 kills in that win versus Coker and had more than a .300 attack percentage in all but one match during the month.
Kyle Ensing, Long Beach State
Esing had double-digit kills in four of No. 1/1 Long Beach State’s five matches in February, which was highlighted by a season-high 19 kills on a .400 attack percentage in a victory against No. 3/3 UCLA last week. In addition, Ensing committed four or fewer attack errors and hit more than .300 in every February match to help the 49ers remain the only undefeated team in the nation.
Johnny Gomez, George Mason
Gomez after missing two matches early in the month returned to the court for the start of conference play and led George Mason with a combined 36 digs in four EIVA matches. The libero had a season-high 15 digs as George Mason defeated St. Francis on Saturday to move into sole possession of first place in the EIVA.
Daenan Gyimah, UCLA
Gyimah finished with at least a .600 attack percentage in five matches and hit more than .300 in all but one of No. 3/3 UCLA’s 10 February matches . The middle attacker also had a combined 14 aces during the month and at least five blocks in four matches.
Micah Ma’a, UCLA
Ma’a helped No. 3/3 UCLA begin the month hitting more than .400 in six consecutive matches. The senior also had five kills in three matches during the month and at least one ace in six matches, including a season-high six aces in a conference sweep against Princeton.
David Wieczorek, Pepperdine
Wieczorek had double-digit kills all of his team’s matches during the month, including a match-high 19 kills while hitting .350 in an upset victory against No. 4/4 UC Irvine on Feb. 14. He also had a season-high four aces in sweep versus No. 3/3 UCLA on Friday and had at least three aces in five February matches.