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Seven players from Europe have been awarded new college men’s volleyball honor.
Off the Block announced on Sunday that Barton’s Angelos Mandilaris, Hawai’i’s Rado Parapunov and Stijn van Tilburg, Limestone’s Florian Ruhm, Long Beach State’s Simon Anderson and Ohio State’s Maxime Hervoir and Nicolas Szerszen were named to the inaugural Off the Block All-European Team.
The All-European Team recognizes the best NCAA men’s volleyball players from European nations during the season. In addition, the All-European Team is comprised of the top seven players, regardless of position, and selected by the Off the Block editors and contributors.
Both Hawai’i and Ohio State led all schools with two players making the All-European Team. Barton, Limestone and the NCAA champions Long Beach each had one player earn a spot on the team.
The All-European Team was created in an effort to celebrate the contributions of European players to college men’s volleyball. Numerous student-athletes from European nations in NCAA men’s volleyball history have earned All-American honors and helped their teams win championships.
Six European nations — Bulgaria, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece and the Netherlands — are represented on this year’s All-European Team.
Off the Block is a website that launched in 2011 and is the nation’s leader in college men’s volleyball coverage.
2018 Off the Block All-European Team
Opposite: Angelos Mandilaris, Barton (Greece)
Opposite: Rado Parapunov, Hawai’i (Bulgaria)
Outside attacker: Nicolas Szerszen, Ohio State (France)
Outside attacker: Maxime Hervoir, Ohio State (France)
Outside attacker: Stijn van Tilburg, Hawai’i (Netherlands)
Middle attacker: Simon Anderson, Long Beach State (Denmark)
Libero: Florian Ruhm, Limestone (Germany)
Simon Anderson, Long Beach State (Denmark)
Anderson had a .471 attack percentage and at least five kills in 17 regular season matches, including a season-high nine kills while hitting .500 in a victory against UCLA in February. The Freshman All-American also was among the national leaders with a 0.80 blocks per game average as he helped Long Beach State win the NCAA championship.
Maxime Hervoir, Ohio State (France)
Hervoir finished in the top 10 of the MIVA with both a 3.30 kills per game average and a .320 attack percentage to help Ohio State reach the VolleyFour. The All-MIVA selection also had double-digit kills in 21 matches, including a season-high 24 kills while hitting .463 in a victory against Loyola in March.
Angelos Mandilaris, Barton (Greece)
Mandilaris led all international players and was fifth in the nation with a 3.97 kills per game average as he helped Barton win a share the ConfCarolinas regular season title. The 2018 ConfCarolinas Player of the Year also had double-digit kills in all but two matches this season and had a season-high 22 kills while hitting .375 in a victory against Mount Olive in April.
Rado Parapunov, Hawai’i (Bulgaria)
Parapunov was in the nation’s top 20 averaging 3.55 kills per game, including having 19 kills and a season-high seven digs in a five-game victory against previously undefeated Long Beach State in April. He also was among the Big West leaders with 23 aces and a 0.79 blocks per game average as he helped the Rainbow Warriors finish in second place in the conference.
Florian Ruhm, Limestone (Germany)
Ruhm led the nation with both a 3.16 digs per game average and 316 digs. The Freshman All-American libero had double-digit digs in 16 regular season matches, including a season-high 20 digs in a four-game victory against North Greenville in February.
Nicolas Szerszen, Ohio State (France)
Szerszen, the 2018 International Player of the Year, led all pin hitters in the nation with a .388 attack percentage and was 11th in the nation among all players averaging 3.76 kills per game. In three NCAA Tournament matches, Szerszen had a combined 52 kills. The 2018 MIVA Player of the Year and All-American also was fourth in the country with a 0.56 aces per game average as he helped Ohio State win the MIVA championship and reach the VolleyFour.
Stijn van Tilburg, Hawai’i (Netherlands)
van Tilburg was sixth in the nation with a 3.93 kills per game average and in the top 20 of the country with a .328 attack percentage. The All-American also had at least 20 kills in four regular season matches as he helped the Rainbow Warriors finish in second place in the Big West and No. 5 in the national coaches poll.