IRVINE, Calif. - The Big West announced its annual men's volleyball all-conference awards Monday and two University of California San Diego scholar-athletes were recognized as
Kyle McCauley was named to the first team and
Shane Benetz picked up honorable mention.
A senior outside hitter, McCauley is now a two-time All-Big West First Team selection. He leads the 13th-ranked Tritons in points, kills, attack attempts, and aces and is second in digs. In the national rankings, he is 13th in service aces per set, 25th in kills per set, and 29th in points per set. Among all Big West players in conference matches, McCauley finished third in aces, fifth in points, fifth in kills, and sixth in digs. A starter in all 15 of the team's matches, he has totaled at least 10 kills in 13 contests.
McCauley, a 2020 AVCA All-American and Newcomer of the Year, is an urban studies and planning major at Sixth College.
Benetz, a junior middle blocker, is hitting a team-best .351 with 87 kills and 21 errors in 188 attack attempts. He ranks 20th in the nation in hitting percentage. In Big West matches, his 35 blocks rank fifth and his .355 hitting percentage is sixth among all league players. Benetz is the Tritons' top blocker with 42 stuffs and a 0.8 blocks per set average.
A 2020 Big West All-Academic performer, Benetz is a computer engineering major out of Warren College.
UC San Diego finished its regular season at 3-12 with a 3-7 mark in Big West play. The Tritons are the fourth seed in this week's six-team conference tournament and will play fifth-seeded CSUN in a first round match Thursday in Honolulu.
The Big West's three annual major awards - Player of the Year, Freshman of the Year, and Coach of the Year - will be announced on April 27.
| 2021 ALL-BIG WEST FIRST TEAM |
| Player |
School |
Year |
Position |
| Simon Anderson |
Long Beach State |
Senior |
Middle Blocker |
| Colton Cowell |
Hawaii |
Senior |
Outside Hitter |
| Randy DeWeese |
UC Santa Barbara |
Senior |
Opposite |
| Patrick Gasman |
Hawaii |
Senior |
Middle Blocker/Opposite |
| Kyle McCauley |
UC San Diego |
Senior |
Outside Hitter |
| Roy McFarland |
UC Santa Barbara |
Senior |
Outside Hitter |
| Casey McGarry |
UC Santa Barbara |
Senior |
Setter |
| Spencer Olivier |
Long Beach State |
Junior |
Outside Hitter |
| Rado Parapunov |
Hawaii |
Senior |
Opposite |
| Keenan Sanders |
UC Santa Barbara |
Senior |
Middle Blocker |
| Joel Schneidmiller |
UC Irvine |
Senior |
Outside Hitter |
| Scott Stadick |
UC Irvine |
Grad. |
Middle Blocker |
| Daniel Wetter |
CSUN |
Junior |
Middle Blocker |
| Gage Worsley |
Hawaii |
Senior |
Libero |
| 2021 ALL-BIG WEST HONORABLE MENTION |
| Player |
School |
Year |
Position |
| Shane Benetz |
UC San Diego |
Junior |
Middle Blocker |
| Mason Briggs |
Long Beach State |
Sophomore |
Libero |
| Chaz Galloway |
Hawaii |
Sophomore |
Outside Hitter |
| Jakob Thelle |
Hawaii |
Junior |
Setter |
| Ryan Wilcox |
UC Santa Barbara |
Junior |
Outside Hitter |
| 2021 BIG WEST ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM |
| Player |
School |
Position |
| Connor Cambell |
UC Irvine |
Middle Blocker |
| Spyros Chakas |
Hawaii |
Outside Hitter |
| Cole Gillis |
UC Irvine |
Outside Hitter |
| Clarke Gobold |
Long Beach State |
Outside Hitter |
| Kyle Merchen |
CSUN |
Setter |
| Francesco Sani |
UC Irvine |
Outside Hitter |
| Simon Torwie |
Long Beach State |
Opposite |
| Dylan Zhai |
UC Irvine |
Setter |
UP NEXT - THE BIG WEST TOURNAMENT
All six Big West squads head to Honolulu, Hawaii, for the conference tournament, which runs April 22-24 at SimpliFi Arena at the Stan Sheriff Center. All seeds have been established with tourney host Hawaii at No. 1, UC Santa Barbara at No. 2, Long Beach State at No. 3, UC San Diego at No. 4, CSUN at No. 5, and UC Irvine at No. 6.
Hawaii and UCSB receive first round byes and advance directly to the semifinals. In the opening round, Long Beach State plays UC Irvine and UC San Diego plays CSUN with the two winners moving on to the semis. The Tritons are 2-0 against the Matadors this season, winning 3-0 in Northridge, and 3-2 in La Jolla.
The tournament champion earns an automatic berth in the NCAA National Collegiate Championships. This year's tourney will be the third for the Big West as the inaugural event was held in 2018 and the 2020 event was canceled due to the pandemic. In 2019, Hawaii (which hosted that year's Big West tourney as well) defeated Long Beach State in five sets to win the league title. In 2018, host Long Beach State swept Hawaii for the championship.
Thursday, April 22 - First Round
7:30 pm: No. 3 Long Beach State vs. No. 6 UC Irvine
10:00 pm: No. 4 UC San Diego vs. No. 5 CSUN
Friday, April 23 - Semifinals
7:30 pm: No. 2 UC Santa Barbara vs. No. 3/6 winner
10:00 pm: No. 1 Hawaii vs. No. 4/5 winner
Saturday, April 24 - Final
10:00 pm: Semifinal winners
* all times PDT
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About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions III and II and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.
Return To Sport… Safely
In order for UC San Diego scholar-athletes to be permitted to return to training and competition safely and within federal, state, local, and university guidelines, the athletic department implemented a number of measures designed to complement and enhance the university's highly-successful Return To Learn program. Notable actions include being physically distanced when practical, including during out-of-season training sessions; wearing masks, except when undergoing physically strenuous exercise; and maintaining proper hygiene. Athletes, coaches, and staff are testing at a higher frequency than the campus population, teams adhere to CDC, NCAA, and Big West Conference guidelines, and department officials participate in regular meetings with conference and university-affiliated physicians and the UC San Diego emergency operations staff.
