‘Eaters’ Jablonsky earns top honor

UC Irvine junior outside hitter Jayson Jablonsky, who helped lead the Anteaters to their first conference championship in men’s volleyball this season, has been named Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Player of the Year.

Jabonsky is one of three Anteaters to earn top honors. Libero Brent Asuka was named Freshman of the Year and John Speraw, who guided the Anteaters to the No. 1 national ranking and a 20-0 conference campaign in his fourth season at the helm, was named Coach of the Year.

Jablonsky and Asuka are also first-team All-MPSF selections.

UCI junior opposite Matt Webber and junior setter Brian Thornton earned second-team recognition.

UCI sophomore middle blocker Aaron Harrell is a third-team honoree, while junior middle blocker David Smith received honorable mention.

Jablonsky, who averaged 4.3 kills and 5.1 points per game in MPSF competition, becomes the first Anteater to earn Player of the Year laurels.

Asuka, who led the MPSF with 3.2 digs per game in conference play, is the program’s first Freshman of the Year. His 318 digs are a school single-season record.

Thornton leads the nation in assists with 13.9 per game, while Webber leads the team with 4.8 kills per game this season.

This collection of talent has helped UCI post a 27-3 record heading into the semifinals of the MPSF Tournament on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at the Bren Events Center against No. 2-ranked Long Beach State.