Sotiris Siapanis, Long Beach State  Men's Volleyball Offensive Player of the Week  Sophomore • Outside Hitter • Limassol, Cyprus

• Sotiris Siapanis averaged 3.50 kills per set to lead No. 4 Long Beach State to a home-and-home series sweep over No. 5 UC Irvine and a share of a second straight conference regular-season title, earning a first Big West Offensive Player of the Week honor.
• The third-year sophomore and first-year Ohio State transfer contributed 4.25 points, 2.50 digs and 0.63 blocks per set against the Anteaters. Siapanis served three aces, collected two set assists and attacked at a .311 (28-9-61) clip.
• Hailing from Limassol on the southern coast of Cyprus, Siapanis began the series by providing match highs of 12 kills, nine digs, two aces (tied) and 16.0 total points in Friday night’s straight-set decision in Long Beach, adding three total blocks (one solo) and a set assist.
• Then in a thrilling reverse sweep in Irvine on Saturday, Siapanis produced a fourth double-double for 2023 of a team-high 16 kills and 11 digs, hitting .344 (16-5-32) with two block assists, one ace and another set assist for a team-best 18.0 points. The 16th kill came on the title-clinching third match point for 15-13 in the deciding fifth.
• Siapanis was The Big West Defensive Player of the Week on Feb. 6. The outside hitter gives Long Beach State (20-3, 9-1 Big West) three Big West Offensive Player of the Week selections for 2023, as teammate Clarke Godbold was a two-time recipient (Jan. 30 and April 10). The Beach enter the postseason as winners of a season-high eight in a row.

Also Nominated: Ryan Ka (UC San Diego); Luke Krzmarzick (CSUN); Ryan Wilcox (UC Santa Barbara)

Simon Torwie, Long Beach State  Men's Volleyball Defensive Player of the Week  Junior • Middle Blocker • Artà, Balearic Islands, Spain

• Simon Torwie yet again anchored the No. 4 Long Beach State defense during a sweep of its home-and-home series with No. 5 UC Irvine, garnering a league-best fifth Big West Defensive Player of the Week recognition for this season (sixth career).
• The third-year junior middle blocker who continues to top all of Division I-II at 1.62 blocks per set, averaged 1.63 (13 total) in the two victories over the Anteaters that clinched a share of a second successive Big West regular-season crown.
• Torwie wound up with five block assists on Friday in a sweep at the Walter Pyramid, alongside three kills, one ace and a dig for 6.5 total points.
• During a reverse sweep in Saturday’s rematch in Irvine, Torwie led all players with eight total blocks and a career-high-tying three solo denials, to go with two kills and two digs for 7.5 points. With Torwie’s help at the net, UC Irvine hit just .195 for the weekend, while the Beach averaged 3.25 blocks per set as a team.
• A native of the Balearic Islands in Spain, Torwie’s previous awards were on Jan. 30, Feb. 20, March 13 and April 3 of this year, following a first one back on April 11, 2022. Beach student-athletes picked up a league-leading eight of the 15 defensive honors in this 2023 campaign from three different standouts, including the final three.

Also Nominated: Dayne Chalmers (UC Santa Barbara); Josh Schellinger (UC San Diego); Guilherme Voss (Hawai’i)
 

Josh Schellinger, UC San Diego  Men's Volleyball Freshman of the Week  Redshirt Freshman • Outside Hitter • Bloomingdale, Ill.

• Josh Schellinger averaged 3.43 points and 3.00 kills per set for UC San Diego in two losses at No. 1 Hawai’i, netting the outside hitter a league-high fourth Big West Freshman of the Week honor.
• The redshirt freshman put down a match-high 12 kills over three frames in Saturday night’s rematch, attacking at a .292 (12-5-24) rate while adding six digs, a solo block and one set assist for 13.0 total points.
• In Friday night’s initial meeting, Schellinger collected nine kills, five digs, two block assists and a service ace for 11.0 points.
• The product of Bloomingdale, Ill., has played in 23 of 24 contests, drawing 18 starts, and has reached double digits in kills 10 times.
• Schellinger’s fourth Big West Freshman of the Week nod broke a tie with UC Irvine’s Maxim Grigoriev, with prior awards on Jan. 23, Feb. 20 and Feb. 27. The selection actually broke a second tie, as UC San Diego totaled six of the 15 rookie awards from three different players (Evan Boyle on Jan. 9 and Jim Garrison on April 10), to top UCI’s five.

Also Nominated: Connor Bloom (Long Beach State)
 

2023 Big West Men's Volleyball Weekly Winners