Jan. 6, 2000

The 2000 Bruins - The seventh ranked UCLA Bruins (Volleyball Magazine) begin the 2000 season with eight returning lettermen and three returning starters, including three-time All-America setter Brandon Taliaferro. Other returning starters are second team All-MPSF selection Mark Williams and three-year letterman Evan Thatcher. Among the top returnees are senior two-year lettermen Matt Davis and Seth Burnham, senior Ed Ratledge, junior Seth Champi and sophomore outside hitter Matt Komer.

UCLA Coach Al Scates - Begins his 38th campaign with an overall record of 966-154 (.863). Scates has won 17 national championships, an NCAA single sport record. His career coaching record leads all NCAA volleyball coaches in every division of both genders. He is the only volleyball coach to have guided three teams to undefeated records (1979, 1982 and 1984) and four teams to four consecutive NCAA titles (1981-84). In 1998, Scates captured a rare trifecta: earning the AVCA, U.S. Olympic Committee and USA Volleyball Coach of the Year honors.

Bruin All-Americans - Senior setter Brandon Taliaferro (San Clemente High) will be the Bruins career leader in set assists and aces before his final season is complete. He could also finish his career as UCLA's top digger with an outstanding defensive effort in 2000. Over the summer, Taliaferro traveled to Mallorca, Spain with the World University Games Team (coached by Scates).

Bruin All-Conference Players - Junior outside hitter Mark Williams (University High, West L.A.) returns as one of the league's top players at his position. Last season, he led the Bruins with 231 digs (fifth on the single season UCLA charts) and raised his hitting percentage by 0.84 from his freshman season. Williams spent the summer training with the Australian Olympic Team, for which he will play in the 2000 Summer Games. (He was born in Sydney in 1979.)

Other Returnees - Senior opposite Evan Thatcher (San Dieguito) begins his third season as a starter with 678 career kills and a career attack percentage of .284. A starter on the 1998 NCAA title team, Thatcher has career highs of 30 kills and 14 digs in a match. Senior Seth Burnham (Harbor, Santa Cruz) begins his first season as a starter in the middle. He has a total of six matches of experience and sat out last year because of a knee injury. Senior Ed Ratledge (Fountain Valley) was a valuable backup last season after transferring from Long Beach State in 1998. He entered the UCLA record books in two places last season when he pounded 19 kills in a game at BYU and served six aces in a match against UC San Diego. Senior Matt Davis (San Dieguito) played in 20 matches a year ago and established career highs for kills (18), digs (21) and blocks (7). He also hit .310. Junior Seth Champi (Hanford, Fresno)started three matches last season and figures to be the front-runner to start next to Burnham in the middle.

The Newcomers - The Bruins have at least four newcomers who figure to make a significant impact on the 2000 team. Twenty-one year-old freshman Cameron Mount (Dos Pueblos, Santa Barbara) will step into the starting role at outside hitter, freshman Scott Morrow (LaCosta Canyon) figures to battle Champi for time at the middle blocker's spot and sophomore David Lin (University, Irvine) and freshman Ryan Kittel (Redondo Union)will compete for playing time at the newly adopted libero position.

The Schedule - The Bruins will compete in the Wyndham Gardens West Coast Challenge, Jan. 7-8, hosted by UC Irvine. UCLA meets top ranked Long Beach State on Jan. 7 at 7:30 p.m. in the Bren Center, followed by a doubleheader on Jan. 8 vs. Pacific at 11:30 a.m. and host UC Irvine at 7:30 p.m. UCLA will host a pair of exhibitions the following week: Jan. 14 vs. the Alumni at 7 p.m. and Jan. 19 vs. the University of Manitoba. First serve for both matches begins at 7 p.m. in Pauley Pavilion.

UCLA VB Quick Facts

Dec. 28 UCLA d. Alberta, 4-1*
Dec. 29 UCLA d. Montreal, 4-1*
Dec. 29 UCLA d. British Columbia, 4-1*
Dec. 30 UCLA d. Alberta, 4-1*

Bruin Starters:

 #1 Seth Burnham, 6-7, Sr., Q, Santa Cruz, CA
 #3 Brandon Taliaferro, 6-5, Sr., S, San Clemente, CA.
 #5 Mark Williams, 6-7, Jr., OH, Los Angeles, CA
 #6 Seth Champi, 6-6, Jr., Q, Hanford, CA
 #9 Evan Thatcher, 6-8, Sr., Op, Encinitas, CA
#16 Cameron Mount, 6-8, Fr., OH, Santa Barbara, CA