Long Beach Earn 4th Championship
Beginning to end, The Beach looked like the best team in the country.
Freshman phenom, Moni Nikolov, received an accomplishment that his brother never had: a national championship. In a performance befitting the new ace-king, Nikolov added 4 aces to his record season, along with 6 kills. It was no surprise when he was handed the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player award after the match.
The big question now is “will Moni stay?” Personally, I don’t think he will. The money is one factor, but the experience of playing at an even higher level is another. I won’t be surprised when we hear about his professional transition.
On the UCLA side, their three-peat bit fell short. Although they are graduating three starters from this squad (in addition to Ido David), there is a lot of talent left in Westwood. If Andrew Rowan is running the offense, this team is a thread to win a national championship in 2026.
Another year, another championship in the books. Thanks to everyone who enjoyed the ride. This community is a special one and I am thrilled to be apart of it for yet another year.
Championship Score
#1 Long Beach (60%) def. #3 UCLA (40%)
3-0 (25-17, 25-23, 25-21)
Alex Kandev led all players with 13 kills with a .450% hitting percentage. Nato Dickinson, who has seen significant playing time at the end of the season, added 7 kills on .417%.
Kellen Larson may have only recorded 4 digs, but his server receive kept the Beach in this match. He is going to be a Libero to watch out for years because he is only a Freshman!
VBelo Ratings
I will get more into this later, but here are the final VBelo rankings for the 2025 season. Enjoy!
Great season riding the waves with you here.
Next year is today and the portal will be important. That said, Hawaii looks to be the squad with the most returning talent. It will be an interesting couple of months whereupon the coaches who fill the vacancies best will be in Los Angeles competing for a title with my frontrunner UH.