Men’s Volleyball: ZLC elevates play to lift UCI
Humility, respect and deference to authority are not necessarily the building blocks for an alpha athlete.
And in the case of UC Irvine senior Zack La Cavera, his predilection for politeness has, at times, stunted an ascension to men’s volleyball stardom.
But the 6-foot-4 opposite seems to have finally grown comfortable with the notion that he can, in fact, be The Man, as well as the boy next door.
“Zack, in so many ways, is the ultimate team player,” said UCI Coach David Kniffin, whose No. 4-ranked Anteaters (24-4) wrap up the regular season by playing host to Mountain Pacific Sports Federation rival UC San Diego on Saturday at 7 p.m. “He’s a guy who will step up if he’s needed, but not a guy who is going to go in and steal the limelight for the sake of being the top dog.”
La Cavera has elevated his game lately, earning MPSF Player of the Week honors the last two weeks and helping UCI win six straight matches. The ‘Eaters (18-3 in conference) can claim at least a share of the MPSF regular-season title with a win over UCSD and a Hawaii loss in two matches this weekend at BYU. If UCI does wind up tied atop the standings with Hawaii, it would be the No. 1 seed for the MPSF Tournament, which would then hold its semifinals and final at UCI.
A two-year starter who contributed to NCAA championships in 2012 and 2013, La Cavera leads the ‘Eaters in kills (363, leaving him 26 shy of 1,000 for his career), points per set (3.67) and aces (38). His 130 digs are second on the squad and his 81 total blocks rank third. He has a .335 hitting percentage for the season and posted a career-high 22 kills in an April 8 win at UC Santa Barbara.
Kniffin said La Cavera’s increased production has been a natural progression, as well as a concerted effort.
“Last year, [La Cavera] was physically good enough to step up at times, but he was always waiting for someone else to do it, or for someone else to have that glory moment,” Kniffin said. “I forget sometimes that greatness can’t just be assumed with these guys, or with anyone. Sometimes when we want greatness, we have to ask for it. So very early we started preparing Zack for that reality this year. Very recently, we’ve been asking him to be great and he has responded and has just been awesome for us.”
La Cavera, the 2011 CIF Southern Section Division I Player of the Year after leading Mater Dei High to the program’s first section championship, said his unwillingness to pound his own chest was a product of his upbringing.
“Growing up in my family, our parents made sure us kids were pretty humble,” La Cavera said. “And, competing with my older brother [former UC Santa Cruz All-American Salvatore La Cavera] in every facet of life. I always lost whatever competition I had with him. So, I was not that cocky kid growing up, because I was always getting humbled.”
Kniffin also acknowledged La Cavera’s upbringing as a causal effect of his unselfishness.
“I think he so respects authority, and because of his desire to be in a family environment and in a healthy team environment, he’s very quick to allow the role of the leader, or the person in the spotlight, to go wherever it needs to go,” Kniffin said. “The first place I give credit is to his family because of the character traits he has grown up with. In a competitive moment, I’m not worried about his skill and I’m not worried about his character.”
La Cavera’s skill set includes, Kniffin said, jumping ability, athleticism and intelligence.
“He does have mobility limitations, but because he is so explosive and he has learned to be so successful with the skill set that he has, you see the best of what he’s got on a pretty consistent basis,” Kniffin said. “And that’s special.”
True to his nature, La Cavera said his teammates are most responsible for the rise in his level of play.
“I don’t really think I did anything differently to help me play as well as I’ve been playing these last few weeks,” said La Cavera, who ranks second among all players in MPSF contests in points (4.59) and kills (3.72) per set. “I think our team is really meshing well right now and I think that has been helping my comfort levels with the team. The guys on the team have been helping me play the best I can and encouraging me to go for some swings that in past years, I haven’t felt as comfortable going for. I’ve been striving to improve myself, but I know this team is not going to win a national championship on myself alone. And it’s not like we are going to win because I have 30 kills in a match or hit .500. It’s going to take a whole team effort. So I have realized, as I’ve progressed through my college career, that with the great players we have, I don’t have to just trust myself, but that I can put a lot of trust in my teammates to help pull out matches as well.”
A political science major with an emphasis on international relations, La Cavera said he plans to gain some post-graduate seasoning by pursuing a professional volleyball career overseas.
And Kniffin said La Cavera will receive the opportunity to pay for play.
But don’t expect the contract negotiations to include any sort of demand for the spotlight.