IRVINE, Calif. – The Big West announced its all-conference honors for Men's Volleyball, with pin hitters George Bruening and Riggs Guy making the All-Freshman Team. Bruening was also named an Honorable Mention to the All-Big West First Team.
 
George Bruening's talent and potential has been on display when healthy this season. The Corona Del Mar grad has 3.18 kills per set overall and 3.27 kills per set in Big West matches, good for sixth in the conference. Bruening had double-digit kills in seven of the team's 10 Big West matches and his .299 hitting percentage is the highest of all qualifying Gauchos. Defensively, the 6-foot-10 redshirt freshman had 0.59 blocks per set in conference matches, the most on the team of any non-middle blocker.
 
Fellow Newport Beach product Riggs Guy missed the last two weeks of the regular season due to injury, but still garnered enough respect from Big West coaches to make the All-Freshman Team. Guy leads the Gauchos with 217 kills and 245 points, amounting to 3.06 kills per set and 3.45 points per set, both second behind Bruening of all qualifying Gauchos. In the two wins over CSUN, the true freshman had 17 and 14 kills, respectively, and was especially crucial in the five-set road win. His 31 total blocks are tied for third on the team—tied for the most of any non-middle blocker—and his 93 digs are good for third outright.
 
Bruening, Guy, and the Gauchos are currently in Hawai'i awaiting a Big West Championship first round matchup with UC San Diego. First serve is set for 7:30 p.m. Pacific Time on Thursday night, with the winner playing No. 1 Long Beach State on Friday.