April 4, 2000
Stanford, Calif. -- Freshman middle blocker Curt Toppel (Pacific Palisades, CA/Malibu HS) is the AVCA Men's Volleyball National Player of the Week for the week ending April 3, announced today by the American Volleyball Coaches Association. Toppel earned the honor after becoming the first player in the nation this season to reach 50 kills in a match.
Toppel reached 50 kills in 13th-ranked Stanford's 5-15, 7-15, 15-11, 15-8, 15-11 upset victory over top-ranked Long Beach State last Saturday. Toppel had 87 total attempts in the match, recording a 47.1 hitting percentage against the 49ers.
Prior to the Cardinal upset of Long Beach State, Toppel recorded 32 kills in a 15-13, 13-15, 15-5, 15-10 loss to third-ranked USC. Toppel has led the country in kills-per game average for the entire season and currently has a 8.56 per game average.
For the week, Toppel averaged 9.11 kills per game, .56 digs per game and 1.0 blocks per game.