Alex Nikolov Makes History, Becomes First Freshman Ever to Be Named AVCA National Player of the Year
5/4/2022 7:55:00 PM | Men's Volleyball
The true freshman becomes the sixth Long Beach State Men’s Volleyball player to garner National Player of the Year honors.
LOS ANGELES – The American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) announced the National Player of the Year award on Wednesday night at the NCAA Banquet and Long Beach State outside hitter, Alex Nikolov, rewrote the record books becoming the first player in AVCA history to win the award as a freshman.
Nikolov has had an exceptional rookie campaign in which he has collected numerous awards and now adds National Player of the Year to his quickly growing resume. He joins fellow Long Beach State legends Brent Hilliard (1992), Paul Lotman (2008), Taylor Crabb (2013), TJ DeFaclo (2017, 2019), and Josh Tuaniga (2018) in winning the distinguished award.
A true freshman, Nikolov leads the nation in service aces as he averages 0.61 per set. He has served up 57 aces this season, which is the most aces ever tallied by a freshman at Long Beach State. His 57 aces ranks him second in the Long Beach State single-season record book, just three shy of the record (60) which was set by Lotman in 2008 with the remainder of the NCAA Championship still to come.
The Sofia, Bulgaria native has been phenomenal offensively as his 4.60 kills per set leads the Big West and ranks third in the nation. At the Big West Conference Tournament, Nikolov registered a career-high 28 kills in a four-set win over No. 14 UC Irvine to help the Beach advance to the championship match. He has now recorded seven 20-plus kill performances this season.
His hitting has been outstanding as he owns an attack percentage of .385 to lead the Beach, while ranking second in the conference and 16th in the country. Nikolov has hit .300 or higher in 20 contests this season with his highest output of .667 coming against No. 10 UC San Diego as he knocked down 13 kills on 18 swings, while committing just one attack error.
Nikolov's efficiency this season has been exceptional as he also leads the conference in attacks per set, with 8.81, while ranking in the Top 10 in the nation. Furthermore, his points per set average of 5.56 tops the Big West and is good for second in the NCAA.
The 6-foot-8 Nikolov has led Long Beach State in kills in 22 of 25 matches, while recording double-figure kills on 23 occasions. Nikolov has also recorded a pair of double-doubles in his rookie season as he recorded 14 kills and 11 digs against Concordia, before logging 18 kills and a career-best 12 digs against then-No. 4 Hawaii.
Winning the National Player of the Year award as a freshman puts Nikolov in elite company across NCAA Division I athletics. He now joins the short list of Kevin Durant (2007), Anthony Davis (2012), Johnny Manziel (2012), Jameis Winston (2013), Zion Williamson (2019), and Paige Bueckers (2021).
Nikolov has had an exceptional rookie campaign in which he has collected numerous awards and now adds National Player of the Year to his quickly growing resume. He joins fellow Long Beach State legends Brent Hilliard (1992), Paul Lotman (2008), Taylor Crabb (2013), TJ DeFaclo (2017, 2019), and Josh Tuaniga (2018) in winning the distinguished award.
A true freshman, Nikolov leads the nation in service aces as he averages 0.61 per set. He has served up 57 aces this season, which is the most aces ever tallied by a freshman at Long Beach State. His 57 aces ranks him second in the Long Beach State single-season record book, just three shy of the record (60) which was set by Lotman in 2008 with the remainder of the NCAA Championship still to come.
The Sofia, Bulgaria native has been phenomenal offensively as his 4.60 kills per set leads the Big West and ranks third in the nation. At the Big West Conference Tournament, Nikolov registered a career-high 28 kills in a four-set win over No. 14 UC Irvine to help the Beach advance to the championship match. He has now recorded seven 20-plus kill performances this season.
His hitting has been outstanding as he owns an attack percentage of .385 to lead the Beach, while ranking second in the conference and 16th in the country. Nikolov has hit .300 or higher in 20 contests this season with his highest output of .667 coming against No. 10 UC San Diego as he knocked down 13 kills on 18 swings, while committing just one attack error.
Nikolov's efficiency this season has been exceptional as he also leads the conference in attacks per set, with 8.81, while ranking in the Top 10 in the nation. Furthermore, his points per set average of 5.56 tops the Big West and is good for second in the NCAA.
The 6-foot-8 Nikolov has led Long Beach State in kills in 22 of 25 matches, while recording double-figure kills on 23 occasions. Nikolov has also recorded a pair of double-doubles in his rookie season as he recorded 14 kills and 11 digs against Concordia, before logging 18 kills and a career-best 12 digs against then-No. 4 Hawaii.
Winning the National Player of the Year award as a freshman puts Nikolov in elite company across NCAA Division I athletics. He now joins the short list of Kevin Durant (2007), Anthony Davis (2012), Johnny Manziel (2012), Jameis Winston (2013), Zion Williamson (2019), and Paige Bueckers (2021).
Players Mentioned
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