USC's Sam Kobrine, Cole Paxson Named MPSF Men's Volleyball Players Of The Week

LOS ANGELES—Two Trojan men's volleyball players were honored with conference awards after their stellar performances in USC's two victories over UC Irvine last week. Outside hitter Sam Kobrine was named the MPSF Offensive Player of the Week while libero Cole Paxson was named the MPSF Defensive Player of the Week. 
 
Kobrine was also named the Off the Block National Outside Attacker of the Week.
 
This is Kobrine's second MPSF Player of the Week honor, earning the defensive recognition once in 2021 while playing at UCLA. For Paxson, this is his secondly weekly conference honor, earning his first in 2021. 
 
USC now has three players who have earned weekly conference honors in the 2022 season. 
 
Kobrine led the Trojans in kills in both matches last week to help lead USC to two victories over UC Irvine. In USC's 3-0 victory over the Anteaters on Jan. 26, Kobrine had 14 kills and hit .565, which was his strongest hitting percentage this season. He also decorated his stat sheet with 3 digs, 2 blocks, 2 assists and 1 ace. 
 
On Jan. 28, Kobrine Kobrine led the team to a 3-2 win with 22 kills while hitting .583. His 22 kills were a career-high. This was also his best hitting percentage of the 2022 season, beating out his season-high from the previous match. He also collected 5 digs, 4 blocks, 1 ace and 1 assist. 
 
Paxon has continued to be a vital part of the Trojan defense throughout the 2022 season. In USC's last two games, he totaled 17 digs. On Jan. 28, Paxson led the Trojans with 13 digs against the Anteaters.