MERCED, Calif. – The University of California, Merced men's volleyball team swept Hope International University 3-0 (25-10, 25-18, 25-18) on Tuesday night to earn its first win of the season in the 2023 home opener.

With the victory, the Bobcats (1-2) have now won four straight home openers dating back to the 2020 campaign.

Chris Morikawa led the way with eleven kills and ten digs for his fifth career double-double. Morikawa's eleven kills came while recording a stellar .588 (11/1/17) hitting percentage, his highest mark while recording double figure kills. Morikawa also recorded his first service ace of the season, putting him ahead of Emmanuel Egun and into a tie with Cole Smith for third in program history with 51 career service aces.

Freshman Jared Schnake was super in his Hostetler Court debut. Schnake tallied nine kills on a .615 (9/1/13) hitting percentage to go along his first two career blocks and a service ace. One of his blocks was solo.

Toby Miller quarterbacked the Bobcats offense with a career-high 28 assists to go along with four digs, two kills, and a service ace. Miller has a service ace in three straight games to start the year.

Jozef Lingenfelter ripped across three service aces and was also credited with two blocks, including one solo block for the third straight match.

Ryan Kilgore and CJ Blankenship pitched in three kills each. Sebas Moreno was good for five assists and five digs.

UC Merced combined to hit .346 as a team, their highest success rate since March 6, 2022. Defensively, UC Merced held Hope International to a -.013 hitting percentage.

The Bobcats were on fire early, recording eleven kills in the opening set prior to committing their first error. Head coach Ai Prachumsri's squads stellar play had them on top by double figures as early as the 16-6 mark. The Bobcats didn't let up, extending their lead to as many as 15 points by the end of the frame. Morikawa had four kills and an ace in the first stanza.

The second set was tight early on and the two teams were tied nine times within the first 24 rallies. Tied 12-12, Jared Guglielmana smacked a kill and then Hope committed an attack error one play later that was enough to give the Bobcats the lead the rest of the frame. Shortly after, back-to-back Morikawa kills put UC Merced up 17-13. The Bobcats continued to pull away to take a 2-0 match lead behind a 25-18 set two win.

The Bobcats finished off the sweep with the help of a 5-0 run midway through the frame, turning a 14-12 advantage into a 19-12 advantage highlighted by a kill each from Blankenship and Schanke. UC Merced extended the lead to eight points at 23-15 when Lingenfelter and Schnake combined for a block. Soon after, Daniel Del Grande delivered match point in his collegiate debut by beating Hope's libero with a kill. Del Grande also had game point in the second set, marking his first career kill.

With the sweep, the Bobcats have now swept Hope International in back-to-back years and extend their winning streak to three overall against the opponent dating back to 2020.

Up next, UC Merced will play eleventh-ranked The Master's University in Santa Clarita, Calif., on Friday, February 3. First serve is scheduled for 7:00pm from the MacArthur Center.