MESA, Ariz. – The fourth-seeded University of California, Merced men's volleyball team saw their season come to a close after falling in straight sets (25-11, 25-17, 25-14) to top-ranked Benedictine University at Mesa in the California Pacific Conference Semifinals on Friday afternoon at Bell Bank Park.

The Bobcats finish the 2023 campaign 9-14 overall.

All-California Pacific Conference First Team selection Chris Morikawa finished with six kills and three digs, while honorable mention Ryan Kilgore was good for four kills and a solo block. Kilgore's solo block moved him ahead of Trevor Jurlina for sixth in program history with 27 career solo blocks. 15 of Kilgore's 27 solo blocks came this season.

Toby Miller recorded 15 assists, four kills, and three digs.

Other individual notables include three kills from Brennan Taylor, two blocks each from Jozef Lingenfelter and honorable mention Jared Guglielmana, and a service ace from Lincoln Smith. Guglielmana also had four digs.

BenU Mesa was led by 2X Cal Pac Player of the Year Landon Fuller, who smacked 13 kills on a .650 hitting percentage and tallied three service aces.

Overall, BenU Mesa's .508 hitting percentage was too much for the Bobcats to overcome. The Redhawks finished the day with 35 kills and just five errors on 65 total swings. Their most impressive stretch came in the opening frame where they hit .619 and ended the set on a 15-4 run to take a 1-0 match lead.

BenU Mesa led by at least five points for the majority of the second and third sets and allowed the Bobcats to score consecutive points on just three occasions.

Despite the loss, UC Merced managed to record three blocks which is more blocks than the two regular season matches combined against the Redhawks.

Stay tuned to ucmercedbobcats.com and follow the team on social media @ucmercedmvb on Twitter and Instagram for all offseason news.