ATHERTON, Calif. – The University of California, Merced men's volleyball team split its two matches on Friday afternoon at the Oak Invitational, beating Hope International University 3-1 and falling 3-1 to #8 Menlo College.
The Bobcats (2-10) two matches completed an eleven-game road trip, the second longest road trip in program history.
Ryan Kilgore and Jared Guglielmana recorded 10+ kills in each match on Friday, while Sebas Moreno finished with double figure digs in both contests.
Match One | UC Merced wins 3-1 (25-17, 25-18, 28-30, 25-21) over HIU
The Bobcats used an all-around effort and tallied 66 digs and 13 blocks to beat HIU in four sets and split the season series with the Royals this year. The Bobcats 66 digs were the most since March 26, 2022.
Moreno had 20 digs in the Bobcats win joining just Zach Brill, Aaron Taflinger, and Matthew Pelfini as the only Bobcats with 20 or more digs in a match.
Offensively, the Bobcats pounded out 46 kills which is the third highest kills output this season.
Kilgore and Guglielmana had 12 and ten kills, respectively. The outside hitters also had two blocks each, one solo. Guglielmana also tallied eleven digs for his first double-double of the season and second of his career.
Nathan Campbell turned in career-high's across the board with 37 assists, ten digs, and four blocks. All three totals doubled his previous career-high's. Also of note, Campbell passed Tyler Vincelli for sixth in program history with 181 career assists.
Javy Larranaga was good for seven kills and three blocks, while Jared Schnake added five kills and ten digs.
Colin Ryan registered six kills on a .667 (6/0/9) hitting percentage and had a career-high six blocks. His six blocks are also a 2024 team-high.
Other notables include four kills without an error from Max Niederberger, three blocks from Niederberger, two service aces from Kilgore, and two blocks from Schnake.
UC Merced maintained a .300 hitting percentage while limiting HIU to -.103 in the opening set to start the match off on a high note. Head coach Ai Prachumsri's team started with an 11-2 run and took a double figure lead as early as 14-4. Guglielmana had two kills in the surge, while Kilgore had a kill and two blocks. The Bobcats also led by ten points at 18-8 and extended the lead to as many as 12 points soon after with a Guglielmana solo block. Guglielmana also got the Bobcats to 24 points as the Bobcats cruised to a 25-17 set one win.
An early 5-0 run put the Bobcats up in the second set. Then tied 6-6, Larranaga and Guglielmana smacked back-to-back kills and UC Merced only extended their lead from there. A Kilgore kill made it 14-11 midway through the set and then a little later Guglielmana followed a Campbell service ace with a kill for an 18-12 Bobcats lead. UC Merced led by a set-high seven points at 21-14 and won the frame by the same margin, 25-18.
A marathon third set saw the Royals win six of the first nine points but the Bobcats pulled within one at 7-6. HIU followed with three straight kills and they ended up building their lead to five points at 13-8. HIU was the first to 20 points leading 20-15 before the Bobcats got hot and went on a 7-0 run to take their first lead of the period. Ryan highlighted the run with a kill and a block. The Bobcats led 24-21 but couldn't capture set point. Then, UC Merced had to stave off HIU set points and did so on three occasions, but the Royals ultimately won the set 30-28 to avoid the sweep.
UC Merced scored four straight points to turn an 8-6 deficit into a 10-8 lead in the fourth frame with the help of Ryan. The Bobcats had to play from behind again trailing 13-11 and they came back to tie the game at 17-17. A Royals attack error was next to give the Bobcats the lead. Tied 19-19, UC Merced started the final push scoring four straight points, including a Campbell solo block at the peak of the spurt. After the two teams traded sideouts, the Bobcats scored the final two points to win the set 25-21 and the match 3-1.
Match Two | UC Merced falls 3-1 (25-20, 22-25, 25-18, 25-19) to #8 Menlo College
The second match of the doubleheader against #8 Menlo College marked UC Merced's fifth nationally-ranked opponent within the first 12 contests. The Bobcats have won at least one set in two of the five matches.
Ryan Kilgore smacked 12 kills for the second straight match and had a career-high three service aces. The senior had a .310 hitting percentage and was also credited with two blocks, one solo.
Jared Guglielmana was good for eleven kills and four digs.
With Kilgore's and Guglielmana's kills output on the day, the duo both moved ahead of Matthew Lostetter for eighth (372 kills) and ninth (367 kills) on the program's all-time kills list, respectively.
Jared Schnake continued his solid Friday and tallied a career-high eleven digs, a season-high seven kills, and a career-high two service aces against the Oaks.
Toby Miller finished with 36 assists, seven digs, three blocks, and two kills.
Other individual notables include five kills from Lincoln Smith, three blocks from Brennan Taylor, and a service ace from Dylan Jong.
UC Merced and Menlo College traded runs to start the match and it resulted in a 10-10 tie after 20 rallies in the first set. However, Menlo then went on a 6-1 run that wasn't answered by the Bobcats and the Oaks remained in front the rest of the frame. The Bobcats came within two points at 19-17, but couldn't come any closer the rest of the way. Menlo recorded a .500 hitting percentage (16/2/28) in the opening set.
The Bobcats overcame an early deficit in the second set to take a 10-8 lead highlighted by three Kilgore kills. UC Merced held a 16-13 lead a little later, but found themselves trailing 22-21 down the stretch. Kilgore answered the call with a kill to tie the set and it started a 4-0 set-ending run to tie the match at 1-1. Kiglore had two kills in the 4-0 run overall.
The Bobcats led 8-7 in the third set before an Oaks 5-0 run. The Bobcats trailed by just one point at 17-16 and were within a pair at 20-18, but Menlo forced back-to-back UC Merced attack errors and then registered three consecutive kills to reach 25 points and take a 2-1 lead in the match.
Menlo led from start to finish in the final frame, including by six points as early as the 9-3 mark. UC Merced stayed within striking distance trailing 18-15 and 21-18, but couldn't get any closer than that and the Oaks scored four of the final five points to finish the match.
Menlo's Konrad Stoklosinski finished with 16 kills on a .433 hitting percentage, while setter William Lawler had 48 assists and 12 digs.
Looking ahead, UC Merced will host fourth-ranked and 3X defending California Pacific Conference Champion Benedictine University Mesa in the California Pacific Conference opener on Friday, February 23. First serve from the Joseph Edward Gallo Gymnasium in Merced, Calif., is scheduled for 6:00pm.
