MERCED, Calif. – The University of California, Merced men's volleyball team knocked off Pacific Union College in four sets on Friday afternoon, winning 3-1 (18-25, 25-11, 25-19, 25-16) inside the Joseph Edward Gallo Gymnasium.
With the victory, the Bobcats (8-11, 6-1) extend their winning streak to four matches which is the second longest conference winning streak in program history.
UC Merced smacked a four-set season-high 48 kills in the win and got a combined 27 kills from outside hitters Jared Guglielmana and Ryan Kilgore.
Guglielmana turned in 14 kills on a .355 hitting percentage and added 12 digs for his second consecutive double-double. He also had two solo blocks and a service ace. The Madera, Calif., extends his streak to a career-long four straight matches with 10+ kills and 2+ blocks. Also of note, Guglielmana becomes just the fourth player in program history to eclipse 150 kills and 100 digs in the same season. He joins Chris Morikawa, Cole Smith, and Joseph Webb.
Kilgore tallied 13 kills on a .480 (13/1/25) hitting percentage and extended his block streak to a career-best 12 matches. He also delivered a service ace that tied his career-best streak with an ace now in three straight contests.
Toby Miller registered 24 assists, six digs, and a career-high three service aces. Nathan Campbell added 12 assists, two kills, and two blocks, one solo. His 12 assists moved him ahead of Joey Medina for fifth in program history with 310 career assists.
Jared Schnake turned in 13 digs and four kills, while Sebas Moreno was good for six digs, five assists, and three service aces.
Other individual notables include four kills each from Brennan Taylor and Kaleb Cole, four digs from Kaikoa Soma, and a solo block from Taylor.
The Bobcats scored the first two points of the day before PUC put together some good volleyball and took their first lead of the first set at 7-6. The teams traded sideouts for the next five rallies, but then the Pioneers scored three straight to go up 12-9. UC Merced managed to put together a 3-0 spurt of their own, highlighted by a Campbell kill, to grab a lead a little later at 17-15. The Bobcats also led 18-17, however PUC got hot and finished with an 8-0 set ending run with Gabriel Guteriez behind the service line. The Pioneers' Guteriez scored set point with an ace.
The Bobcats led 4-1 in the second set and by as many as five points as early as the 8-3 mark. A Colin Ryan kill got the Bobcats to ten points while leading 10-5. Later on leading 16-9, the Bobcats created further separation with a 6-0 run highlighted by a Miller service ace and a 9-2 set ending run overall to pull even in the match at 1-1. Moreno also had an ace in the final run.
UC Merced quickly overcame a 5-1 deficit in the third set with the help of Schnake and Taylor. Taylor had a block to tie the game at 6-6, while Kilgore followed shortly after with a service ace that came at the peak of a 7-1 run to put his team ahead 8-6. Up 13-10, Taylor extended the lead further by scoring three straight points of his own starting with a solo block and then recording back-to-back kills. Kilgore added a kill to extend the lead to 17-10. Colin Ryan smacked back-to-back kills down the stretch and then two PUC service errors got the Bobcats to 25 points, winning the third frame 25-17.
UC Merced dominated the fourth set to finish out the victory. Kilgore had three early kills in an 8-1 run to start the set and then he added another kill and a block shortly after to put his team up 11-4. The Bobcats lead was between five and seven points for the next 18 rallies. After PUC pulled within four points, Guglielmana started one final push and the Bobcats embarked on a 6-1 match ending run. Guglielmana sparked the surge with a kill and a solo block. Moreno followed with an ace before Guglielmana ultimately ended the match with his 14th and final kill of the afternoon.
The Bobcats finished the day operating at a .252 success rate offensively while limiting PUC to a .155 hitting percentage. Prachumsri's squad also had eight service aces and seven blocks.
With the win, the Bobcats improve to 9-0 all-time against PUC.
Looking ahead, UC Merced will play at Simpson University on Saturday, March 16. First serve from the James M. Grant Center in Redding, Calif., is scheduled for 5:00pm.
