STANFORD, Calif. – The University of California, Merced men's volleyball team was swept by No. 17 Stanford in their first ever MPSF match on Saturday night inside Burnham Pavilion, 3-0 (25-16, 25-15, 25-17).
Kaleb Cole led the Bobcats (2-3, 0-1) efforts with six kills, two digs, and two assists.
Max Niederberger added five kills on a .333 success rate to go along with a block.
Mason Stokes had four kills, two digs, and a service ace. The Fresno, Calif., native has at least one ace in all five matches to start the campaign.
Toby Miller recorded 17 assists and three kills. He pitched in three digs, a service ace, and a block on the defensive end.
Other notables include five digs from Pomaikainokeakua Kahaulelio, three kills and a solo block from Daniel Del Grande, and a service ace from Achilles Huang.
The first set had six early ties and two lead changes before Stanford created separation with a 10-1 run, including scoring eight points in a row to grab a 17-8 lead. Cole ended the Bobcats scoring drought with a kill to keep the Bobcats from falling behind by double figures. Stanford and UC Merced traded points the rest of the set in a 25-16 Cardinal win. Cole had four kills in the set. Stanford had 20 kills as a team and hit .581 to start the match, but the Bobcats were able to limit the Cardinal to just 18 combined kills the rest of the way.
The Bobcats scored two of the first three points in the second set highlighted by Del Grande's solo block. Stanford countered the block with a 6-0 burst and went on an extended 10-1 run. A little later, the Bobcats scored three straight capped by a Stokes kill to pull within six at 14-8. A Huang ace kept the Bobcats in the hunt at 19-13 before Stanford finished off the frame with a 6-2 set-ending run.
Stokes opened set three with an ace and then he had a kill a few rallies later. The Bobcats kept up for a moment, trailing by two at 11-9 highlighted by back-to-back kills from Miller and Stokes. Stanford followed with a 9-4 run to reached 20 points first while leading 20-13. After alternating sideouts, Stanford finished off the match with a kill to win 25-17 and earn their second straight sweep to start MPSF play.
Looking ahead, UC Merced will step out of conference action to play at Simpson on Wednesday, February 11. First serve from the James M. Grant Center in Redding, Calif., is scheduled for 5:00pm.
