MERCED, Calif. – The University of California, Merced men's volleyball team was swept by Concordia University Irvine on Saturday night inside the Joseph Edward Gallo Gymnasium, 3-0 (25-13, 25-21, 25-20).
Mason Stokes led the Bobcats (4-14, 1-9) with eleven kills on a .320 hitting percentage. He also delivered a service ace.
Kaleb Cole had eight kills and two service aces in two sets of action, his sixth multi-ace match of the season.
Joel Toves tallied 21 assists, three digs, a block, and a service ace. Toby Miller pitched in seven assists and a kill off the bench in the second set.
Donovan Guglielmana, Achilles Huang, and Joshua Woodhams pitched in three kills and three digs apiece.
Anthony Alaniz recorded two blocks, one solo.
Other notables include four digs from Pomaikainokeakua Kahaulelio and a service ace from Cody Krohn.
Concordia came out red hot and scored its first 13 points with 13 kills, resulting in a 13-6 advantage. The Golden Eagles then delivered a service ace for a 14-6 lead and CUI would lead by at least seven points the rest of the frame. Concordia finished the first set with 18 kills on 29 attempts with just three errors for a .517 hitting percentage. Woodhams had three of the Bobcats seven kills in the first set.
Stokes had back-to-back kills to start the second set as part of a 5-3 opening spurt. However, CUI answered the Bobcats start with seven consecutive points to double up the Bobcats, 10-5. UC Merced got back within two points on many occasions, including as late as 23-21 after a couple kills from Stokes and a solo block from Alaniz. A service error followed and then CUI managed to score set point on the first try with a triple block, winning 25-21.
There were four early ties and two early lead changes in the third set. Guglielmana delivered a kill to break a 5-5 tie and then Cole ripped back-to-back service aces to put the Bobcats up 8-5. Stokes had a kill a couple rallies later to get the Bobcats to ten points first, leading 10-6. CUI battled back with a 4-0 spurt, but Cole and Krohn responded with a kill and an ace, respectively. UC Merced also led by two points at 15-13 but were unable to create any more separation. CUI overcame the deficit to take the lead at 19-18. A Cole kill marked the eleventh tie of the set, while Stokes tied the set again at 20-20 with a kill of his own. CUI closed the match out from there with a 5-0 match ending run, benefiting from three late UC Merced attack errors.
Concordia finished the match with a .400 hitting percentage while holding the Bobcats to a .175 clip.
Up next, UC Merced will host No. 1 UCLA (20-0, 7-0) on Thursday, April 9. First serve inside the Joseph Edward Gallo Gymnasium against the 21x national champion is scheduled for 6:00pm.
