SANTA CRUZ, Calif. — The Violet and Gold went into battle with the Banana Slugs inside the Kaiser Permanente Arena on day one of the UC Santa Cruz Slug Slam. The eighth-ranked Banana Slugs refused to back down beating the Kingsmen 1-3 (25-19, 15-25, 18-25, 9-25). UC Santa Cruz was 3-0 overall heading into tonight's match.

The Kingsmen hit .226 in the first set as Patrick Rowe had the first kill of the game, helping Cal Lutheran take a 4-1 lead. As the Banana Slugs started to gain on the Kingsmen, Michael Campbell had a huge kill with an assist from Grant Nelson to get the momentum back. Kelly Jew set Nelson who finished the first set, 25-19, with a kill.

The second set was more competitive as the Banana Slugs came out swinging, taking the lead immediately, 4-0. But a set from Nelson and a kill by Andrew Reina put the Kingsmen on the board. The teams traded points back and forth until Cal Lutheran struggled finding the court and UC Santa Cruz gained the momentum, taking the second set 25-15.

The Kingsmen battled with the Banana Slugs in the beginning of the third set as the score was tied 6 all. But a kill from UC Santa Cruz player Raymond Cascio and a few attacking errors for the Kingsmen, allowed the Slugs to take a huge lead, making it hard for the Kingsmen to come back. Cal Lutheran was not able to get the momentum back ultimately leading to UC Santa Cruz taking the last two sets 25-18 and 25-9.

Rowe led the Kingsmen with 14 kills while Reina added 11. Nelson tallied 33 assists and hit at a .333. Alec Bennett helped protect the back of the court with 8 digs and Jew added 4.

Cal Lutheran will play again tomorrow in Kaiser Permanente Arena as they take on the Stevenson University Mustangs at 10am and Illinois Tech at 4pm.

Box Score: UCSC 3, CLU 1
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Release by Nicki Tetherow, Assistant Sports Information Director