RIVER FOREST, Ill. – No. 9 Cal Lutheran men's volleyball closed its Illinois swing in gritty fashion on Sunday, navigating past Dominican (IL) in four sets (25-23, 17-25, 25-21, 25-16) to cap a perfect 5-0 week.

The Kingsmen were tested early and often, facing deficits in each of the first three sets before leaning on a dominant net presence and timely momentum swings to pull away. Cal Lutheran finished with a season-high 15 blocks and closed the match by winning 11 of the final 15 points, improving to 11-1 on the season and wrapping up its Midwest road trip unbeaten.

Dominican set the tone early in the opening frame, jumping out to a quick lead before CLU settled in. Connor Crawford put the Kingsmen on the board with a kill, and Brendan Hom followed with an ace to halt the early run, but the Stars continued to press and carried a lead into the middle portion of the set.

Trailing 13-9, the momentum began to shift behind the service line. A Dominican error opened the door for Matthew Wilcox, who dropped in back-to-back aces to pull CLU within one. After another late deficit prompted a Cal Lutheran timeout, Wilcox and Gavin Galanski teamed up for a key block, sparking a rally that saw the Kingsmen claw all the way back.

The set turned into a back-and-forth battle down the stretch, with Wilcox denying an attack on one possession before hammering a middle swing on the next. Tied at 23, Tyler Linville delivered in the biggest moment, slamming down consecutive kills to steal the opening set, 25-23.

Dominican responded in the second, using aggressive serving to seize control early. The Stars opened an 8-2 advantage and never relinquished momentum despite flashes from the Kingsmen, including a powerful Hom kill right at a Dominican player and an immediate contribution from Aidan Godfrey off the bench. However, the Stars held firm and evened the match with a 25-17 win.

Cal Lutheran answered in the third with urgency. After Dominican grabbed the first point, Linville ignited a six-point run with a kill, helping CLU flip the early momentum. The Stars pushed back to regain a brief lead, but out of a timeout, Mason Rowell delivered a timely kill, followed by a Dominican error and a Hom ace to swing the set back in the Kingsmen's favor.

Hom took flight to add a back-row kill, Wilcox stuffed another attack at the net, and despite Dominican tying the set late, CLU responded once more. Linville delivered again with a kill and a block to create separation, and Wilcox closed the frame with a decisive swing to give the Kingsmen a 25-21 win and a 2-1 match lead.

With momentum firmly on their side, the Kingsmen left little doubt in the fourth. After an early exchange, CLU erupted for a mid-set surge fueled by kills from Linville and Hom, followed by a stretch of blocks and Dominican errors that opened a commanding 17-9 advantage and silenced the Stars.

Crawford put the finishing touches on a perfect weekend, closing the match with a block and a kill to secure the 25-16 win.

Linville led Cal Lutheran with 14 kills on .417 hitting, while Hom added 12 kills, two aces, and four blocks. Wilcox was dominant defensively, finishing with 11 total blocks to go along with three kills and two aces. Galanski orchestrated the offense with 35 assists and seven digs, and Braden Gonzales anchored the back row with a match-high 12 digs.

Cal Lutheran finally returns home on Thursday, February 5, hosting Division I opponent UC Santa Barbara at 7 p.m. The Kingsmen and Gauchos last met in Thousand Oaks in a five-set thriller, setting the stage for another exciting night inside Gilbert Arena.