MILWAUKEE – Back on the road again, No. 4 Cal Lutheran men's volleyball opened its four-match Wisconsin slate with authority, sweeping Wisconsin Lutheran 25-21, 25-18, 25-21 on Thursday night.

The Kingsmen improved to 12-2 overall with the win, defeating their sixth straight NCAA Division III opponent with one of their most efficient performances of the season. Cal Lu hit a remarkable .526 as a team, matching its program-record low of just five errors in a match on 76 swings.

The Purple & Gold wasted little time finding its rhythm in the opening set, beginning with a 4-2 run sparked by a Matthew Wilcox kill. After building a steady 9-6 lead, the teams traded points until back-to-back kills from Brendan Hom helped the Kingsmen create separation. The Warriors kept it close at 22-19, but Connor Crawford delivered a trio of kills down the stretch, and Mason Rowell closed the door as Cal Lutheran hit .667 in the frame to secure the 25-21 win.

Set two followed suit, with Garrett Ream dropping in a service ace to get things started. The Kingsmen jumped out to a quick 5-1 advantage behind a block from Wilcox and Crawford and a pair of early kills, continuing to extend the lead with a steady mid-set push. Tyler Linville added a kill before heading back to the service line, where he collected back-to-back aces to stretch the margin to 24-17. A Warrior error sealed the 25-18 victory and gave Cal Lu the 2-0 match advantage.

The third set proved to be the most competitive of the night, as Wisconsin Lutheran kept things tight early before jumping ahead 10-7. Consecutive kills from Linville and Crawford trimmed the deficit, but the Warriors continued to apply pressure until the Kingsmen unleashed a monster run to flip the script.

Linville and Crawford went one-two to ignite the surge, followed by an Aidan Godfrey service ace and a pair of Warrior errors that tied the set at 17-17. From there, Cal Lutheran allowed just four more points the rest of the way. Rowell added a pair of aces during the closing stretch, and Wilcox punctuated both the run and the match with three late kills to complete the sweep.

Wilcox led the way with 12 kills on a .688 hitting percentage, while Crawford added 11 kills as the duo recorded two blocks apiece. Linville chipped in 10 kills and two aces, and Hom was flawless with seven kills on 10 swings (.700). Ream directed the offense with 38 assists and two aces, while Braden Gonzales tallied a match-high 12 digs at Libero.

Cal Lutheran now turns its attention to its first top-20 showdown of the trip, as the Kingsmen face No. 19 Milwaukee School of Engineering on Friday night. First serve is set for 5 p.m. PT (7 p.m. CT).