THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – Cal Lutheran men's volleyball opened Thursday night with confidence and control, but visiting UC Santa Barbara responded with steady pressure to hand the Kingsmen a 3-1 loss (19-25, 25-13, 25-19, 25-13) inside Gilbert Arena.
Cal Lutheran looked poised early, riding crisp offense and strong play at the net to take the opening set and jump out to a promising start against the NCAA Division I Gauchos. From there, however, UCSB found its rhythm and gradually wrestled momentum away, winning the final three sets to improve to 6-3 on the season.
The Kingsmen set the tone in the first frame, hitting .385 while limiting UCSB to just a .080 clip.
Brendan Hom,
Connor Crawford, and
Tyler Linville each delivered timely kills as CLU pulled away late to secure the 25-19 win. The home side also controlled the net early, using a strong blocking presence to disrupt the Gauchos' attack.
UCSB responded decisively in the second set, using aggressive serving and improved efficiency to flip the match. The Gauchos opened a gap early and never allowed Cal Lutheran to recover, evening the match with a 25-13 win.
Momentum continued to swing in UCSB's favor in the third. Despite stretches of strong play from the Kingsmen, the Gauchos' offense proved difficult to slow, as they closed on a late run to take the 25-19 decision and a 2-1 match lead.
The fourth set followed a similar script, as the Gauchos jumped out quickly and maintained control throughout. Cal Lutheran battled, but UCSB's efficiency down the stretch sealed the match with a 25-13 win.
Crawford led the Kingsmen with 10 kills and eight digs, while Hom and Linville added nine kills apiece.
Matthew Wilcox and
Mason Rowell anchored the block with four each, helping Cal Lutheran finish with nine total team blocks.
Gavin Galanski dished out 30 assists, and
Braden Gonzales contributed five digs from the back row.
Cal Lutheran moves to 11-2 on the season and will have an extended break before returning to action on the road. The Kingsmen open a four-match Wisconsin swing on Wednesday, February 19, taking on Wisconsin Lutheran at 5 p.m. PT (7 p.m. CT).
