FULLERTON, Calif. - For the second straight match the UC San Diego men's volleyball team battled through five sets but produced a different outcome as the Tritons defeated Hope International, 3-2, Friday night at Darling Pavilion.
Scores of the non-conference, back and forth affair were 22-25, 25-13, 18-25, 25-13 and 15-12. UCSD snapped a five-match losing streak to up its overall record to 3-7, while HIU dropped to 2-3.
The Tritons had their most productive offensive match of the season, hitting .339 with 53 kills and 16 errors in 109 swings. The team's previous best attack percentage was .333 (41-13-84) in a three-set win at Hawaii on Jan. 6.
HIU was held to a .217 attack with 53 kills and 23 errors in 138 swings. The Royals struggled mightily from the service line, committing 23 errors.
Both teams also sported a big block as UCSD totaled 11.5 and Hope had 10 stuffs.
Individually, Triton Carl Eberts led all players with 15 kills. Vaun Lennon was just behind with 14 kills while true freshman setter Tien Le finished with 34 assists. UCSD's middles combined for 15 kills as Sebastian Brady had eight and Fred Stahl seven. Stahl hit .429 (7-1-14) and added a career-high seven blocks.
Cheyne Hayes had three of UCSD's six aces.
For Hope International, Andrew Speth had 14 kills, Dominique Blonski had 13 and Thomas Cervetti posted 12. Griffin Levinski had seven blocks and Henry Valiente led all players with 13 digs.
The Tritons also played a five set match Wednesday night but came out on the losing end as Princeton came back for a 3-2 victory.
Next up, the team will host its annual alumni match on Saturday, Feb. 4 at 2 p.m.
The Tritons then host the Cougars of BYU, ranked No. 1 in the country, Thursday, Feb. 9 at 7 p.m. and Saturday, Feb. 11 at 1 p.m.
UCSD students are admitted free to all home matches at RIMAC Arena.
- UCSDtritons.com -
