LOS ANGELES - The UC San Diego men's volleyball team was little match for a second-ranked UCLA side coming off of a loss Saturday night at the John Wooden Center, going down 3-0 in a Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) contest. Set scores were 25-16, 25-17 and 25-18.
UCSD fell to 3-11 overall at the midway point of its regular season, and 0-10 in the MPSF. UCLA moved to 12-2 overall and 8-2 in league play. The Bruins had won in straight sets La Jolla back on Jan. 16 as well. They were upset in five sets at home by UC Irvine on Thursday night.
Determined to get back on the winning track, UCLA hit a remarkable .521 (45-7-73) as a team. JT Hatch and Jake Arnitz shared the match high with 11 kills apiece. The Bruins also out-blocked the Tritons by a wide margin, 8.5-3.0.
Sophomore Tanner Syftestad produced a team-best eight kills for UCSD on .300 (8-2-20) hitting, alongside three assists, three digs and two block assists. Calvin Manchenko added seven kills, while setter Milosh Stojcic compiled 22 assists and five digs.
UCSD was up 4-1 in the first after a combo block by Syftestad and Shayne Beamer, but the home side tallied 12 of the next 14 points. The Bruins broke a 4-4 deadlock in the second with a 5-0 run that forced a timeout. The third set was closest, with nine tie scores and a pair of lead changes.
UCSD is back on the road next week as part of a season-long four-match stretch away from home. Things don't get any easier for the Tritons, as they take on top-ranked Long Beach State on Wednesday, Feb. 17, at 7 p.m. After a date with CSUN in Northridge on Friday, Feb. 19, they host Holy Names on Saturday, Feb. 20 at 5 p.m.
#TritonsRising
