SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - The 13th-ranked UC San Diego men's volleyball team was swept by No. 4 UC Santa Barbara Thursday on the road.

Scores of the non-conference match at Rob Gym were 25-22, 25-14, and 25-20. UC San Diego fell to 0-4 while UC Santa Barbara moved to 2-0.

Offense was key as the Tritons hit .169 (32-17-89) while the Gauchos finished at .378 (41-10-82). UC Santa Barbara posted a torrid .684 (14-1-19) hitting percentage in the second frame.

Outside hitter Kyle McCauley again paced UC San Diego offensively with a match-high 15 kills. Shane Benetz and Ryan Ka each recorded four blocks, which led all players. Two of Ka's were solo blocks. Benetz added seven kills and Ka contributed four. Libero Matt Palma also posted a match best with eight digs. Blake Crisp (15 assists) and Will Campbell (12 assists) split setting duties.

For the Gauchos, Keenan Sanders was on fire, hitting .706 with 12 kills and no errors in 17 attack attempts. Roy McFarland hit .438 with seven kills and zero errors in 16 swings. Ryan Wilcox finished with 16 points on nine kills, five service aces, and a pair of solo blocks.

Set 1
• UC San Diego led 11-6 after a five-point run that featured back-to-back service aces from Blake Crisp.
• A Keenan Sanders kill gave the Gauchos their first lead (22-21) since early in the set (4-3).
• UCSB won eight of the set's final 10 points.
• The Tritons hit .219 while the Gauchos swung at .414.

Set 2
• The Gauchos jumped out to a 6-1 lead, backed by a trio of Ryan Wilcox service aces.
• A Wilcox kill put UC Santa Barbara up by 10 points (15-5).
• UC San Diego had a late three-point run.
• The Tritons hit .263 while the Gauchos hit .684.

Set 3
• Neither team led by more than two points until UCSB took a 19-16 advantage.
• UC San Diego hit .079 and UC Santa Barbara hit .176, the lowest single set hitting percentage for both squads.

TRITON TIDBITS
• Kyle McCauley has totaled at least 10 kills in all four of the Tritons' matches this season.
• Will Campbell's 12 assists were a career best.
• Ryan Ka's four blocks matched his career high.
• UC San Diego was without senior outside hitter Wyatt Harrison for the third consecutive match due to injury.
• The Tritons and Gauchos met just once last season with UCSB taking a 3-1 victory on March 6 in Santa Barbara.
• The Big West Conference rivals were slated to play again on April 17 in La Jolla, but the NCAA had already canceled its winter and spring championships due to COVID.

UP NEXT
UC San Diego opens its Big West Conference campaign next week with a two-match home and home series with UC Irvine. On Thursday, March 11 (7 p.m.), the Bren Events Center in Orange County hosts the action before the two teams grapple at RIMAC Arena in La Jolla on Friday, March 12 (7 p.m.). 

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About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions III and II and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.

Return To Sport… Safely
In order for UC San Diego scholar-athletes to be permitted to return to training and competition safely and within federal, state, local, and university guidelines, the athletic department implemented a number of measures designed to complement and enhance the university's highly-successful Return To Learn program. Notable actions include being physically distanced when practical, including during out-of-season training sessions; wearing masks, except when undergoing physically strenuous exercise; and maintaining proper hygiene. Athletes, coaches, and staff are testing at a higher frequency than the campus population, teams adhere to CDC, NCAA, and Big West Conference guidelines, and department officials participate in regular meetings with conference and university-affiliated physicians and the UC San Diego emergency operations staff.