LA JOLLA, Calif. — A blistering .444 attack led the UC San Diego men's volleyball team to a sweep of Menlo College Wednesday night at LionTree Arena.

Scores went 25-14, 25-21, and 25-22 in favor of the Tritons, who won their second match in as many days to improve to 3-4 on the season.

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HOW IT HAPPENED
UC San Diego's polished attack produced 41 kills and only nine errors in 72 swings to account for the team's best attack percentage of the season. The Tritons' best output came right off the bat as they hit .545 (14-2-22). The went on to hit .407 (15-4-27) in the second frame and .391 (12-3-23) in the victory-clinching third set.

UC San Diego complemented its offense with a solid defense, holding an 8-1 advantage in blocks. The Tritons also led in another defensive category, finishing with 26 digs to the Oaks' 16. They held Menlo to a .163 (31-18-80) attack in the match.

For the second night in a row Josh Schellinger led UC San Diego in kills with 15. The redshirt freshman outside hitter had zero miscues in 21 attacks, good for a grandiose .714 hitting percentage. He also contributed three digs, three assists, and a pair of service aces.

For his performance, Schellinger was named the Offensive Player of the Night by Off the Block.

Senior outside Ryan Ka had 12 kills and hit .421 (12-4-19), while senior opposite Berkeley Miesfeld and junior middle blocker Nick Rigo had four block assists each. Miesfeld and freshman libero Evan Boyle had a match-high seven digs apiece.

Orchestrating the offense was sophomore setter Gabriel Dyer, who amassed 29 kills.

The Oaks got 11 kills out of Edin Ibrahimovic. Chase Direito hit .667 with six kills and no errors in nine attack attempts. 
 
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WHAT OUTSIDE HITTER JOSH SCHELLINGER HAD TO SAY



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TRITON TIDBITS
• UC San Diego moved to 6-0 in the all-time series against Menlo.
• With 15 kills tonight Josh Schellinger surpassed his career-high 14 kills, which he established Tuesday night against Emmanuel.
• The Tritons hit .387 in Tuesday's sweep of Emmanuel in La Jolla.
• UC San Diego has hit above .340 in three matches so far in 2023.
• In the digs department, the Tritons hold a 208 to 178 advantage against their opponents.
• The Tritons started the season with five road matches.
• Eight Tritons have made their collegiate debuts so far this season: Evan Boyle, Jim Garrison, Michael Robertson, Brett Pursley, Josh Schellinger, Peter Selcho, Sam Warren, Zachary Weston. Weston's debut came in tonight's match.
• Brad Rostratter, who was named UC San Diego's head coach on Oct. 7, 2022, earned his first win with the Tritons on Jan. 5 when they defeated Lincoln Memorial.

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UP NEXT
For the second time this season, UC San Diego goes up against UCLA, the second-ranked team in the country. The Jan. 21 contest is set for a 7 p.m. start at Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles.

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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 in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III 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 90 percent, the highest rate among public institutions in Divisions I and II.