LA JOLLA, Calif. — The UC San Diego men's volleyball team upset 12th-ranked CSUN in sweeping fashion on the road Thursday at Premier America Credit Union Arena.
Scores of the Big West match were 25-21, 25-22, and 25-20.
With their first conference victory of the season, the Tritons improved to 7-12 overall and 1-4 in the Big West. The Matadors, who had their eight-match win streak stopped, fell to 12-6 and 1-1.
------
HOW IT HAPPENED
UC San Diego hit .263 (33-12-80) while CSUN compiled a .211 (39-19-95) attack percentage. The Tritons, who hit better than the Matadors in all three sets, also led in blocks (10.5 to 5.5), digs (31 to 24), and service aces (3-1).
Outside hitters
Ryan Ka and
Josh Schellinger combined for 21 of UC San Diego's 33 total kills, 64 percent. Ka finished with 13 kills and nine digs, both team-highs. Schellinger had eight kills to go along with two digs and two blocks.
On defense,
Jim Garrison set a new career-best with six blocks (one solo).
Berkeley Miesfeld and
Nick Rigo had four blocks apiece. For Miesfeld, it matched his career-high.
Evan Boyle also had nine digs to match Ka for the most on the night.
Down 11-9 in the opening set, UC San Diego used a five-point run to pull ahead, 14-11. Miesfeld had back-to-back aces during that span. The Tritons were able to stay in front for the remainder of the set.
After the Matadors scored the first two points of the second set, the Tritons responded by taking the next four to put them ahead 4-2. UC San Diego would not trail again, but CSUN did make a run of it. Behind 17-12, the Matadors had a six to one run to even it up at 18 apiece. Kyle Hobus accounted for five of those points, all on kills. The set was also tied at 19-19 and 21-21. At that point, the Tritons rallied to win four of the next five points to win the set and take a 2-0 lead in the match.
UC San Diego hit .321 (12-3-28) in the second set, the team's highest of the night.
It was all Tritons in the third set. Tied at 1-1, they won three-straight points and kept a lead until the match was over. UC San Diego went up by seven points, 14-7, following back-to-back kills by Schellinger. From there, CSUN closed the deficit to four twice, the final time after turning aside two UC San Diego match points to bring it to 24-20. An ensuing Matador service error ended the set and the match.
CSUN was led by Kyle Hobus, who led all players with 15 kills. Griffin Walters followed with 10.
------
WHAT HEAD COACH BRAD ROSTRATTER HAD TO SAY
"We played with more urgency on defense and that translated into the match. Any win in the Big West is tough to come by, but our focus remains on what we do to put ourselves in a position to continue improving. Our group has been responding well to anything thrown their way, so we will be intentional to continue to facilitate that coming off tonight."
------
TRITON TIDBITS
• It was the first Big West win for head coach
Brad Rostratter. His first victory with the Tritons came on Jan. 5 when they defeated Lincoln Memorial.
• The Tritons' 10.5 blocks are tied for the third-most in a match this season.
• On Feb. 24 in La Jolla, UC San Diego fell in four sets to CSUN.
• Nine Tritons have made their collegiate debuts so far this season:
Evan Boyle, Joshua Ewert,
Jim Garrison,
Michael Robertson,
Brett Pursley,
Josh Schellinger,
Peter Selcho,
Sam Warren,
Zachary Weston.
------
UP NEXT
UC San Diego next plays on March 31 when it hosts Big West opponent Long Beach State for a 7 p.m. tilt at LionTree Arena. Tickets to all home matches can be purchased through the
Triton Box Office.
------
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.
