LA JOLLA, Calif. — An intense, back-and-forth match went the way of No. 5 UC Irvine on Saturday night as the visiting Anteaters defeated No. 13 UC San Diego 25-23, 19-25, 23-25, 25-15, 15-13 at LionTree Arena.
 
The Tritons (11-9, 2-3 Big West) led in nearly every statistical category, although they committed 29 service errors to UC Irvine's 20. Outside hitter Sebastiano Sani had 19 kills, while middle blocker Peter Selcho led the defense with seven blocks. Setter John Luers powered the offense with 46 assists.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
UC Irvine did not trail in the first set, but the ending was tight thanks to a late Triton rally. The Anteaters had their largest lead of the set up 23-17 before a 6-0 UC San Diego run tied the score at 23. The Tritons had kills by Leo Pravednikov and Sebastiano Sani during that stretch to go along with three blocks. Peter Selcho was in on all three, with Pravednikov assisting on two and Josh Ewert assisting on the other. But the Tritons were unable to turn that momentum into the lead as UC Irvine landed two-straight kills to escape set one with a 25-23 victory.
 
The Tritons returned the favor in set two, leading the entire way while hitting .500 and holding UC Irvine to a .048 clip. A 4-0 run after the media timeout put the Tritons up 19-12, their largest advantage of the set. A UC Irvine timeout stopped the run, but the Anteaters got no closer than down four the rest of the way. The Tritons went on to take the second 25-19.
 
A 5-0 Triton run gave the hosts an 11-5 lead early in set three before the Anteaters came back to tie the score at 14. The Tritons were able to stay in front, going on a 6-1 run to force a UC Irvine timeout with the score at 20-15. UC San Diego then had a 24-19 lead later on before the Anteaters survived four set points to only trail 24-23. But the comeback attempt would end there as a service error gave the Tritons the set, 25-23.
 
Set four was all UC Irvine, with the visitors hitting .533 and holding the Tritons to exactly .000. The Anteaters started the set on a 7-0 run and never looked back. The closest the Tritons got was down five on a few occasions, including at 16-11. UC Irvine then won eight of the next nine points to lead 24-12. The Tritons would stave off three set points but got no closer as the Anteaters took the fourth 25-15.
 
The decisive fifth set was tied nine times, and neither side led by more than two. The Tritons went up first, leading 4-2 after kills by Ewert and Sani. They later led 6-4 but were unable to pull away as UC Irvine stayed close before grabbing its first lead of the fifth at 9-8. The set would be tied four more times, but the Tritons never led again as the Anteaters eked out the 15-13 victory. UC San Diego had four attack errors and four service errors in the final set. UC Irvine had just one service error and no attack errors.
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• The Tritons are now 2-4 in five set matches this season.
• Sani is the younger brother of Francesco Sani, who played for UC Irvine from 2021 to 2023. The younger Sani tied his career high tonight with 19 kills.
• The Tritons' 12.5 total blocks are a new season high.

QUOTABLE
"Tonight was another battle-testing opportunity," head coach Brad Rostratter said. "I thought we did a good job of responding and bouncing back from last night's match, especially with the short turnaround. It was awesome to see our guys clean some things up and make some changes."
 
UP NEXT
Big West play continues with two matches against Long Beach State next weekend. The Tritons will host the Beach on Friday, April 3, before making the trip to Long Beach the following day.
 
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 has begun a new era as a member of The Big West in NCAA Division I. The 24-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 39 have garnered 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 NCAA Division I or II. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.