Thursday, January 25
Los Angeles, CA
7:00 PM

UCLA

5-2,0-0MPSF

2
vs
3

UC Santa Barbara

3-5,0-0Big West

1
2
3
4
5
F
UC Santa Barbara
30
23
25
23
15
3
UCLA
28
25
23
25
13
2
UCLA Men's Volleyball
Ethan Champlin on the attack.
Photo by: Don Liebig/ASUCLA

MVB Dealt Five-Set Decision by Gauchos

January 25, 2024 | Men's Volleyball

The No. 2 ranked UCLA men's volleyball team (5-2) fell in five deuce sets to No. 17 UC Santa Barbara (3-5) in a non-league contest on Thursday night in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom. Scores of the match were 28-30, 25-23, 23-25, 25-23, 13-15 as the Bruins had a 10-match Pauley win streak snapped by the visitors from Santa Barbara.
 
Alex Knight led UCLA with a career-high 16 kills. Merrick McHenry added 10 and five blocks. Andrew Rowan set the Bruins to a .331 mark and added three aces and a career-best seven block assists. The Bruins will return to action Friday night with another non-league match at No. 20 UC San Diego.
 
UCLA moved out to a 9-6 advantage at the start of set one after an ace from Rowan. After UCSB sliced the gap to 12-11, UCLA rallied to move out to a 17-13 lead following a Gaucho error. A couple of McHenry swings made it 19-15. Kills by Guy Genis and Knight advanced the margin to 21-16. UCSB used a tough serve, including three aces, to help narrow the gap to 22-21. Genis' tip kill put UCLA in front 23-21. A UCSB service error sent UCLA to set point at 24-22, but the Gauchos responded with two straight kills to level the score. McHenry put the Bruins up 25-24 with a kill, but UCSB tied it up at 25-all. The Gauchos then had four straight looks at set points before a Bruin net call and a UCSB kill finished the set at 28-30.
 
The Bruins enjoyed an 8-5 lead after kills by Ido David and Knight to begin set two. A Knight/Genis block made it 10-7. A couple of Genis kills and a David ace lifted UCLA into a 15-10 edge. However, the next four points went to the Gauchos. McHenry's swing made it 18-16. A Rowan/Genis block produced a 20-17 lead, but the next three points belonged to UCSB. A service error and a block by Champlin/Rowan/McHenry put UCLA up 23-21. UCSB then cut the margin to 24-23 only to see McHenry and Rowan end the frame with a block at 25-23.
 
UCSB moved to a 2-6 lead to start set three. The Bruins trailed 7-11 after a Grant Sloane kill, but the Gauchos added the next three points to double up UCLA. A Knight swing made it 10-16. Sloane's kill made it 14-19 and was followed by a UCSB error and a Sloane block for 16-19. A couple of Knight spikes reduced the gap to 19-21 and then 21-22. The Bruins managed to score at 23-all after a service error and a Rowan/Genis block. However, a Bruin attack error and a UCSB kill gave the set to the Gauchos at 23-25.
 
The Bruins went down 1-4 in set four, but fought back to level the score at 8-all behind the serves of Cooper Robinson and McHenry. Two Robinson kills tied the score at 10- and 12-all. Knight's swing pushed UCLA ahead 15-14 at the media timeout. A McHenry kill left UCLA in front 20-17. UCSB rallied to pull within one at 22-21 and again at 23-22. Rowan and Genis teamed up on another block for 24-22 and Robinson's kill ended the set at 25-23.
 
The Gauchos opened the fifth set with a service run to go up 0-3. UCLA closed to 5-6 after a Rowan/Genis block. Genis' kill made it 7-8. The Bruins evened the score at 10-all after McHenry's kill was followed by a UCSB error. The teams then traded service errors until Robinson tied the score at 12-all on a back row attack and then at 13-all on another kill. The Gauchos closed out the set and the match with a kill and an ace for match point in a 13-15 decision.
 

Next Event

UC San Diego
W, 3-0

Jan 26 (Fri)

7:00 PM

Team Stats

UCSB
UCLA
Kills
66
64
Errors
25
19
Attempts
140
136
Hitting %
.293
.331
Points
84.0
87.0
Assists
62
64
Aces
9
6
Blocks
9
17

Game Leaders

Kills
16
Aces
0
Blocks
4
Kills
10
Aces
0
Blocks
5
Kills
9
Aces
1
Blocks
7
Kills
9
Aces
1
Blocks
0

Players Mentioned

OH/Opp
/ Men's Volleyball
MB
/ Men's Volleyball
OH
/ Men's Volleyball
MB
/ Men's Volleyball
OH
/ Men's Volleyball
S
/ Men's Volleyball
OH
/ Men's Volleyball
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