University of California, Merced – Men’s Volleyball Falls to Saint Katherine in Straight Sets

MERCED, Calif. – The University of California, Merced men’s volleyball team lost 3-0 (26-24, 25-21, 25-23) to University of Saint Katherine on Sunday afternoon inside the Joseph Edward Gallo Gymnasium.

Toby Miller led the Bobcats (7-11, 4-4) with three set career-high’s of 33 assists and 12 digs, marking his second double-double in as many games.

Chris Morikawa and Jared Guglielmana finished with eleven kills each.

Morikawa’s offensive numbers were supported by six digs, two blocks, and a service ace. One of his two blocks was a solo block. Sunday marked Morikawa’s third straight match with 10+ kills, a service ace, and a solo block.

Ryan Kilgore added seven kills and a solo block, while Jozef Lingenfelter smacked six kills on a .500 hitting percentage to go along with a service ace.

Other individual notables include six digs from CJ Blankenship, four digs and a solo block from Guglielmana, four digs from Ashton Wooldridge, and three blocks (one solo) from Brennan Taylor.

University of Saint Katherine was led by Jeremiah Cook’s double-double performance consisting of 14 kills and ten digs.

The opening set was extremely tight, and it featured 17 ties and no lead larger than two points for either side. UC Merced led late on three occasions, including 22-21, before having to stave off USK set points. The Bobcats forced extra points but ultimately fell 26-24.

UC Merced never led in the second set and trailed by five points as early as the 7-2 mark. The Bobcats were able to pull within two points down the stretch at 20-18 following a Lingenfelter service ace, but couldn’t inch any closer and fell 25-21.

The third set was similar to the second set, however this time the Bobcats were able to even the score at 20-20. USK followed with a timeout and it worked to their advantage as they came out with a 4-1 run to set up match point. Guglielmana managed to extend the match a few more rallies with a kill and a solo block, but USK would ultimately score match point via a kill from Isaac Laing.

Up next, UC Merced will play host to second-ranked Benedictine University Mesa on Friday, March 17, at 5:00pm.