The No. 18 UC Santa Barbara Men’s Volleyball team (5-10) kicked off Big West play today as they made the trip to La Jolla, California to take on the No. 20 UC San Diego Tritons.
After just four sets, it was the Tritons who came out with the win as UC Santa Barbara dropped this match 19-25, 18-25, 25-20 and 19-25.
The first set started a little slow for the Gauchos. UC Santa Barbara made six errors in the first 11 points that helped the Tritons take an early 8-3 lead.
The Gauchos did what they could to come back, getting within three at one point, but at the end of the set, it was UC San Diego who finished out on top with a score of 25-19.
The second set went the same as the first as multiple errors by the Gauchos gave the Tritons an early 8-4 lead. This is when UC Santa Barbara started to rally.
The whole team contributed as they got themselves within one of UC San Diego in hopes of securing this second set.
However, three different Tritons went on service runs late in the set that resulted in the Gauchos dropping this one 25-18.
UC Santa Barbara came into this third set with a new lineup, and it paid off. The Gauchos were the ones to grab the early six-point lead with the help of Geste Bianchi and Ben Coordt from the service line.
Even though the Tritons tried to make a comeback, the Gauchos wouldn’t allow it as they took the third set 25-20.
This fourth set was a tight battle between these two teams. The Gauchos and the Tritons tied up the score 10 times before someone could take the lead. Unfortunately for the Gauchos, it was the home team.
UC San Diego slowly started stringing points together while UC Santa Barbara couldn’t gain momentum. This resulted in the Gauchos dropping the fourth and final set 25-19.
Geste Bianchi had the best offensive performance as he led all players on the court with 19 kills. Not only that, he also added on two aces, two blocks and six digs.
Joe Wallace was a big part of the back row defense. He led the Gauchos in this category with 11 digs, the most he earned in a match this season.
Greg Baglio and Jack Walmer split time in the setting position. Baglio set in the first two sets, contributing 19 assists and two digs, while Walmer took the lead in the final two sets, securing 18 assists, three digs and a block.
Josh Aruya had a great night in the middle. He hit at a .714 clip, racking up six kills and only one error on seven swings. He also finished the night with three blocks.
The Gauchos will be back on the road again next week as they continue with non-conference play against Concordia Irvine.
First serve will be at 7 p.m. in Irvine with a live stream available through CUI.