THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — California Lutheran University men's volleyball avenged an early season loss tonight with a 5 set win against the Saints of Marymount University. The 3-2 win for the Kingsmen came after a hard fight that saw the deciding fifth set go past the normal 15 points all the way to 26-24.
Marymount was able to take claim the first set 25-22 as both offenses came out strong. The Saints out killed the Kingsmen 16-15 and had 2 fewer hitting errors to make the difference in the set.
The Kingsmen took the second set 25-21 thanks to some strong serving.
Set 3 was the most defensive of the sets and the Kingsmen won the hitting battle for the first time. The set took an extra point to decide as setter Taylor Marks was able to ring up an ace for the 26-24 win.
The fourth set saw Marymount hold a small lead for most of the set all the way to a 25-21 victory to force a fifth set.
The final set of the match, normally a shorter game to 15, became a test of fortitude between the two teams. The teams traded point with ties at 2-2 and 4-4.
The Kingsmen continued to edge with 9-7 and 12-10 leads, but the Saints fought back to tie each time.
A kill by Eric Chabon gave Cal Lutheran the first match point of the set, but the Saints were able to hold them off. The teams would trade points and lead while the Kingsmen remained the more dangerous of the two. Cal Lutheran held match point 10 times to Marymount's 2 opportunities.
A Kill out of the middle by Borys Horiuk gave the Kingsmen the lead at 25-24 and then a kill from senior outside hitter Sean Fitzpatrick sealed the set at 26-24 and the match for Cal Lutheran 3-2.
The Kingsmen offense was led by sophomore outside Ben Webber's 18 kills and his very impressive .395 hitting percentage. Freshman setter Taylor Marks had 47 assists and helped distribute the ball to Cal Lutheran's three more double digit kill getters in Sean Fitzpatrick (11), Eric Chabon (10), and Jake Tucker (10).
Borys Horiuk's 7 block assists led at the net while Taylor Marks and senior libero Eli Moore led the back row with 7 digs apiece.
The Kingsmen will be back on the court for a home matchup with Aurora University Thursday at 4:00pm. This will also be Senoir Night for the Kingsmen.
Box Score: CLU 3, MU 2
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Release by Steven Lohn, Assistant Sports Information Director
