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Check out the five things to take away from the NCAA Division I-II men’s volleyball matches this weekend.
1. USC rallies to stay perfect in MPSF — No. 5 USC overcame a five-point road deficit midway through a decisive fifth game to beat No. 3 UC Irvine on Friday in front of 1,395 people in attendance. Three Trojans finished with double-digit kills and All-American setter Micah Christenson had 52 assists as USC in the victory out-hit UC Irvine .305 to .261. With this victory, USC remains the only undefeated team in the MPSF.
2. Lewis offense overpowers Penn State — No. 2 Lewis in its road victory against No. 15 Penn State had more than a .400 attack percentage in three of the four games. In addition, the Flyers committed two attack errors in the final two games of the non-conference match. The loss extended Penn State’s losing streak to six matches — the program’s longest losing streak during the rally scoring era.
3. BYU, UC Santa Barbara split series — Middle attacker Michael Hatch in the series finale had a match-high 10 blocks as No. 3 BYU defeated No. 8 UC Santa Barbara in five games Saturday. In addition, UC Santa Barbara opened the two-match series sweeping BYU and finished that match with a .326 attack percentage.
4. Erskine takes control of Conference Carolinas — In a rematch of last season’s conference championship match, Erskine beat Mount Olive on Saturday to take sole possession of first place. Outside attacker Roberto Perez in the victory finished with a match-high 21 kills, while outside attacker Michael Michelau addd 16 kills and a team-high 12 digs.
5. Freshmen set blocking records — Cal Baptist freshman middle attacker Enrique de Diego Garcia had 16 blocks in a sweep against Cal Baptist on Friday to set the MPSF record for blocks in the single-match during the rally scoring era. In addition, Ball State freshman middle attacker Matt Walsh tied the school’s single-match rally scoring era record with 15 blocks in a sweep against Sacred Heart on Saturday.