RIVERSIDE, Calif. – Playing their second match in as many nights, the seventh-ranked UC Santa Barbara men's volleyball team won battles at the net and service line en route to a straight-set win over Cal Baptist on Saturday night at Van Dyne Gym.

With the win, UCSB earned a split for the week, improving to 14-8 overall with a 10-8 mark in conference play. Cal Baptist dropped to 6-18, 2-16.

Junior middle blocker Ryan Hardy (six block assists) and junior setter Jonah Seif (five blocks assists) led a UCSB blocking effort that outproduced the opposition 3-to-1, ultimately outblocking the Lancers 9.0-3.0. Jake Staahl (three blocks), Jacob Delson, and Kevin Donohue (two apiece) all had multi-block performances as well.

Donohue then paced the Gauchos on the offensive, collecting team highs with 10 kills and three service aces. UCSB soundly won the service battle, collectively out-acing the Lancers 6-0 while the home team also gifted them 15 points off service errors compared to UCSB's nine miscues.

For the match, UCSB hit at a .280 clip while CBU checked in at .244.

The two teams stayed tight throughout the first set, with UCSB holding a one or two point lead for the majority of the beginning portion. Leading at 12-11, they created some separation and took their biggest lead of the game yet with a 4-2 run that put them up 16-13. That margin held steady down the stretch with the Gauchos taking it 25-22.

UCSB hit a match-high .480 to win the second game by a large margin. The Gauchos jumped out to a 9-6 lead out of the gate, but CBU battled back and made it as close as 12-11. From that point, Seif and Hardy put up blocks on consecutive plays to wrest momentum in UCSB's favor, leading to a 9-3 run that gave Rick McLaughlin's squad a 21-14 lead and cemented the victory.

The final game was the most dramatic, featuring eight ties and three lead changes. UCSB initially went up 10-6, but a 4-0 run for CBU tied the game and set up a battle for momentum down the stretch.

However, with the score at 16-16 and Kevin Donohue at the service line, UCSB reeled off a 4-0 run of their own. Junior outside hitter Spencer Buckley started the party with one of his career-high eight kills before Seif and Staahl teamed up for another block.

A Donohue ace on the ensuing play forced a Lancers timeout, but by then the damage had been done. An errant set by CBU setter Zachary Melcher out of the break gave UCSB a 20-16 lead, and the Gauchos traded points from there on out for the win.

UCSB does not have any matches scheduled for the upcoming week, and will next compete on Wednesday, Apr. 8 as they host UC Irvine at Rob Gym.

With two weeks worth of action left in the regular season, the Gauchos are squarely in the hunt for a position in the eight-team MPSF Tournament. Another postseason berth would be the first three-year streak for the program since 2005-07.