LONG BEACH, Calif. – The No.8 UC Santa Barbara Men's Volleyball team took on No. 3 Long Beach State on Friday, who came away 3-0 over the Gauchos.

HOW IT HAPPENED 
UC Santa Barbara started off 2-0 in the first after a Long Beach service error and a kill by Josh Aruya. Long Beach came back to tie, then stayed several points ahead for the rest of the first set. The Beach ended up taking the first 25-20. 

Long Beach managed the second set 25-19. They got off to an early lead and carried it to the end. Riggs Guy had a set high of four kills and Cole Schobel a set high of ten assists. 

Santa Barbara made a case for themselves in the third, contesting the Beach at 19-20. The Gauchos made an early tie at 4-4, but Long Beach sped ahead. The Gauchos first caught up at 15-17, but the Beach was able to stay in front for the rest and claim the final set 25-20. 

Ethan Saint led the Gauchos in kills with nine, while Riggs Guy followed up with seven. Josh Aruya killed .500 with 6 kills off of 13 attempts. Saint also led in points from five digs and two blocks. Guy excelled in passing, receiving a match high of 31 serves with just one error. 

Mikey Denver achieved the highest hitting percentage of the Gauchos with .286 as well as the most block assists with three.Jason Walmer led in digs with eight, while Andreas Schuetz came in for a service ace. William Lawler had a season high of eight assists and two digs. 

UP NEXT
The Gauchos rematch the Beach on Saturday, April 11 at 7:00 p.m. in The Thunderdome. They will head to La Jolla for their final regular season match versus UC San Diego on April 18.