LA JOLLA, Calif. – The No. 9 UC Santa Barbara Men's Volleyball team held off No. 11 UC San Diego on Saturday night, finishing their regular season with a 3-2 win and securing the No. 4 seed for the 2026 Outrigger Big West Men's Volleyball Championship presented by the Hawaiian Islands. 

HOW IT HAPPENED
UC San Diego had a dominant first set, taking it 25-12. It was tied at 4-4, but the Tritons pulled ahead thereafter.

Santa Barbara stepped up in the second, drastically turning the match around. The Gauchos won after multiple points of overtime at 31-29. UC Santa Barbara stayed on pace with the Tritons through 15-15, then San Diego hovered a couple of points ahead until the Gauchos tied it again at 21-21. UCSD made its first set point at 24-23, but Santa Barbara leveled and, in a showing of extreme persistence, lasted through five more UCSD set points. The Gauchos got their first set point at 30-29, then finished at 31-29. 

The Gauchos won the third set neatly at 25-18.  The teams were tight through 16-16, then Santa Barbara surged ahead. They made nine of the next 11 points to take a 2-1 match advantage. George Bruening sealed the set with a service ace. Bruening, Riggs Guy, Josh Aruya, and Ethan Saint each had three kills and the team had four aces. 

UC San Diego avoided elimination in the fourth, winning it 26-24. The Tritons had a significant, early lead of 9-3 that later grew to 21-14. But a six-point streak from the Gauchos put them even with the Tritons at 22-22.  More ties ensued, but the Tritons were able to ultimately close. 

During the fifth, the Gauchos once again pulled through. UCSD had a tentative 4-3 lead, but five straight Gaucho points took them to an 8-4 heading. Two more kills from Santa Barbara took them to ten points at 10-6. They held on, staying on top through five more points to clinch the set 15-9.  

Bruening, Saint, and Guy had 16, 15, and 14 kills to power the offense. Both Bruening and Saint hit .250, while Guy had a match high of four aces. His career high of five aces also came against UC San Diego earlier this season.

Bruening led the team in block assists with four, while Saint and Guy both picked up seven digs. Mikey Denver and Cole Schobel both hit .600 and Schobel led the match in digs with 10. 

UP NEXT
The Gauchos will face the No. 5 seed on Thursday, April 23 at 5 p.m. in Irvine at the Bren Events Center during the first match of the 2026 Outrigger Big West Men's Volleyball Championship presented by the Hawaiian Islands.