SANTA CLARITA, Calif. – Vanguard hit .383 overall in a 25-22, 25-20, 31-29 men's volleyball road sweep of No. 8 The Master's on Saturday at The MacArthur Center.

The Lions won their 10th match and improved to 5-1 in Golden State Athletic Conference play. The Mustangs fell to 11-7 overall and 3-4 in conference action.

What Happened?: Kyle Anema (SR/La Mirada, CA), Matthew Roussin (SR/Anaheim Hills, CA) and Filippo Meoni (SO/Macerata, Italy) combined for 35 of the team's 43 kills. Anema totaled a match-high 14 kills on .367 (14-3-30) hitting. It was Anema's fifth straight match with double-digit kills.

Roussin hit .417 with 13 kills, while Meoni contributed eight kills.

Bryce Thompson (SR/Los Alamitos, CA) dished out 35 assists and Cameron Way (SR/Dana Point, CA) led the defense with eight digs.

Braden Van Groningen notched 13 kills on 28 errorless swings, hitting .464 for The Master's.

Set One

Vanguard came from behind to take the first set. The Lions trailed 11-7 following a Mustang kill from Trent Norkus.

A series of TMU errors resulted in a 5-1 run for VU that evened the score at 12-12. The Mustangs then scored three straight to take a 15-12 lead and force a Lion timeout.

The break in action did the trick as Vanguard responded with a 5-1 burst to grab a 17-16 advantage. Key to the turnaround included two kills by Anema.

The teams went back and forth from there until VU emerged with three straight points and a 24-21 lead, aided by kills from Anema and Glen Linden (SO/Newport Beach, CA). TMU saved one set point, but a service error doomed the Mustangs to a 25-22 loss.

Set Two

The teams played through eight ties to get to 14-14. Vanguard utilized a 7-2 run to open up a 21-16 edge. Roussin, Anema and Thompson all delivered kills to help the Lions.

The Lions remained in control and won the second set comfortably, 25-20. Anema and Roussin each tallied four kills to pace VU.

Christian Nowtash (SR/Vista, CA) sealed the set with a putaway.

Set Three

The Master's did not let VU sweep the match without a battle as extra points decided set three. The score was tied 10-10 when the Mustangs reeled off three straight for the 13-10 lead.

Anema and Roussin slammed three straight kills as VU retied the score at 13-13.

TMU went up 20-17 on a service ace, but the Lions answered with a 6-2 push to wrestle away the lead. Up 23-22, Van Groningen tied the score with a kill.

The Lions had six match points but TMU fought off each one with a sideout. A VU service error tied the score at 29-29.

But Roussin's 13th kill gave VU its seventh match point opportunity at 30-29. And this time, the Lions capitalized as Norkus committed an attack error for TMU on the next point.

Why Is It Important?: VU stayed within striking distance of GSAC leader OUAZ, which won an important match against Menlo earlier this afternoon. The Spirit are unbeaten at 7-0 in GSAC play. The regular season champion will host the GSAC Tournament in early April.

What Was Said?: "We took another big step forward as a group," said Head Coach Brad Rostratter. "Our schedule has toughened us and made us stronger for battles like today. Our growth was on display in the third set by playing with consistency in all phases of the game."

What's Next?: After four straight on the road, Vanguard returns home on Wednesday, March 16 for a home match against Ottawa (KS) at 7:00 p.m. The Lions will play six matches within an 11-day period to conclude the regular season.