SANTA ANA, Calif. – In front of a raucous packed house at Calvary Chapel High School on Saturday, the Vanguard men's volleyball team pulled off a thrilling five-set victory over No. 1 The Master's in a Golden State Athletic Conference showdown.
The Lions won by scores of 24-26, 21-25, 25-23, 25-20, 15-4, hitting .526 in set four and .800 in set five to overwhelm the Mustangs in the latter stages of the match.
The Lions struggled from the service line through the first half of the match and ended up with 28 service errors. But they began to click midway through the third set, finishing with 17 aces including seven from All-American Will Anderson.
Anderson posted a match-high 22 kills and used all 6-foot-8 inches of his imposing frame to dominate at both pins. He hit .500 (22-6-32) to go along with four total blocks and four digs.
Sophomore Andrew Sheveland notched seven kills on .429 hitting and added six digs with three blocks.
Setter Ryan Smith directed the Lions offense to .360 (47-16-86) hitting and dished out 38 assists. He fired off three service aces and had four blocks (two solo).
Mason Mullins led The Master's with 12 kills on 14 errorless swings, finishing at .857 hitting efficiency. The Mustangs managed to hit just -.091 in the fifth set.
Vanguard fell behind two sets to none as TMU won by scores of 26-24 and 25-21.
The third set was a back-and-forth affair with 18 ties and eight lead changes. VU was down late – with a service error giving TMU a 20-19 lead. The Lions scored two straight points to take a 21-20 lead as Sheveland delivered a kill and Micah Sybesma solo roofed TMU's Will Avera.
The Lions led 23-21 and 24-22, but TMU staved off the first set point on a kill by Braden Van Groningen. After calling a timeout, Vanguard set Anderson, who slammed down a kill to give the home side a 25-23 victory.
TMU held a lead no larger than one or two points throughout the majority of the fourth set. The Mustangs opened up a 16-14 advantage after a bad set by VU.
But the Lions went on an impactful 6-1 run – with a pair of kills from Anderson and two service aces fueling the surge. Smith's ace gave VU a 20-17 lead as TMU called timeout.
The Mustangs inched back within 21-20 – helped by Van Groningen and Mullins kills – and VU countered with of a timeout of its own. The break did wonders as the Lions served up the next four points. Anderson hammered a kill and Matthew Compos put down a couple of aces to get VU to set point. Anderson then solo stuffed Isaac Seltzer for the 25-20 triumph as the VU fans went wild.
The crowd really began to become a huge factor in set five with momentum swinging in Vanguard's favor.
The Lions built an 8-2 lead with Glen Linden III, Sheveland, Anderson and Reza Tahmasebi all contributing kills. TMU's next two points came off VU service errors, but the home team still led 9-4.
Linden's kill and Anderson's ace widened the lead to 11-4 as the Mustangs burned their final timeout. But the Lions finished off the match-ending 6-0 run as Linden III was in on two blocks.
Fittingly, Anderson finished off the match with a kill and a service ace to clinch the 15-4 set five win.
Why Is It Important?: No strangers to reverse sweep victories in the biggest moments – think 2023 national championship match – this year's version of the Lions proved they could do it again against some of the best competition.
What Was Said?: "We played against a very polished Masters team tonight," said Head Coach Brian Rofer. "They served well and their defense and transition game was very good. It was a great litmus test for us to see where our level of play is for this time of the season and no better team to test against than the number one ranked team in the country. We played well but we will get much better. I'm excited to see where this team will be come postseason."
What's Next?: The Lions return to Calvary Chapel HS on Saturday, March 2 against Hope International. First serve is at 7:00 p.m.
