SANTA ANA, Calif. – Facing a much improved Hope International squad, the third-ranked men's volleyball dropped a set before settling down to a 28-30, 25-19, 25-19, 25-22 Golden State Athletic Conference victory on Saturday at Calvary Chapel High School.

The Lions improved to 6-0 overall and 3-0 in GSAC play.

Will Anderson and Andrew Sheveland tied for team-high honors with 14 kills apiece. Anderson hit .423 (14-3-26), while Sheveland swung at a .407 (14-3-27) clip. Sheveland's 14 kills represented a career-best for the sophomore.

Senior middle blocked Glen Linden III tied his career-best output in kills with 11, finishing with a team-high .562 hitting percentage.

In his first start of the season, outside hitter Jacob Van Groningen tallied eight kills and a career-high 11 digs. He was also the fifth VU attacker to hit above .400 for the match as he checked in at .429 (8-2-14).

Setter Ryan Smith churned out four of the team's 11 aces. He also handed out 43 assists in helping the Lions hit .424 (52-10-99) overall. 

There were 53 service errors committed in the match, with 30 by Vanguard.

HIU (4-8, 0-3) was led by 15 kills on .480 hitting from Kyler Tufuga. Cody Prowse added 14 kills.
 

What Happened?

Set 1 – The Lions lost 30-28 despite outhitting the Royals .438 to .267. Eleven service errors victimized the Lions, as did four Royal service aces.

Tufuga slammed three straight kills to keep HIU within striking distance, trailing 13-10. The Lions remained in front by three until a 4-0 run gave HIU a 19-18 lead and forced a VU timeout. The set was tied six times from there.

Sheveland's kill gave VU a 28-27 advantage as the home team served for set point. But a service error knotted the score at 28-28. Sergio Garcia, who had three aces in the set, wrapped things up as his next two serves hit the floor.

Set 2 – Five ties in the early going spelled another competitive set between the two teams. However, the Lions went on a brief 4-1 run to lead 12-9 as Micah Sybesma and Van Groningen finished with an assisted block on Prowse.

VU maintained three-point leads at 13-10, 15-12 and 19-16, with a Smith ace resulting in the 19th point. The Royals called timeout, but that didn't matter as Smith fired off another ace out of the break.

The Lions took control from there after building their largest lead of four points, and this time it was Anderson who concluded the set with a pair of aces. HIU did not help its cause with seven service errors in the frame. VU limited its miscues at the line to four in set two.

VU had only five kills in the set and hit just .053 (5-4-19). However, the Royals managed to hit only .167 (10-6-24) themselves.

Set 3 – Vanguard flexed its muscle with a match-best .722 hitting percentage, posting 13 kills in 18 errorless attempts. The Royals countered at .176 (7-4-17) efficiency.

VU exerted control early with a 4-1 lead as Anderson and Van Groningen kills helped set the tone. HIU only trailed 8-6 as five of the six Royal points resulted from Lion service errors.

The Lions made their move with a 4-0 run to extend the lead to 13-7. Sheveland served up an ace and Sybesma's kill forced an HIU timeout.

The Royals would get no closer than four points. VU began setting its middles with more frequency and Linden III shined with five kills, including on two of VU's final three points. 

Set 4 – Both teams hit above .400 and committed just a combined four attack errors.

HIU held one point leads on three occasions – the last at 7-6 – when the Blue and Gold blitzed the visitors with a 5-0 run. Sheveland had three kills and Sybesma one during the surge to provide the Lions an 11-7 lead.

The Royals called timeout, and that helped quell VU's momentum. A VU service error and HIU ace quickly trimmed HIU's deficit to 11-9. The Lions opened up a 15-11 lead as Linden III smashed a kill. However, the Royals tied the score at 15-15 thanks to a 4-0 run.

The battle for 10 more points commenced. Anderson had two big kills to open up 20-17 and 22-18 leads for the Lions. Smith had one of his four aces during the late surge. Van Groningen's kill gave VU a 23-18 lead as HIU burned its final timeout.

HIU continued to fight and narrowed the deficit to 23-21 on a kill and ace by Prowse, followed by another kill from Julian Zavala. Sheveland and Zavala exchanged kills, and Linden III ended the match with another shot as VU triumphed 25-22.

Why Is It Important?: The Lions remained in a tie for first in the GSAC with OUAZ, which swept Arizona Christian on Saturday.

What Was Said?: "I'll reiterate what I said a couple weeks ago," said Head Coach Brian Rofer. "Hope is a much improved team from last year. They just keep coming at you. They pass well and are very good defensively. They put a lot of pressure on the server with their ability to pass. That pressure is partially why we had so many errors and few aces in the first set. We steadily were able to keep serving aggressively with fewer errors. We hit well and I'm happy with the way our guys were patient throughout the course of the match."

What's Next?: The Lions welcome No. 13 Saint Xavier on Tuesday, March 5 at Orange Coast College. First serve is 7:00 p.m.