Box Score COSTA MESA --- Men's volleyball secured their second win of the campaign in a 3-0 sweep over UC Merced on Thursday night. The Lions went the distance 32-30 in the first stanza to mark the fourth-highest scoring set in program history. VU then claimed the second interval 25-23 and won the final set 25-20 in a convincing closer to the contest. Vanguard goes to 2-1 and remains unbeaten (5-0) in the all-time series against the Bobcats. UC Merced dropped their second in a row and moved to 1-3.

Three Lions packed double-figures in kills, with Micah Sybesma leading the pack with 15. The middle-blocker hit .650 and ended with a team-best six blocks. Freshman Logan Freemon produced his first career double-double with 13 kills and 10 digs. Grant Dvorak finished with 12 kills on .391 hitting. He also found his groove from the service line in the final frame, clipping two of his three service aces in the period. Libero Jacob Bayston procured double-digit digs (10) for the first time this season.

The Blue and Gold hit .333 as a unit and had a season-best five service aces. Brock Henderson and Caleb Peters made their first appearances inside the Freed Center, as both setters contributed heavily to the season-high 47 Lion assists.

What Happened?
Set 1- Freemon slapped down a cut shot to put the Lions up 6-2 and finish a 4-0 run. The Bobcats took a timeout to settle themselves and shot back with a 9-3 run to lead 11-9. The visitors took advantage of their best-hitting set of the night at .250 to hang around with VU's fast start. Phinehas Wiley stung the back row with a strong smack to finally break a streak of ties and put the Lions up 17-15, but the Bobcats remained formidable in the front row to fight their way back.

UC Merced held the reigns to set point at 24-22, but a hammer from Sybesma down the middle and a firm finish from Freemon put the Bobcats in danger of dropping the lead. Service errors held the narrative for the rest of the first stanza. Though VU committed eight total service errors to the Bobcat's six overall in the period, Merced made the critical error late, as the Lions took their chances to win the first set.

Set 2- Vanguard hit their match-best .385 in the second set and led in kills 20-9. However, the Bobcats sharpened up at the service line, with just three service errors to VU's nine.

The Lions notched a 5-1 start to the interval, but the Bobcats rallied back with five unanswered to tie the score at 6-6. Peters then made his introduction to the match to help control the pace from the front row. The first pair of his match-high 27 assists came with two crisp back sets to Freemon, who feasted from the left side to put VU up 8-6. Cameron Voshell tacked a kill to help build the lead, as both sides traded blows between their middles. Freemon switched hands mid-air and palmed down a flashy finish to put the hosts up 16-15. Though the rest of the set remained narrow, VU never dropped the lead to win the second stanza.

Set 3- The Bobcats, who played from behind in the first two sets, were the aggressors early on in the third. They forced a VU timeout after piling a 5-1 start to shake the Lions out of rhythm. The Blue and Gold kept their composure and the Bobcat's hitting percentage dropped to a game-low .125, as Merced was not able to maintain their threat.

Sybesma, who has accounted for all four VU solo blocks this season, marked a solo stuff to bring the Lions within one (11-10 Bobcats). Dvorak came up with five of the next nine VU points, including his second ace of the set to make it 19-13 VU. Up to their largest lead, the Blue and Gold road the sails to earn their second win of the season.

What's Next? VU will set the litmus test against another former NAIA foe, as they welcome #1 Masters to the Freed Center on Thursday, February 6. The opening serve is at 7 pm.