LA JOLLA, Calif. – The Concordia University, Irvine men' volleyball team traveled down the coast Friday night to compete against UC San Diego. The match was a thriller as both teams fought hard to secure the win but the Eagles outlasted the Tritons in four sets with scores 25-22, 18-25, 26-24, and 25-20.
 
Senior Jonathan Carlson had a double-double night with a career-high of 17 kills and 10 digs while keeping up with a .441 hitting percentage with only two errors. Carlson reached a career-high of 13 earlier this year and knocked that out in Friday's contest against UCSD. Right side hitter Uriel Batista had 15 kills along with seven digs and Erik Boisvert knocked down 11 kills, nine digs, and had a team high of two aces. .
 
The three middles had a notable performance for the Green and Gold as they had a combined 18 kills. Freshman Max McCullough stood out with seven kills while hitting an impressive .778. Gil Herold and Mason Mullins notched five and six kills with two blocks a-piece.
 
Two setters saw the court tonight and split time between Mclain Mott and Makai Lipson. Mott dished out 18 assists while Lipson had 34 assists. This is the second match where Lipson has earned more than 30 assists. Libero Danny Smithers dug up eight from the back row and had his presence on the court throughout the match.
 
The first set was a battle between CUI and UCSD as the score toggled back-and-forth with the two teams where nobody led by more than two points. The Eagles were able to break away at the end with Carlson at the back line to force a Triton timeout, however, Batista put a ball down to take the first set for the Eagles.
 
The Tritons came fighting the second and took a lead the whole way to the end of the set that did not allow the Eagles back in. The third set was no different than the first, continuing to keep the score within close proximity to go either way for both teams. Two kills from Carlson and a hitting error from UCSD gave CUI the 26-24 win in set three.
 
The Eagles continued their momentum into the fourth set where they didn't allow their opponent to go on a run for more than three points. Outside hitters Boisvert and Carlson closed out the match with an ace from the end line and kills.
 
The Eagles are now 5-0 on the season and will back on the court on Friday, Feb. 18 just down the street to play against UC Irvine at 7 p.m. and the following day against UC San Diego again at 7 p.m. in La Jolla, Calif.
 
To see the full CUI men's volleyball schedule, click HERE.