Mustangs competitive in loss to No. 4 Vanguard

No. 8 TMU Men's Volleyball was more competitive against No. 4 Vanguard University than a three-set sweep would indicate, but the Mustangs fell in straight sets to the Lions in Golden State Athletic Conference play on Saturday (22-25, 20-25, 29-31).
 
Master's started the match brightly on its home court, going on a 5-0 run to take an early 8-4 lead, helped by two Will Avera service aces. Vanguard then chipped away at TMU's advantage, and with the opening set tied at 20 apiece, the Lions scored five of the final seven points to claim the first stanza.
 
The Mustangs once again held an early lead in the second set, only for the visitors to take command of the set midway through, scoring seven of nine points after the score was tied at 14 all. TMU got no closer than four the remainder of the set, as VU put Master's on the verge of a sweep.
 
The third set was the most competitive set of all, lasting 60 points, which is tied-for-the-longest set in program history. TMU also lost a 29-31 set on Jan. 24, 2020 against UC Merced, in the Mustangs' first-ever match as a program.
 
With the third set tied at 10, Brock Gardner's kill sparked a 3-0 Mustang run, only for Vanguard to respond with a 3-0 run of its own.
 
Then with the set later tied at 17, the Norkus brothers combined for a block, beginning another 3-0 Master's streak. A Trent Norkus kill and Wyatt Bates service ace put TMU back up by three, 20-17.
 
After a Mustang service error, another Trent Norkus kill put Master's back ahead by three, but the Lions scored six of the next eight points to earn the first of ultimately seven match points.
 
TMU saved the first six of those to tie the set, but were plagued by four service aces, which prevented the Mustangs from ever earning a set point themselves.
 
Master's recorded an impressive .346 and .351 attack % in the second and third sets respectively, but were unable to slow down Vanguard's offense which hit .480 and .438 in the final two sets.
 
The defeat marked the second time the Mustangs were swept by the Lions this season, after also losing in straight sets in Costa Mesa on Feb. 25.
 
Braden Van Groningen set a new career-high with 13 kills, his second-straight match reaching double digits in the category.
 
TMU (11-7 overall, 3-4 GSAC) returns to The MacArthur Center on Saturday at 1 p.m. against No. 5 Menlo College, which will be Senior Day for the Mustangs.