Patrick Paragas had his best match as a Mustang and four hitters finished double-digits in kills as The Master's defeated Menlo in four sets Saturday in Atherton, Calif.
Paragas, a transfer from UC Santa Barbara, had a career-high 55 assists, an average of nearly 14 per set, in leading the No. 1-ranked Mustangs (11-2, 2-1) to the 25-22, 26-24, 26-28, 25-20 conference win.
The match was tight throughout, with both sides never gaining more than a 3-point lead or more than three straight points, until the end of the second set.
TMU had it at set point 24-20, but Menlo rattled off four straight points to tie it at 24-24. After a
Cole Oliver kill put The Master's back at set point, an Oaks attack error gave the set to the Mustangs.
Trying to close out the match in the third, TMU grabbed their biggest lead at any time in the match at 17-11. But Menlo went on an 8-1 run to take a one-point lead. The Mustangs fought back and got to within two points of taking the match at 23-20, but again Menlo rattled off four straight to force a set point, eventually winning the set 28-26.
"Service pressure was better and we were trying to find the balance," said Head Coach
Jared Goldberg. "We finished well, other than that third set."
The fourth set went back-and-forth again, with the Oaks gaining a 17-14 advantage. But this time it was The Master's that went unanswered, winning the next five points to go up 19-17. Still Menlo fought, but after it was tied at 20-20, once again it was five answered points that won the set and the match for the Mustangs.
"We faulted a few times, battled through some adversity, but also bounced back," Goldberg said. "So it was a good win."
Diego Perez led TMU with 14 kills, followed by 13 for
Will Avera,
Mason Mullins with 12 and
Braden Van Groningen finished with 10. Avera also added seven blocks and Perez had three aces.
The Master's will be back in The MacArfthur Center Wednesday night as they host No. 11 Saint Xavier (IL). First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m.
