LEBANON, IL., Jan. 11) – The McKendree University men's volleyball team fell to No.2 UCLA in its season home opener Friday, 3-0. The Bearcats look to bounce back from the 0-1 start to the 2019 season Saturday with a match against the University of Charleston at 7:30 p.m.

The Bearcats held their own in the match pushing the Bruins into extra points in set two in order to claim the victory. McKendree started the first set point-for-point with UCLA, fell off by a few in the middle, then made a run towards the end of the set with a kill from freshman outside hitter Brendon Dunn (Sherman Oaks, CA/Notre Dame) and then a block by sophomore middle blocker Wyatt Dimke (Ham Lake, MN/Blaine) and freshman setter Ryan Serrano (Anthem, AZ/Boulder Creek) but it was a little too late and UCLA took set one 25-20.

Despite a strong performance by McKendree the Bruins squeaked by in set two, 29-27. The Bearcats remained point-for-point again with UCLA, even taking the lead 12-10 after a key block by junior attacker Zach Schnittker (Arlington Heights, IL/Buffalo Grove) and Dimke followed by a Dimke kill. McKendree remained on top of the score forcing a UCLA timeout where they gained the motivation to take set two.

McKendree continued its strong performance in the third set never falling behind the Bruins for more than three points. The Bearcats had key back-to-back kills by Dunn and sophomore outside hitter Patrick Ross (Anthem, AZ/Boulder Creek) but UCLA answered back with a three-point run making the score 23-18. McKendree cut off the Bruins point run with a Dimke kill followed by a Ross solo block but UCLA stopped the momentum and clinched the sweep with a 25-21 victory in the third set.

Leading attackers for the Bearcats were Schnittker and Dunn, each with five recorded kills. Junior middle blocker Lucas Galifos (Mokena,IL/Lincoln Way East) and Ross were also key contributors for the McKendree offense with four kills each. Serrano tallied 18 assists in the match as well as three block assists for the Bearcats. Defensive leader of the night for McKendree was senior libero Zach Thompson (Defiance, MO/Francis Howell) with three digs. The Bearcats recorded 16 total blocks in the match, four coming from Dimke, three from Serrano and Galifos, and the only block solo of the night for either team was achieved by Ross.

The Bearcats will be back in action Saturday Jan. 12 in the Statham Center as they take on the University of Charleston at 7:30 p.m. Updates about the match can be found on the McKendree website, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram if inclement weather deters the game from occurring.