SANTA CLARITA, Calif.—The 14th-ranked Hobart volleyball team concluded its spring break trip to California with a 3-0 setback to the top-ranked NAIA team in the country, the Master's University. With the loss, the Statesmen fall to 18-8 on the season, while the Mustangs remain undefeated and move to 16-0 overall.

Sophomore Grayson Getz led Hobart with two kills (.200), two service aces, one block and one dig in the loss. Classmates Aiden Kemora and Nate Magni also chipped in two kills each and combined for five digs and two blocks against the Mustangs. First-year Lawson Drabik added two kills, one block and one service ace, while sophomore John Healy recorded a career-high four blocks out of the middle. Junior libero Harrison Keena tallied a career-high seven digs in the loss for the Statesmen.

The Mustangs were led by Trace Oswald's 11 kills (.476), five digs, two blocks and one service ace. Carston Saelzler added seven kills (.308), two digs and a block in the win for the Master's. Bryce Jones tallied a match-high 24 assists in the sweep.

MATCH MOMENTS:

• Hobart and the Master's traded the early points until the Mustangs went on a 4-0 scoring run to grab a 14-10 lead and never looked back. The Statesmen combined for five kills (.000) in the opening set compared to the Mustangs' eight (.118) but the Master's used a late push to grab a 25-17 win in set one.
• The Mustangs came out swinging in the second set, combining for a match-high 15 kills (.565) as a team compared to the Statesmen's four (.000). Hobart found itself out of system often as the Master's brought the heat from the service line and closed out the second set on top 25-17.
• The home team continued to roll in the third set, putting down 12 kills (.269) as a team. Hobart struggled to find any momentum which led to a 25-15 win in favor of the Mustangs.

MATCH STATS:

• Four different players registered two kills in the loss for Hobart. Magni, Getz, Kemora and Drabik combined for eight kills against the Mustangs. Healy and sophomore Nathan Deller chipped in one kill each for the Statesmen.
• Graduate student Benjamin Lincoln and Keena combined for seven assists in the loss.
• The Statesmen combined for 15 digs against the Mustangs and were led by Keena with a career-high seven digs. Kemora chipped in three digs, while Magni added two through three sets.
• Hobart held a 6-5 edge in blocks against the Master's and was led by Healy with a career-high four blocks. Kemora chipped in two, while Magni, Drabik and Getz added one block each.

UP NEXT:
 
Hobart will be back in action Saturday, March 19, when it returns home for the first time since March 8 for a crucial UVC matchup against MIT. First serve between the Statesmen and the Engineers is set for 1 p.m. in Bristol Gym.