COSTA MESA, CA – Men's Volleyball finishes their 2023 regular season 15-6 after dropping to Vanguard, 3-2. (25-21, 19-25, 25-23, 19-25, 12-15). The Oaks competed in every minute of the match and took it to the 5th set. The Lions found a way and barely got ahead, 15-12. The two teams were neck-and-neck the entire time when comparing the stat lines.
Thank you Seniors!
The seniors played their final regular season GSAC match of their careers and they showed up to compete today. Edin Ibrahimovic led the team with 14 kills, an ace, 4 block assists, and 9 digs. This season, Ibrahimovic earned 212 kills, 21 assists, 18 aces, 81 digs, and 28 total blocks, 8 of them being solo blocks. His veteran partner in crime, Konrad Stoklosinski, added 13 kills hitting at .333%, 5 assists, an ace, 2 block assists, and 8 digs to the Oaks. Stoklosinski is leader in aces per set and is runner-up in kills in the entire GSAC. Chase Direito was the team leader in blocks with 7 block assists. He also contributed 6 kills on the attacking side. In his senior run as an Oak, he was dealt a difficult card when he was injured and had to become a leader from the bench. His comeback was loud and with heart as he was able to contribute 69 kills, hitting at .433%, 4 assists, 3 aces, 16 digs, and 30 total blocks, 25 being block assists in just 12 matches played.
Christian Menchaca has been the starting libero all season long and has continued to be solid for the Oaks. He earned 9 digs today and also offered 3 assists. Menchaca had 106 digs, 22 assists, and 6 aces on the season. The assists leader for the Oaks is none other than Lucas Larson with a whopping 41 assists! This stud also helped Menlo out with 2 kills, 2 aces, 2 block assists, and 6 digs. Although Josh Sullivan, the final senior, did not make an appearance today, he also finished with a strong final season as an Oak. Josh contributed 30 kills, 5 assists, 6 aces, 51 digs, and 10 block assists.
Neck-And-Neck
The two squads were evenly matched up today in Costa Mesa, CA and they knew it was going to be a fight to the very end. In a team comparison Menlo landed 53 kills as a team where Vanguard was able to land 66. The Oaks served harder with 6 aces compared to the Lions 5 aces. Both front lines had a day with Menlo able to block 10 attacks from Vanguard successfully but Vanguard was right there with 12 blocks total. There was only a difference of 13 assists between the two teams and Menlo earned 1 more dig compared to them. The Lions are #2 in the nation for a reason and were able to pull off the competitive win, despite an absolute brawl from the #6 Oaks.
Up Next….
Menlo awaits conference standings to know when and who they will play in the GSAC Conference Championships coming up on Friday, March 31 in Surprise, AZ. The Finals will take place the following Saturday, April 1st.
