March 8, 2006

Box Score

Drew Pickering recorded 13 kills for the Lewis Flyers (5-9) in a 3-0 (30-25, 30-25, 30-16) loss to No. 7 UC Santa Barbara Tuesday night at Robertson Gym.

The Flyers kept things close in the first game until the Gauchos went on an 8-2 run after leading 11-9, increasing the lead to eight points, 19-11. Lewis then went on a run of its own, reducing the Gaucho lead to 23-21 after a block by Billy Sahagian. Brunner recorded a block and a kill down the stretch and Patak and Berman each contributed a kill to help Santa Barbara to a game one victory.

With freshman Max Klineman at serve, UCSB began game two on an 8-0 run as Lewis struggled against the Gaucho block. Santa Barbara maintained a healthy buffer, pushing the score to 14-6, but an 11-6 run brought the Flyers back to within reasonable distance. Another Sagahian block brought the Flyers to within two at 22-20, but Santa Barbara ended the game on an 8-5 run to close out game two.

Santa Barbara never trailed in game three, but Lewis kept the score close in the early goings as Santa Barbara led 12-8. From there, an 11-3 run by the Gauchos put the match out of reach as Patak tacked on three more kills to his total.

Evan Patak recorded a match-high 15 kills for the Gauchos. Junior outside hitter Bryan Berman and sophomore middle blocker Theo Brunner were two of nine Gauchos to post at least one kill as the two finished with eight kills apiece.

The Flyers return to action Wednesday night with a match at UCLA at 7 pm.