The Master’s University men’s volleyball team picked up its second consecutive conference win on the road with a 25-20, 25-17, 25-19 win over Benedictine Mesa Saturday afternoon, March 8 in Mesa, Ariz.

The Mustangs (12-0, 2-0) hit .333 for the match and held the Redhawks to .160. TMU also took the advantage in kills (44-30) and aces (5-0), but were out-blocked 4-5.

“Our defensive effort was outstanding today,” TMU Head Coach Jared Goldberg said. “We knew Benedictine has some really strong hitters, and our guys executed the game plan well, making it tough for them to find clean swings. On top of that, we put a lot of pressure on them from the service line, which kept them out of system and allowed us to control the match from start to finish.”

The first set stayed tight with both teams swapping leads and being tied eight times. After the final tie of 17-17, TMU got two kills and an ace from Max McCullough around a Braden Van Groningen kill to get four of the next five points and open up a 21-18 lead. Moments later, Van Groningen picked up two more kills to open up a four-point lead before Isaac Seltzer sealed the set with a kill for the 25-20 win.

The second set belonged entirely to the Mustangs. TMU picked up the first three points and opened up a six-point lead at 10-4 on a kill from Trace Oswald. That lead grew to as much as 11 (23-12) before The Master’s took it to set point at 24-14. The Redhawks would not roll over, collecting the next three points, until Van Groningen put away the set with a kill.

The third set started better for the Redhawks, which opened up a lead early. But at 7-6 BenU, TMU went on an 8-2 run to re-take control of the set and open up a 14-9 advantage. From there the Mustangs went on a 4-1 run and a 3-0 run to open up as much as a seven-point lead before finishing with the 25-19 set win to clinch the match.

Van Groningen finished with 18 kills followed by nine from McCullough and Oswald with eight. Bryce Jones set the entire match, finished with 39 assists, an average of 13.0 per set. McCullough and Jones each had a pair of aces, while Will Avera had a pair of blocks.

The Master’s will continue GSAC play as the team hosts Arizona Christian on Friday, March 14 at 2 p.m.

For more information visit GoMustangs.com.