Down 12-8 in the fifth game, on the road against against BYU and with its starting setter out due to injury, UC Irvine’s first loss of the season seemed like a formality. Yet against all odds, the Anteaters proceeded to win seven of the next eight points, stunning the Cougars in and completing a reverse sweep 16-25, 21-25, 26-24, 25-23, 15-13.
With the win, No. 5/3 UCI improves to 6-0 on the season, while No. 8/8 BYU falls to 4-1 with its first loss of the season. Despite losing, the Cougars out-hit the ‘Eaters .355 to .322 and out-blocked them 11 to 7.
Outside hitter Andrej Jokanovic put away a match-high 19 kills at an efficient .436 hitting percentage, followed by opposite William D’arcy who added 16 kills while hitting for .241. Middle blocker Trevor Clark was a dual-force for the ‘Eaters, notching 13 kills on a blistering .650 clip while notching five total blocks.
The Cougars were led by opposite Teilon-Jonathan Tufuga (18 kills on a .256 attack percentage), outside hitters Connor Oldani (17 kills on a .424 attack percentage) and Trent Moser (12 kills on a .409 attack percentage). Middle Blocker Gavin Chamber asserted his presence in the front row with a match-high 8 total blocks throughout the night.
BYU jumped out to an 8-3 lead in the first set, and never looked back as they coasted to a comfortable 25-16 win. The Cougars threatened to make quick work of the ‘Eaters again in the second set, jumping to a 9-5 lead before the ‘Eaters reeled off three straight to close within one at 9-8. UCI recorded their first block of the night to even the set at 12-12, but BYU responded with a 3-0 run, and nursed their lead the rest of the way before putting the set away off a kill by AJ Cottle.
D’arcy powered the ‘Eaters through the third set, slamming away nine kills in crucial moments to force a fourth set. D’arcy registered back-to-back kills to put UCI up 4-2 early on, and added two more during a critical 4-0 run that put the ‘Eaters on top at 16-13. Despite leading 22-19, UCI struggled to put away BYU, who capitalized on a couple of errors and a service ace by Ian Little to tie the game at 23-23 and force a timeout. After taking turns siding out, UCI would seal the set off of kills from Clark and D’arcy.
In the fourth set, UCI was up 20-15 and well on their way to forcing a fifth set before starting setter Aidan Rigg was sidelined due to injury. Down 22-17, the Cougars converted three kills and a double-block to come within one at 22-21. Clark would steady the ‘Eaters however, teaming with Kosty for a double-block and pounding away a kill to give UCI double set point, which they would convert on a BYU service error.
After closing out the fourth set, Clark continued to make his presence felt throughout the fifth and final set. Clark kept the ‘Eaters within striking distance early, scoring three of their first four points to keep the score close at 4-6. Oldani had other plans however, as the sophomore notched three kills in a 4-1 run to put the Cougars up 10-5. The ‘Eaters closed the gap on a 3-1 run, but a Trevor Herget kill put BYU up 12-8 and in firm position to close out the match. With the help of a BYU service error, the ‘Eaters proceeded to win the next five points, with Clark making his presence felt with a kill sandwiched between two block assists to give UCI its first lead of the fifth at 13-12. After a kill by Tufuga pushed the game to deuce at 13-13, Clark called game with a kill and solo block to punctuate the Anteater’s unlikely comeback.
The two teams will square off again later tonight at the Smith Fieldhouse at 7 p.m. (MST).
This article was provided to Off the Block courtesy of reporter Brendan Yu.