Men's volleyball

Trojans finish seventh at UCSB Invitational

By Ryan Hochgesang
Assistant Sports Editor

Playing among a 24-team field that included some of the best teams in the country, the USC men's volleyball team finished seventh this weekend at the UC Santa Barbara Invitational.
The Trojans won all three of their matches during round robin play on Friday to advance to the top pool of teams, then won three of their five matches on Saturday to finish in seventh place.
"Overall we were really pleased with how the guys played this weekend," USC assistant coach Aaron Smith said. "We played really well against some of the top teams in the country, but we realize that we still have some things we need to work on."
On Friday the Trojans defeated all three teams in their group. They beat Arizona State, 15-5, 15-4; Cal State San Bernardino, 15-12, 15-7; and Pacific, 16-17, 15-13, 15-7.
USC began Saturday beating La Verne, 15-7, 15-9, and UC Santa Barbara, 15-11, 15-13.
The Trojans failed to capitalize on their big win, losing their next two matches to Loyola Marymount, 15-17, 15-6, 15-12, and UCLA, 17-16, 10-15, 15-13.
USC beat UC Irvine in the seventh-place match, 15-11, 15-8.
BYU won the invitational, beating Santa Barbara in the championship match, 15-5, 15-5, 15-10.