PLYMOUTH, Wis. – UC Santa Cruz was sharp from the start and the Lakeland University men's volleyball team was defeated in three sets in a rare Friday morning match at the Moose & Dona Woltzen Gymnasium.

The Muskies were unable to gain much traction in a 25-17, 25-16, 25-14 loss to the nationally ranked Banana Slugs. UC Santa Cruz came in ranked No. 17 in the latest AVCA Top 25 Coaches Poll and improved to 12-0 all-time against Lakeland in the regularly played series between schools separated by 2,250 miles.

The Banana Slugs (8-5 overall) hit an efficient .414 for the match with 38 kills and nine errors in 70 attacks. Santa Cruz opened hitting a superb .560 in the first set with 15 kills and just one error and only cooled down slightly in the final two sets.

The guests trailed just once in the match, when the Muskies (4-5 overall) held a brief lead in the early stages of the second set. That set was Lakeland's best as far as staying close to the Banana Slugs, as the teams were tied at 11-11 until UC Santa Cruz scored five straight points to take control.

The Muskies hit .014 as a team with 18 kills and 17 errors in 72 attacks. Lakeland also registered just one service ace and two blocks.

Ben Busalacchi (Sr.-Muskego, Wis.) finished with seven kills and also added an ace to give him 130 career aces to put him one away from tying the school record of 131 aces set by Cameron Ekum from 2018-22. Levi Everts (Sr.-Hartford, Wis.) added four kills and a solo block and Chase Anderson (Jr.-Hartford, Wis.) posted 13 assists plus two kills.

Dylan Foreman led UC Santa Cruz with nine kills, Riley Norman finished with eight kills and A.J. Contreras added seven kills. Setter Caio Valente also finished with 27 assists plus a match-high nine digs.

The Muskies host another nationally ranked team from California for their next match when they host defending NCAA Division III champion Cal Lutheran University Friday, Feb. 14 at 6 p.m.