Men's Volleyball Falls 3-0 at #2 UCLA

Saturday, January 15

Los Angeles, Calif.

8:00 PM ET/5:00 PM ET

Princeton University

0-2,0-0EIVA

#2 UCLA

1-0,0-0MPSF

Princeton

UCLA

Photo by: Beverly Schaefer

January 15, 2022 | Men's Volleyball

Box Score

LOS ANGELES – First year Nyherowo Omene wasted no time acclimating to college volleyball, as he finished with a match-high 12 kills against the #2 University of California, Los Angeles, in a 3-0 (25-12, 25-22, 25-22) loss for the Princeton University men's volleyball team Saturday night inside the John Wooden Center.

Omene also added three digs, while junior Brady Wedbush finished with a career-high 10 kills on a .375 attacking percentage. Senior Joe Kelly handed out a team-high 14 assists, and first year Henry Wedbush added a team-high five digs.

The Tigers took an early 5-3 lead over the Bruins following a kill by sophomore Ben Harrington, and maintained a 9-8 edge after an Omene kill. UCLA would battle back, and used a 4-0 run to surge ahead 15-10. The Bruins later used an 11-0 run to take control of the set, and would prevail with a score of 25-12.

Princeton looked to bounce back in the second set; an Omene kill sparked a 4-0 run that saw the Tigers take a 7-5 lead. A Wedbush service ace gave Princeton a 9-7 advantage, then Princeton further built its lead following a Brady Wedbush kill followed by back-to-back Omene kills, pushing Princeton ahead 12-11. The Tigers took a 15-14 lead following another Wedbush kill, but UCLA chipped away and eventually took a 20-17 lead. A service ace by freshman Henry Wedbush knotted the score at 22-22, but UCLA pulled away, 25-22.

Princeton used an early 3-0 run to surge ahead 4-2 in the third set. Service and attacking errors by the Bruins gave the Tigers an 8-6 lead; the Tigers then maintained their two-point advantage, 13-11, thanks to kills by Harrington and sophomore Gavin Leising. A UCLA service error knotted the score at 19-19, but the Bruins responded with a 5-0 run and took a 24-19 lead. The Tigers' refused to quit, going on a 3-0 run led off by an Omene kill to make it 24-22. Princeton's valiant comeback was thwarted, and the Bruins took the third and final set 25-22.

Up Next
The Tigers take on #3 Pepperdine University (2-0) in Malibu, California, on Monday, January 17 at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT.