Mar. 2, 1997

No. 9 Pacific Defeats No. 12 USC in Four

STOCKTON, Calif. - The Pacific men's volleyball team pulled out an exciting victory tonight at the Spanos Center, defeating 12th ranked USC 17-16, 15-7, 7-15, 17-16. With the win, Pacific's record goes to 9-4 overall and 4-4 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation.

The Tigers won a hard-fought game one which lasted just over 50 minutes. After holding match point seven times, the Tigers were finally able to put the game away on a Vladimir Andric ace (one of seven on the night). Games two and three resulted in two 15-7 decisions, with the Tigers coming in on the losing end in game three. Game four was another evenly played contest, as the Tigers fended off three match points at 15-16. Once again it was Andric's power serving that gave Pacific the last two points, and the win under the 17-point cap rule.

Greg Wakeham led the Tigers with 29 kills, 17 digs, and added five blocks. KeAlii Alexander finished the match with 76 assists. Andric pounded 27 kills and Sam Crosson contributed 12 for the Tigers as the team hit a combined .243. USC's Gabe Garner lead the Trojans with 37 kills and hit .380, while the team hit .303 on the night. With the loss, USC's record falls to 8-7, and was 5-5 in the MPSF.