PALO ALTO, CA -- UC Santa Cruz started their 2015 season with a match against one of the NCAA's top men's volleyball in Stanford University. The match, played in Palo Alto, did not go the Banana Slugs' way as the Cardinal won 3-1. 

The Banana Slugs finished the 2014 season with a 14-12 record. The Cardinal had a 24-9 record in 2014 and fell in the NCAA Men's Volleyball National Championship to Loyola University (IL).

In the first set, the Cardinal would score the first two points of the set on kills by Alex Stephanus and Daniel Tublin. The Cardinal would have their largest lead of the set at four on six separate occasions; the sixth coming at 14-10 after a Banana Slugs' attack error. The Banana Slugs would claw their back into the set and tie the set on three separate occasions; the third coming at 20-20 after a Tublin service error. The Banana Slugs would gain their first lead of the set at 21-20 after a Cardinal attack error. The two teams would trade points and the lead for the remainder of the set. UC Santa Cruz would gain the upper hand, tying the set on a Jake Landel kill and took the lead for good on a Cardinal service error. The Banana Slugs would win the set 29-27 on a Landel kill. The Banana Slugs led the match 1-0. 

The second set would belong to the Cardinal. The Cardinal would start the set on a 6-1 run capped by a Banana Slugs' service error. The Cardinal would expand their lead to double digits and would gain their largest lead of the set at fourteen on a Stephanus kill at 25-11. The Cardinal would win the set 25-11 and would tie the match at one set apiece. 

The Banana Slugs would start the third set strong as the Banana Slugs would gain their largest lead of the set at two, at 2-0, after a pair of Cardinal attack errors. The Cardinal would take the lead back and then expand the lead to double digits at 22-12 on a Banana Slugs' error. The Cardinal would win the third set 25-13 and would lead the match two sets to one. 

The fourth set was played in a back and forth manner. Neither team gained a larger lead than two for the first half of the set. After a Cardinal service error to make the score 12-11, the Cardinal would go on a 6-1 run capped by a Banana Slugs' attack error to make the score 18-12. The Cardinal would outscore the Banana Slugs 7-6 during the remainder of the set as the Cardinal would win the fourth set 25-18 and win the match three sets to one. 

For UC Santa Cruz, Lake Merchen had a match high ten kills and for Stanford Tublin had a match high ten kills as well. Ryan McLaughlin had twenty seven assists for UC Santa Cruz and Kyle Dagostino had a match high thirty eight for Stanford. Merchen led the Banana Slugs with eleven digs and Madison Hayden had ten digs. 

For the match, UC Santa Cruz had a .008 hitting percentage with the best percentage coming in the first set at .239 while Stanford had a .301 hitting percentage with the second set having the best percentage at .350. Stanford had six services aces to UC Santa Cruz's two. 

The Banana Slugs will have their home opener next Friday as they take on University of California-Merced at West Field House. The first serve is set for 7 pm.