KENOSHA — The No. 3 Carthage men's volleyball team opened strong but could not hold off No. 7 UC Santa Cruz in a tightly contested five-set battle, as the Banana Slugs rallied late to take the match. The Firebirds claimed the first and third sets and pushed the visitors throughout the night before the Banana Slugs secured the deciding set 15-13.

• Final Score: No. 7 UC Santa Cruz 3 - No. 3 Carthage 2 (25-19, 22-25, 25-23, 21-25, 13-15)
• Location: Kenosha, Wisconsin - Tarble Arena
• Records: No. 7 UC Santa Cruz 9-1, No. 3 Carthage 8-2

• Carthage built an early 6-1 advantage in the opening set behind consecutive kills from Hudson Sweitzer.
• UC Santa Cruz responded with five straight points to tie the score at 6.
• A kill by Ruben Emmerich later restored a four-point Firebird lead.
• Ryan Morey and Ryan Bartz followed with kills to stretch the margin to 18-13.
• The visitors trimmed the deficit to 24-19 after a service error, but Emmerich finished the set with a kill.
• The second set remained even until an attack error allowed UC Santa Cruz to pull ahead 14-11.
• Three consecutive kills pushed the Banana Slugs' lead to five, and a 5-2 run gave them a 24-17 edge.
• Carthage answered with five straight points, capped by a Bartz ace, but UC Santa Cruz closed out the set 25-22.
• The teams again traded points early in the third before kills from Ben Heise and Owen Hendricks put Carthage ahead 15-13.
• UC Santa Cruz briefly moved in front on a combined block.
• The Firebirds countered with four unanswered points to take a 23-20 lead.
• The Banana Slugs cut the margin to one, but a service error gave Carthage the set 25-23.
• UC Santa Cruz grabbed a 16-14 lead midway through the fourth.
• A Heise kill brought Carthage within one, but a 4-1 run extended the visitors' advantage to 20-16.
• Bartz recorded another kill to keep the Firebirds close, though UC Santa Cruz answered and forced a fifth set with a 25-21 win.
• The Banana Slugs carried momentum into the deciding set, moving ahead 10-6.
• A Bartz kill, and a block from Cooper Cantwell, and Bartz pulled Carthage closer.
• UC Santa Cruz sealed the match with a final kill, winning the fifth set 15-13.

• Ben Heise had 20 kills to lead Carthage on the day, followed by Ryan Bartz with 16 and Hudson Sweitzer with 11. 
• Ryan Morey recorded a season-high 49 assists in the contest. 
• Austin Mallory had 13 digs for the Firebirds, followed closely by Owen Hendricks with 12. 

• The Firebirds start conference play on Thursday, February 19, at 7 p.m.