HARROGATE, TN - No. 19 Lincoln Memorial men's volleyball continues its West Coast swing this weekend with a pair of late-night matchups in California, opening the trip Friday, Feb. 20 at 10 p.m. ET at No. 14 UC Santa Barbara in Santa Barbara before traveling to Malibu to face No. 6 Pepperdine on Saturday, Feb. 21 at 10 p.m. ET.

LMU enters the weekend at 7-4 and has remained one of the most balanced teams in the country statistically, hitting .286 as a team while averaging 11.9 kills per set and 10.6 assists per set. The Railsplitters have also been solid across the back line and at the net, averaging 9.5 digs per set and 2.0 blocks per set, with the team's block total (73.0) matching opponents through 11 matches.

Offensively, Johan Negron has paced the attack with 103 kills (3.03/set), while Axel van Baars has added 86 kills and a team-high 11 aces. George Stevens has been another steady option on the pins with 70 kills, and the middle has been a strength behind Relja Milosavljevic, who is hitting .433 with 49 kills. Setter Roman Mahlerwein has directed the offense with 210 assists, while libero Zachary Zian anchors the back row with 72 digs.

Friday's match brings a challenge against a UC Santa Barbara team ranked No. 14, which has shown it can score in bunches, averaging over 12 kills per set behind a deep group of attackers. The series is limited, but it's a memorable one for LMU: the Railsplitters earned a five-set win in the only meeting, a 3–2 victory in Santa Barbara on Jan. 6, 2023.

On Saturday, LMU faces No. 6 Pepperdine, a team that has been especially dangerous from the service line with 81 aces this season (2.3 per set) and is hitting .345 as a team. The Waves have also controlled the net with 98.0 total blocks (2.7 per set). Pepperdine has taken the last two meetings in the series, including a 3–0 win in Malibu last season.

First serve is set for 10 p.m. ET in both matches. Live stats and streaming coverage will be available through the links on the LMU men's volleyball schedule page.