COSTA MESA, Calif. - The men's volleyball team hit the road to SoCal to take on the #1 team in the nation, Vanguard University in its first game of their SoCal road trip. 

The Lions scored the first two points in the game. But the Red Hawks answered back with a kill by Flavio Mercado followed by an ace by Jean-Paul James to tie the game at two. 

The Red Hawks battled and pulled within two points of the Lions 13-11 lead. 

Kills by Nathan Richards, Akira Davies, Jacob Shelton, and Mercado helped keep the Red Hawks nipping at the Lions lead. 

However, a 13-5 Vanguard run created enough separation to close out the first set victory 25-15.  

Simpson came into the third set with an early lead as they took advantage of the early attacking errors by the Lions. 

Davies put down another kill to put Simpson up 4-1. 

The Red Hawks and Lions exchanged rallies as Simpson tied the game at 14. A couple of kills by Davies followed by a kill by Mercado pulled Simpson within three points late in the second set. 

But Vanguard closed out the second set on a 4-0 run that sealed the 25-18 set victory. 

Down two sets to none, the Red Hawks fought back in set three as they drew first blood on an Akira Davies ace followed by a Flavio Mercado kill. 

Looking at an 11-16 deficit the Red Hawks reeled off six straight points to grab the 17-16 lead before a Lion's timeout. 

Aided by attacking errors by the Lions, a kill by Jacob Shelton, and an ace by Caleb Nishimura. 

A 4-0 Lions run late in the third set put Vanguard on top 22-19 before a 3-0 Simpson rally tied the game back up at 22. 

A huge kill by Richards tied the game at 23, but not before Vanguard closed out the game 25-23. 

Nathan Richards and Flavio Mercado combined for 13 kills on the night. 

David Raffaelli played a key role for his attackers as he registered 19 assists. 

Simpson looks to bounce back in its second game of their SoCal road trip tomorrow when they take on Hope International.