The Vaqueros men’s volleyball team lost their fourth consecutive game Friday at the Sports Pavilion, falling to the Santa Monica Corsairs in four sets, 30-21, 30-24, 28-30, 30-26.

“Honestly, we didn’t have enough chemistry,” Santa Barbara outside hitter Tyson Rietz said. “That was the main cause of the loss.”

Rietz, who turned 21 on Friday, led the team with 17 kills and 11 digs.

“He did a good job digging,” Vaquero head coach Melody Parker said of Rietz’s performance.

Vaquero outside hitter Chris Newcomb had eight kills, while setter Jacob Denitz had 39 assists. However, City College only managed a 0.037 hit percentage.

“We didn’t play disciplined,” Parker said. “We had a lot of service errors. Tonight wasn’t a night they were clicking.”

The loss drops Santa Barbara’s season record to 4-6 overall, and 0-3 in WSC competition.

A dismal first set saw the Corsairs take an early 18-9 lead, before a brief Vaquero rally was offset by inspired play from Santa Monica outside hitter Mark Schuermann.

The defending WSC champions from Santa Monica continued to keep Santa Barbara off balance by taking a 15-9 lead in set No. 2, while cruising to a 30-24 win, and the commanding 2-0 set lead.

“We played real well, set one and two,” Santa Monica head coach John Mayer said. Mayer was the Co-Coach of the Year from the Western State Conference last season.

A close third set, gave the 50-person home crowd something to cheer about. Then Santa Monica hit two shots wide, and the Vaqs took a 25-22 lead, before Rietz would seal the set win with a hit off the line.

“We just started having fun, more people were laughing,” Newcomb said. “More sets like that are needed.”

In set No. 4, Newcomb energized the crowd with a spike that brought City College nearly even with Santa Monica at 11-10. However, a powerful spike by Corsairs middle blocker Quinn Lukens, and a persistent Santa Monica offense led the Corsairs to a three-point lead. A questionable out followed, as the Corsairs sailed to the win.

“We beat them pretty good,” Mayer said.

Schuermann was impressed with his teams performance noting that they played strong and kept together, but the outside hitter didn’t shy away from judging his own personal performance.

“I played well in the beginning and the end, but I was kind of lagging in the middle, but refocused to finish strong,” Schuermann said.

The Vaqueros will have another shot at the Corsairs at 6 p.m. April 3 in Santa Monica, as the teams will play for the last time this season.

The next City College home game will be against El Camino at 6 p.m. March 25 in the Sports Pavilion.