USC Maintains Its Mastery of CS Northridge : Men’s volleyball: Trojans run their series advantage to 25-1 over struggling Matadors with a four-game victory.

They are demonstrative in victory and, lately, equally animated in defeat.

After the Cal State Northridge men’s volleyball team dropped a 15-13, 10-15, 15-5, 15-9 decision to USC in a Mountain Pacific Sports Federation match Thursday, its actions spoke volumes.

Their heads hanging, the Matadors did a lot of shoulder shrugging.

“We’re struggling, and I don’t know why,” said Coley Kyman, Northridge’s All-American middle blocker. “I don’t know what’s going on. All I know is that it’s my last year here and we have one home game left and I don’t know what to do.”

The fourth-ranked Matadors had better figure it out fast. Northridge (15-7, 9-5 in conference play) has lost three of its last four. The Matadors face top-ranked UCLA at Pauley Pavilion on Saturday and eighth-ranked Hawaii on the road in two matches next week.

Ninth-ranked USC (8-8, 7-7) continued its mastery of Northridge. The Trojans hold a 25-1 series advantage over Northridge, their only loss coming last season.

If only the Matador struggles were limited to a single opponent. “I don’t think it has anything to do with SC,” said Matt Unger, Northridge setter and senior captain. “We’re just not there. Tonight it was passing. We allowed them too many easy points.

“But lately it seems like every night it’s something else killing us. If it’s not passing, it’s blocking and if it’s not blocking, it’s defense. It’s like a domino effect.”

And all the chips are falling directly on Northridge.

USC, led by Chris Underwood and Jason Mulholland, put down 39.9% of its kill attempts and the Matadors hurt themselves with 19 service errors.

Underwood had a match-high 31 kills, and Mulholland contributed 28 kills and a co-match-high seven block assists. Axel Hager had a team-high 26 kills for Northridge. Kyman added 18 kills while hitting 53.1%.

But even those numbers didn’t keep him out of Coach John Price’s doghouse.

Midway through the third game, Price temporarily benched Kyman for Jamal Thompson. Why?

“Because he was being an idiot,” Price said. “He was complaining about everything--things he has no control over.” Kyman referred the question to Price when asked why he was pulled from the match.

The last straw for Price came when he instructed Kyman to make sure he put his serve in bounds. Price said Kyman responded with a lollipop into the middle of the USC defense.