RIVERSIDE, Calif. – Hope International overcame a two-set deficit to complete the reverse sweep in the Great Southwest Athletic Conference men's volleyball opener on Thursday, upending La Sierra by scores of 16-25, 19-25, 25-23, 25-21, 15-11.

Alessandro Spendolini led the Royals with 23 kills and 14 digs for his third consecutive double-double. The Mount Mercy transfer was instrumental in HIU tying the match with seven kills apiece in sets three and four.

Spendolini hit .378 (23-6-45) for the match.

Jah'mi Jeter added 11 kills, six digs and four block assists. Sean Seaman chipped in seven kills on .333 hitting.

The Royals hit .196 (54-26-193) as a team, as setter Benjamin Antonio posted a 41-assist, 11-dig double-double. In the back row, Steve Tong tallied a career-high 13 digs. 

Travis Donahue helped protect the net with a team-high five blocks.

The Royals began their comeback in set three while trailing 10-8, embarking on a 7-2 run to lead 15-12. Seaman started the rally with back-to-back kills and Hugo Gonzalez Gutierrez added an ace. HIU kept the lead until consecutive Tucker Ellis kills tied the set at 19-19.

Gonzalez Gutierrez knocked down another kill to get HIU to set point at 24-22. La Sierra staved off one point, but Spendolini found the ground to give the Royals a 25-23 victory.

The two teams fought through eight ties early in set four. HIU went on a 3-0 mini-run to break the stalemate and take a 12-9 lead. The Golden Eagles moved within 14-12, but the Royals utilized a 5-1 run to open up a six-point advantage. Two Spendolini kills were sandwiched around a Donahue and Jeter assisted block on Ellis.

La Sierra trimmed the deficit to three on several occasions, but Jeter crushed any hopes of a comeback as his kill gave HIU the 25-21 triumph.

HIU hit a team-best .270 (15-5-37) in set four.

Set five was tied at 5-5 when the Royals scored three straight points – a Spendolini kill, a Donahue-Jeter block and Antonio service ace.

The Golden Eagles climbed within 9-7, but another three-point run extended HIU's lead to five. Jeter and Donahue again teamed up to block a La Sierra attack attempt.

La Sierra got within 12-10, but Jeter and Seaman registered kills to get HIU to match point.  Matthew King's attack error ended it as the Royals took set five 15-11.

The Golden Eagles hit .417 and .400 to take the first two sets handily. The Royals limited them to .125 hitting over the next three frames.

HIU is now 2-7 overall, while La Sierra dropped to 1-3.

The Royals return to action on Friday, March 6 when they take on Arizona Christian in Santa Clarita. First serve is slated for 4:00 p.m.