FULLERTON – Hope International men's volleyball enjoyed a 25-9, 25-19, 25-13 victory against Soka to celebrate Senior Night in the final home contest of the 2026 season on Thursday.

HIU seniors Sam D'Ambrosio and Hugo Gonzalez Gutierrez played their final home contests in a Royals uniform.

D'Ambrosio, the starting setter, dished out 26 assists and led the team to a .338 hitting percentage. Since taking over the libero jersey several matches ago, Gonzalez Gutierrez has flourished in the back row and he did so again with a match-high 12 digs.

The top hitters featured a pair of familiar faces as Alessandro Spendolini notched 14 kills and Jah'mi Jeter added 11.

The Royals took immediate control of the match, sprinting out to a 7-0 lead in set one. The Lions managed just three kills in the set and hit -.280 (3-10-25) as HIU won 25-9.

Set two had the Royals climbing out to a 7-1 lead. Soka scored four straight points to cut the deficit to two, but an 8-2 HIU run opened up a 15-7 cushion as Jeter had two kills and a block assist. HIU led 24-14 when Soka rallied with five straight points, but Jeter pounded the set-clinching kill out of a timeout.

HIU opened up a 9-3 lead in set three. Spendolini slammed four straight kills to widen the margin to 19-10, and the Royals cruised to a 25-13 victory after scoring six of the final seven points.

The Royals head out on the road next week to face No. 10 OUAZ on Friday, April 10 at 6:00 p.m.