February went out like a lamb for the Hawaii men’s volleyball team, with three losses in four matches, all on the road.

And March? It came in like a lion, but one that took a bite out of the Warriors. 

Back home for the first time since Feb. 2, No. 11 Hawaii was unable to shake off the rust of not having played in 10 days when taking on No. 8 Cal State Northridge in a critical Mountain Pacific Sports Federation contest Friday night at the Stan Sheriff Center.

Senior opposite John Baker put down a match-high 19 kills and junior hitter Brandon Lebrock added 17 as the Matadors (8-6, 6-6 MPSF) won for the first time in 10 matches in Honolulu, 25-21, 17-25, 26-24, 25-23.

Sophomore hitter Brook Sedore led the Warriors (5-11, 4-9) with 17 kills and five of the team’s nine aces. Freshman hitter Siki Zarkovic added 13 kills over the 2 hours and 14 minutes.

The teams meet again at 7 tonight. Hawaii holds a 44-18 edge over CSUN, which was playing its first road match since Feb. 2.

The Warriors were without their No. 2 kill-leader sophomore hitter JP Marks (2.79 ups), sidelined by an illness that had him questionable for Friday night. Junior transfer Jace Olsen replaced him, finishing with five kills but hitting negative .190.

The Matadors out blocked the Warriors 10-7, with setter Travis Magorien coming up with two solos and one assist. Sophomore middle Taylor Averill had four block assists for Hawaii.