MERCED, Calif. – The OUAZ men's volleyball team couldn't close out a 2-1 lead and fell in five sets at UC Merced on Friday night in Golden State Athletic Conference action. The Spirit fell by scores of 25-19, 22-25, 25-20, 23-25, 11-15.
 
OUAZ (5-4, 0-2 GSAC) had the better night offensively with a 67-49 edge in kills and hitting .242 to the .198 of Merced (7-5, 2-2). What hurt the Spirit was the 17 missed serves against the eight from the Bobcats.
 
Conner Duyck led three Spirit players in double figures with 21 kills, finishing one shy of the school record. He hit .293 on 41 attempts while getting four digs and two blocks. James Yahner added 18 kills and seven digs with Jacob Vander Beek recording 17 kills.
 
Andrew de'Leon had OUAZ with four blocks and Joaquin Santa Cruz posted 13 digs.
 
The Bobcats got 12 kills from Emmanuel Egun.
 
Looking to snap a three-match losing streak, the Spirit will play at Menlo on Saturday at 8 p.m. (Arizona).