MERCED, CALIF. – The OUAZ men's volleyball team moved up one spot in the coaches' poll this week, and got a chance to show why they are a national title contender on Thursday evening. The Spirit beat Cal Pac-leading UC Merced in straight sets, doubling up the Bobcats in kills and having seven times the blocks in the victory.

The second set went to extra points, where OUAZ prevailed 26-24, but the other two sets saw the Spirit cruise. In the first set, OUAZ had a 14-5 advantage in kills, then had a 15-6 kill advantage in the final set.

OUAZ also held UC Merced to just a .071 hitting percentage. The Bobcats had a -.036 percentage in the first set, and the Spirit held Merced to .040 in the last set.

Addah Nestor led the contest in kills, putting up 14 with a .455 attack percentage. Emery Outin had 12 kills of his own and had a matching .455 efficiency.

Zeo Meyer was once again the driver of the offense, finishing with 37 assists. Meyer was also a big factor defensively, having a solo block and three block assists.

Horatio Maumasi was a key player for OUAZ, finishing with five kills on just eight attacks (.625 attack %). Maumasi had a solo block as well, plus was a part of two block assists.

The Spirit will wrap up its out-of-town portion of the regular season on Saturday when they take on sixth-ranked Menlo. First serve from Atherton, Calif. is set for 1 p.m.