Cedar Rapids, Iowa-- #8 OUAZ Men's Volleyball opened pool play at the NAIA National Tournament on Wednesday evening, falling to #9 Westcliff (Calif.) in four sets (18-25, 20-25, 25-22, 15-25) at the Alliant Energy PowerHouse in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Westcliff set the tone early, hitting .375 in the opening set and using efficient offense throughout the match to build a two-set advantage. OUAZ showed resilience in the third set, putting together its strongest offensive frame of the night with a .273 hitting percentage. The Spirit used a balanced attack and timely runs to claim the set 25-22 and extend the match. However, Westcliff responded decisively in the fourth, hitting an impressive .632 while limiting errors to close out the match.
OUAZ was led offensively by Jack Hubbard, who recorded a match-high 15 kills, while Caeden Salmen added 11 kills and a team-best two service aces. Horatio Maumasi contributed 10 kills, and setter Madduxx Goron facilitated the offense with 38 assists while also leading the team with 11 digs. Despite finishing with more total kills (53-43), the Spirit were hindered by 30 attack errors, compared to just seven by Westcliff.
With the loss, OUAZ moves to 20-6 overall and will look to bounce back quickly in pool play. The Spirit are set to face #1 Park (Mo.) on Thursday at 5:00 p.m. as they continue competition in Cedar Rapids.
