No. 11 Master's falls in four to No. 3 OUAZ

No. 11 TMU Men's Volleyball won the third set to extend its road match against No. 3 Ottawa University Arizona, but Master's ultimately fell in four sets (14-25, 22-25, 25-21, 21-25), as OUAZ clinched at least a share of the Golden State Athletic Conference regular season title.
 
The Spirit limited the Mustangs to .056 and .185 hitting in the first and second sets, before TMU hit an impressive .350 in the third, while simultaneously holding OUAZ to its lowest attack % in any set of the match (.212).
 
With the third set tied 13-13, Master's went on a 5-0 run that put the Mustangs in control. A Trent Norkus kill and a combined block from Will Avera and Kevin Moore scored two of TMU's five-straight points that allowed the visitors to extend the match to a fourth set.
 
The Mustangs threatened to force a deciding fifth set, which was required when the two teams played in Santa Clarita on Feb. 19, after a 4-0 run put Master's ahead 19-17 in the fourth.
 
Avera recorded block assists on back-to-back points, combining with Ben Herb and then Ezra Moore, as TMU turned a two-point deficit into a two-point advantage.
 
After OUAZ tied the set, Master's led as late as 21-20, before the Spirit closed the set and match by scoring the final five points.
 
Norkus led the Mustangs offensively with 14 kills, with Moore dishing out 32 assists. Defensively, Avera's six blocks and Wyatt Bates' nine digs led the team.
 
Master's (11-10 overall, 3-6 GSAC) will hope to end its four-match losing streak when TMU takes on Arizona Christian University on Saturday at 1 p.m. in the teams' regular season finale.
 
Regardless of the outcome, the Mustangs will be the fourth seed in the upcoming GSAC Tournament, set to take place on April 1-2.