In a strategy rooted in altitude — and attitude — sixth-ranked UC Santa Barbara pounded its way to a 25-22, 25-23, 25-23 volleyball victory over No. 10 Hawaii last night before 2,136 in the Stan Sheriff Center.

"Hit it high, hit it hard," said outside attacker Jeff Menzel, who hammered 15 kills and hit .448 for the Gauchos. "We practice that a lot."

In the Warriors’ four-set victory Thursday night, the Gauchos relied heavily on their middle attack, with Dylan Davis and Scott Slaughter combining for 36 swings off quick sets.

For the rematch, the Warriors’ goal was to serve away from libero Andy McGuire in an attempt to force the Gauchos out of system and deny the quick-to-the-middle option.

The Warriors accomplished that, with McGuire the target of 10 of 57 in-play serves. Davis and Slaughter had a combined 16 swings.

"They had a good plan, and we had to adjust," UCSB head coach Rick McLaughlin said.

The Gauchos’ counter-punch was to set high — to Menzel, opposite attacker Cullen Irons (11 kills) and left-side hitter Trey Valbuena (seven kills in 11 swings) — and listen for the thump.

"We went back to the old ‘hit it hard,’ and if that didn’t work, ‘hit it harder,’" Menzel said.

UH head coach Charlie Wade said: "Their high-ball hitters played really well. We’d break them down in serve-receive, and they’d set high balls and score out of system. We served them well to get them out of system, to take away their middles, (but) their outside hitters were really good. That’s the difference."

The Gauchos also added depth to their offense. Menzel was able to launch quick attacks off pipe sets behind the 3-meter line. Irons slammed five kills off D sets from the back right.

In the previous two seasons, Menzel was the Gauchos’ go-to hitter. But this season, the Gauchos have tried to spread the sets. Menzel makes the most of his opportunities, launching shots off a full-body gyration.

"When I was little, they didn’t let me play front row very much," Menzel said. I started practicing at home, trying to figure out how to hit harder."

He said he set up a net in his backyard, and worked on his approach by practicing broad jumps. He also developed a swat that has little top-spin.

"I sort of club it," he said, smiling, "instead of rolling it."

Also helping the Gauchos was the versatility of McGuire, who is an efficient second setter. That helped the Gauchos during long rallies or when setter Vince Devany made a dig or pass.

"(McGuire) does so much for us, things that people don’t always notice," McLaughlin said. "He’s like a coach on the floor."

The Gauchos, meanwhile, tried to disrupt the Warriors with serves away from libero Nick Castello and outside hitter Steven Hunt.

"We never got into rhythm offensively as we had been for the last five matches," Wade said. "We competed hard for an hour and a half, or whatever it was, but never got going offensively."

After a slow start, UH left-side hitter Joshua Walker, who had one kill in the first set, finished with 11. Opposite attacker Jonas Umlauft had 11 kills, but committed 10 errors.

"It’s a great league," UH setter Nejc Zemljak said. "If you’re not playing 100 percent, one play can decide it. I don’t know what happened. They played better, and we couldn’t match up. That’s what makes volleyball so fun. It’s so competitive. There are so many good teams. There are no nights off."