The Bruins were in desperate need of a home stand. Having played
eight of their first 10 games away from Pauley Pavilion, the UCLA
men’s volleyball team had lost as many games as they’d
won.
With their longest stretch of home games just completed, the
Bruins feel much better, having won four of six, with their final
match a sweep of Pacific on Friday.
“This five-game home stand has been crucial in the
beginning of our season,” redshirt junior Paul George said.
“Now we have to carry over the things we learned at home on
the road and not let the crowds get into our heads.”
Their win over Pacific not only moved UCLA (9-6, 4-4 MPSF) up to
.500 in league, but it vaulted them up from ninth in the league
standings to a tie for sixth.
“Getting up to .500 was our goal, so that was a big
positive for us,” sophomore Steve Klosterman said.
“We’re trying to make the playoffs, and that was a good
first step.”
Against the Tigers (4-9, 2-7), the Bruins were in control from
start to finish in the 30-25, 30-25, 30-26 victory.
In Game 1, the Bruins swung for a .452 hitting percentage while
holding Pacific to .265. Senior setter Dennis Gonzalez came up with
two big blocks in the first game. Klosterman led the Bruins with
seven kills and three blocks in the second game.
“Klosterman was on fire,” George said. “Every
ball he hit was going down, and the team did a good job of getting
him the ball often.”
Even with their solid play, the Bruins needed a 7-2 run to break
a 23-23 tie and clinch the Game 2 win. The Bruins fell behind in
Game 3, but a 5-0 run put them in the lead for good.
For the match, Klosterman led UCLA to an outstanding .462
hitting percentage with while redshirt senior Damien Scott and
George contributed 12 and 11 kills, respectively.
“Steve had his best night yet since his major shoulder
surgery last year,” UCLA coach Al Scates said.
“Previously, he’s been very tentative and worried about
hurting himself. For the first time, he played with confidence the
whole match and that was nice to see.”
UCLA’s win over Pacific improved their all-time record
against the Tigers to 23-0.
With the successful home stand completed, the Bruins have made
significant strides ““ both individually and collectively
““ that has led Scates to believe that his team is turning a
corner .
Another pleasant surprise for the Bruins has been Scott. The
captain has struggled lately, losing his starting spot a couple
weeks ago, but has regained the position with stellar play the last
two matches.
“Damien has just renewed himself and has a tremendous work
ethic that I haven’t seen since early in the season,”
Scates said. “He works hard every day in practice and
it’s paying off.”
Scates has also singled out George, who has seen his hitting
average soar in the last week. His coach attributes George’s
improvements, and by extension the entire team’s stronger
play, to the sharing of the responsibilities. As each player has
taken on a bigger role, the Bruins have been able to flourish.