In a small Mexican restaurant in Stockton, the men’s volleyball team partook in a post-match team dinner. The mood was not somber, but the team’s parade had already been rained upon.
The Bruins knew splitting last weekend’s matches against Stanford and Pacific was just simply not going to cut it if they wanted to host the first round of the MPSF playoffs this Saturday, for Pepperdine was unlikely to drop a match at home against Hawai’i.
But the unthinkable happened.
A mini-fiesta broke out in the Mexican diner when news of the Waves’ loss reached the forlorn Bruins, who were convinced they were out of the running for home-court advantage after their loss to Stanford the day before.
But now sixth-ranked No. 4 seed UCLA (17-13, 12-10 MPSF) will be hosting No. 5 Pepperdine (13-10, 12-10) tomorrow night in Pauley Pavilion, instead of driving up the Pacific Coast Highway to Malibu.
“Frankly, it seemed a little unlikely that Pepperdine would lose the next night, so we weren’t happy about the loss (to Stanford),” outside hitter Sean O’Malley said.
The majority of the traveling squad and some athletic administrators were at the restaurant when the match concluded and the good news arrived.
“The people in the athletic department always want to know what’s going on with all the sports, so they knew almost as soon as the match was over,” O’Malley said. “They made a little announcement and we were all excited.”
A simple, mellow relaxation after the Pacific match transformed into a celebration, for any team would prefer to play at home than to travel
“I was surprised and happy (about Hawai’i’s victory),” coach Al Scates said. “Pepperdine is a lot stronger at home than they are on the road, and so are we.”
This season, the Waves are 8-4 at home, while faring below .500 on the road. They have a 5-6 record away from the Firestone Fieldhouse.
And the Bruins will be sure to take full advantage of the first-round hosting gift from Hawai’i.
Aside from Pepperdine’s usual home-crowd advantage, Scates feels the Fieldhouse itself hinders his team’s full potential, and he is happy that the Bruins will not have to play there.
“The rafters hang down, so when you dig a high ball, it takes random bounces,” Scates said. “So we lose a few points every time we play over there. It’s just something we don’t have to deal with. If it’s worth a point or two a game, that’s a big swing.”
Instead, UCLA will be in the friendly and open confines of Pauley Pavilion, where the back-row defense will have some room to stretch their legs in case a ball needs to be run down.
The Bruins will be focusing on the Waves’ Paul Carroll, who was absent in the two teams’ prior meetings this season.
Since his return to the team, the opposite from Australia has put down an average of 27 kills per match in the 12 matches he has played in since Feb. 13.
“He is the most dominating offensive force in the country,” O’Malley said. “But the team relies too heavily on him. If we can just keep him down to reasonable numbers, we should be able to take that team pretty strongly. He’s asked to do a lot and if he can’t do that, the team will struggle.”