Late in Saturday night’s match against Arizona, No. 9 UCLA women’s volleyball coach Andy Banachowski made a move seldom seen at this level of the sport.
Banachowski played freshman middle blocker Amanda Gil in the back row for several points.
Late in the match, Gil recorded five digs and had a number of opportunities to serve.
In collegiate volleyball, the middle blocker is often replaced by a libero or defensive specialist when playing in the back row.
“She came up with some great digs when she was in the back row and serving,” Banachowski said. “It was really good to see her come up with two really outstanding digs and some other plays, too.”
Gil returned to a very lively bench after making one of her digs, with a number of players congratulating the freshman’s efforts.
“I am very encouraged by the girls to get down and play defense, and it’s different for a 6-6 person to play in the back row,” Gil said.
SET DISTRIBUTION IMPROVING: A recurring issue for the Bruins thus far in the season has been Ali Daley taking too many swings and wearing her arm out. The issue peaked two weekends ago against then-No. 7 Oregon when Daley could not finish the match due to cramps.
This season, Daley has actually taken nine fewer swings than sophomore outside hitter Dicey McGraw. In longer matches against heftier opponents, such as California, Stanford and Oregon, Daley has been shouldering much of the load.
This weekend, however, saw a wider set distribution with Daley taking 19 percent of swings, McGraw taking 25 percent, freshman middle blocker Katie Camp taking 17 percent and Gil taking 16 percent.
“I think that with two seniors playing together, they certainly have a comfort level, so (senior setter) Nellie (Spicer) goes to (Daley) quite a bit,” Banachowski said.
Banachowski noted an improvement in the distribution of sets over the weekend compared to earlier in the season.
BRAZILIAN BAND PLAYS IN PAULEY: For the first time this season, a band played for a UCLA women’s volleyball home game, but it wasn’t the traditional kind of band.
During Saturday’s game, UCLA’s Brazilian Drum Ensemble performed at timeouts and set breaks.
Players and coaches both commented that the beats brought a unique way to pump up the fans and themselves.
“It was amazing,” Gil said. “They got the crowd going. They got us going. I wish they would come to every game.”
“Having a band, especially with those guys with the drums, (helps) create just such a great collegiate atmosphere to play a sporting event in,” Banachowski said.
Though Banachowski added he hopes the band will play at more games, there are only two home matches left in the season, and the UCLA marching band is already playing at the USC match Nov. 28.
AROUND THE PAC-10: No. 2 Stanford pulled away from its Pac-10 rivals this weekend, holding a 1.5-match lead over No. 5 Washington and a three-match lead over No. 7 Cal.
In a major win, the Cardinal swept the hosting Golden Bears over the weekend to solidify Stanford’s status as the leader of the conference.
For the second time this season, Stanford outside hitter Cynthia Barboza received Pac-10 player of the week honors. Barboza’s contributions played a major part in the Cardinal’s sweep of the Bears.
Washington also secured its spot with a major win over No. 8 Oregon and a clean sweep of Oregon State.
Rounding out the NCAA Tournament contenders, No. 10 USC and UCLA swept both Arizona schools this weekend to remain fifth and sixth, respectively, in the Pac-10.
BRUINS SIGN THREE RECRUITS: On Friday, three top high school players committed to UCLA.
After last year’s recruiting class of mostly outside hitter and middle blockers, the Bruins signed 5-foot-7-inch setter Lauren Cook from Pius X High School in Lincoln, Neb., 6-2 outside hitter Rachael Kidder from Moorpark High School in Moorpark, and 5-11 defensive utility player Bojana Todorovic from University High School in Irvine.
With Spicer and senior libero Jessica Fine graduating, the Bruins will be able to add depth to their positions in years to come.
“This class will round out our needs for next year,” Banachowski said in a press release. “We will be getting some depth at the setting, outside hitter and libero positions with this class.”