When sophomore middle blocker Amanda Gil heaved a T-shirt into the stands well past the bleachers, it was evident even from the pre-game introductions that the energy was high.
When the starters for the No. 12 UCLA women’s volleyball team were announced Friday night against the No. 16 Trojans and they each threw a complimentary shirt into the crowd, the Bruins were chucking the blue cotton with unusual vigor.
Normally tossing the shirts for the fans in the first few rows of the bleachers, they were aiming further than usual, into the middle deck of Pauley Pavilion.
The high level of enthusiasm that was apparent even before the match was all the Bruins needed to simply out-hustle the Trojans to a sweep Friday night.
“We were taken aback,” coach Andy Banachowski said. “When the team came out at 6:15 there were already people here. We had a full band here tonight and everything.”
The 3,180 fans in Pauley Pavilion proved instrumental in securing a win.
With the largest crowd in recent history coupled with the marching band and the Spirit Squad coming out in full force, the UCLA women’s volleyball team had all the support they needed against USC.
In their sweep Friday night, the Bruins had a lot on their minds, such as facing their crosstown rivals and an opportunity to prove themselves against a higher-ranked opponent. But as Gil saw it, the huge crowd certainly added an extra element.
“It was such a great feeling to have such support from our fans and family,” Gil said. “It was a really fun atmosphere to play in. I had a great time.”
Usually filling the bleachers and some of the mid-level seats in the arena, women’s volleyball fans found themselves looking for seats in the upper deck.
The women’s team was also supported by many of their fellow student athletes. The men’s and women’s basketball teams, including women’s coach Nikki Caldwell, were out in full force sitting in the first three rows of the bleachers.
The men’s volleyball team filled their usual spot behind the north baseline, this time dressed in various Halloween costumes.
“The fans were awesome tonight,” redshirt senior opposite Kaitlin Sather said on Friday. “That was one thing that we talked about in the locker room, and Andy (Banachowski) was just like, “˜Make sure that you thank all of the fans.'”
Bruins silence powerful Trojan attack
Facing a powerful outside hitting duo in USC’s senior Jessica Gysin and sophomore Alex Jupiter, who would combine for nearly eight kills per set, the Bruins seemed to have their hands full in preparing defensively for Friday’s match.
The Bruins held the pair to 18 kills in three sets but were especially effective in containing Gysin. The senior made five kills but also suffered five hitting errors.
“We did a good job on taking away their favorite shots,” Banachowski said. “That certainly was our focus, stopping them on the outside.”
Gysin and Jupiter finished the match hitting just .090, while the Bruins’ starting outside hitters, junior Dicey McGraw and freshman Bojana Todorovic, hit .235.
Led by Gil’s 13 kills, the Bruins’ middle blocking corps did some damage on the Trojans, just as Sather had predicted before the match. The Bruin middles hit .341 and added 20 kills.
Around the Pac-10
After three weekends of conference play, the season has begun to take shape.
The No. 4 Washington Huskies, who had swept all 15 of their matches this season, suffered a stunning loss at the hands of No. 5 Stanford. The two sit on top of the conference at first and second, respectively.
On the upswing with wins over California and now USC, the Bruins sit at third in the conference while Arizona and Washington State share the No. 4 spot in the conference.
All at 2-3 in the conference, USC, California, Oregon and Oregon State share the sixth-place spot while Arizona State sits at the bottom with a 1-5 record.
With reports from Stephanie Lowe, Bruin Sports reporter.