The original version of this article contained an error and has been changed. See the bottom of the article for more information.
For a UCLA women’s volleyball player, the moment she steps onto the wood at Pauley Pavilion for a home match, she finds herself surrounded by her own team’s colors on the walls and stands filled with cheering fans.
This season, however, the Bruins have yet to take a step on their home court. After the water main break on Sunset Boulevard this summer rendered both UCLA courts unusable for the first part of the season, the team has been forced to share Pepperdine’s Firestone Fieldhouse. And for the Bruins, the blue and orange just isn’t quite the same as true blue and gold.
“It’s easier playing at home because we have fans and family coming and that pumps us up. At Pepperdine, we aren’t getting as many fans as we did in Pauley,” said freshman defensive specialist Taylor Schlener.
While Firestone Fieldhouse offers fans free parking and admission as incentives, the team’s four seniors still had to accept the fact that they would host six of their 10 home games 20 miles away from their court.
“At the beginning of the season, (coach Michael Sealy) gave us 15 minutes to vent about what had happened and talk about any thoughts about it,” said senior setter Julie Consani. “From that point on he said we’re not going to think about it anymore and we’re not going to let it affect us.”
However, No. 19 UCLA has a 3-3 Pac-12 record, with two of three losses being home matches. The team has gone 1-1 in its past three weekend sets, two of which were at home.
This Wednesday, the Bruins will call yet another court “home” when they host Oregon and Oregon State at Crossroads School in Santa Monica for the first time. The team is hoping the smaller venue will help the foreign court feel more intimate and lively, and spur the Bruins to their first victory against Oregon since 2011.
“Sometimes smaller gyms can be better because you can get more people in there. It’s a louder environment and feels more crowded,” said junior defensive specialist Karly Drolson.
Despite the two home-court losses, UCLA maintains a 12-5 overall record. The Bruins could begin hosting at Pauley as early as Nov. 2.
“We’re not even focused on where we’re playing, we’re just focusing on showing up and playing hard and playing our side of the net, and the other things will just fall into place,” Consani said. “The gym is not a factor.”
Correction: The Bruins could begin playing at Pauley as early as Nov. 2.