When the UCLA men’s volleyball team began its three-match
road trip last Wednesday, head coach Al Scates was hoping to pull
out two victories. However, after the win at UC Santa Barbara and
University of the Pacific Friday night, Scates re-evaluated the
team’s goal.
“I said I would be happy with two out of three, but of
course after the second win, I told the team I would only be happy
with three wins.”
The team made Scates one happy coach as it defeated Stanford 3-0
Saturday night to win its fourth straight.
Against the No. 9 Cardinal (8-8, 6-6 MPSF), the No. 11 Bruins
(9-6, 6-6) were led by sophomore outside hitter Jonathan Acosta,
who had 12 kills and hit .409. Junior quick hitter Chris Peña,
who, according to Scates, “hasn’t had a bad match all
year,” had nine kills and four aces.
Most pleasing to Scates, however, has been the strong play of
senior quick hitter Scott Morrow, who has steadily improved since
returning last month from knee surgery.
“In the second game Morrow took charge of the net,”
Scates said. “As he gets better we get better.”
Morrow had seven kills and nine block assists, and was key in
limiting Stanford to a .194 hitting clip. The Bruins outblocked the
Cardinal 11.5-6.0.
“Personally I’m not quite 100 percent, just because
of the knee injury, but I am making progress,” Morrow said.
“I proved a lot over the weekend.”
Morrow proved a great deal in the other match of the weekend,
when he had nine kills, three block assists, and hit .438 in the
Bruins’ 28-30, 32-30, 30-27, 30-24 victory over No. 8 Pacific
Friday night.
“Scott is definitely a huge presence on the court, and as
he’s getting back into his groove the team just feeds off
it,” senior setter Rich Nelson said.
UCLA outhit Pacific (9-7, 6-4) .391 to .325 and did a superb job
of limiting sophomore opposite Nils Dauburs who had 23 kills, but
hit only .283.
“This weekend we played with a lot of fire,” Morrow
said. “I think as a team we played with a lot more
intensity and heart, and that led to the wins.”
Peña led UCLA with 17 kills, and Acosta and freshman
opposite Matt McKinney had 15 kills each.
Players and coaches alike recognize the importance of the
pivotal weekend victories in building momentum.
“Looking at the team’s demeanor everyone knows we
are coming back and this season is totally turned around,”
Nelson said.