Men’s volleyball’s recent offensive downturn hurting postseason chances

With eight regular season games left, the Bruins’ offensive consistency needs to return to push for a spot in the NCAA Tournament.

UCLA has hit for .248 in its past five games, far below its season average of .337.

No. 5 UCLA men’s volleyball (15-5, 4-2 MPSF) sits third in conference play, falling from first place after losses to conference rivals No. 4 BYU (14-4, 7-0) and No. 7 Pepperdine (10-4, 4-2).

In its most recent ranking update, Volleymob.com had the Bruins fall to No. 8 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The tournament features five automatic bids from conference leaders and two at-large picks. In its most recent bracket projection, the site notes that UCLA is in danger of missing the tournament, hosted at Pauley Pavilion this year.

Junior outside hitter Dylan Missry said the Bruins’ most recent loss to the Cougars was because of an inconsistent offensive performance.

“We just didn’t kill enough balls to win the game,” Missry said. “We hit .214 to their .318 and we just didn’t put enough balls away.”

This has been a recent theme for the Bruins. In comparing the win at home against then-No. 3 Ohio State (13-4), the current national champions, to the most recent loss at BYU – it is clear UCLA’s offense hasn’t been as strong against recent top-ranked opponents.

In that win at home against OSU, UCLA hit for .238, while in the BYU loss, the Bruins hit for .214. However, the biggest difference comes in the execution of offensive attacks.

In the match against the Cougars, the Bruins logged 37 kills off 84 attempts, while they put 57 shots off 143 attempts past the Buckeyes. Sophomore middle blocker Daenan Gyimah said the offense’s troubles stem from setting players up at the net.

“I think a lot of it comes down to passing,” Gyimah said. “Our hitters weren’t in the greatest situations and in that case it makes it not the easiest to hit at and the block just does what a block is supposed to do.”

When clean passing doesn’t happen, the teams UCLA face have a greater chance at recovery and blocking shots. Blocking has emerged as an unexpected strength for the Bruins this season, with 158.5 to opponents’ 109. But blocking can only take the Bruins so far, and their extreme offensive downturn has led to four losses in five games.

Even in the second loss to No. 1 Long Beach State, the match was close throughout, with UCLA hitting for .315 with 55 kills. Senior outside hitter Christian Hessenauer noted that matching whatever opponents log is crucial.

“The biggest thing is picking up balls,” Hessenauer said. “No matter what, they’re going to get kills. So as long as we move on to the next play where we just need to be in good spots.”

Hessenauer continues to lead the Bruins with 211 kills off 437 attempts. He appeared against Stanford after missing two matches with a knee injury.

He is followed by Missry with 161 and senior outside hitter JT Hatch with 158.

With five consecutive home matches, including a rematch against Pepperdine, coming up, the Bruins have a chance to return to their consistent hitting form seen at the start of the season.