All good things must come to an end, and for the UCLA men’s volleyball team, this end came out of nowhere.
UCLA was cruising through March on a seven-match winning streak until UC Irvine’s dominant play halted it in a 3-1 loss at the Bren Events Center on Wednesday.
The No. 5 Bruins (15-10, 8-9 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) looked like they were doing business as usual after the first set. Following a 10-10 tie, they opened up a gap against the No. 6 Anteaters (14-11, 10-8) to take the first set 25-19. Junior opposite Kyle Caldwell led the UCLA squad with 12 kills and an ace on the night.
The Bruins had a 22-18 lead in the second set, but the Anteaters executed an 8-2 run that would change the tone of the match. As they climbed back, the silent Bren Events Center began to rock.
Two consecutive aces by freshman outside hitter Jeremy Dejno capped the momentous comeback as the Bruins lost the second set 26-24. Dejno contributed five of UCI’s 10 aces in a match of powerful serving.
“This was the worst we passed all year, but I have to say their serves were outstanding tonight,” UCLA coach Al Scates said. “We were amazed.”
The momentum continued to shift in the third set, where the Bruins never led. By the time the Anteaters took the third set 25-20, they were a completely different team from the one that UCLA swept only six nights earlier.
UCI’s Carson Clark was an unstoppable force throughout the night. The junior opposite showed why he was one of the nation’s best with 22 kills and a .450 hitting percentage. The Bruins continuously struggled with their play on the block in what Scates deemed the worst blocking performance of the year.
Part of the problem was undoubtedly the absence of junior quick hitter Thomas Amberg. A prior injury recently became infected and it is unknown when he will be cleared to play. Several other players will have to step up in the critical last matches, but UCLA has players with the potential to fill the gap he leaves.
In the fourth set, the Bruins’ hopes of forcing a fifth were quickly extinguished. Things went from bad to worse for them and a 20-11 deficit quickly formed because of errors and several Anteater aces. The team limped to a 25-15 loss, and the Anteaters took the match.
UCLA had a chance to lock up a ticket to the postseason, but now must try to string together a few more wins in its final matches. The Bruins take on UC San Diego at the John Wooden Center on Friday, and with big showdowns against Stanford and USC looming, the team still has a chance to go into tournament play as the one to fear.
“After the winning streak, we got a little lackadaisical, and we took it a step back,” redshirt junior quick hitter Weston Dunlap said. “We’ll definitely need to focus on these last couple of games.”