With workmanlike efficiency, the UCLA women’s volleyball
team methodically went about its business in dismantling its first
two foes in the NCAA tournament. The Bruins swept San Diego 3-0
(30-20, 30-17, 30-24) on Friday in Pauley Pavilion, and kept up the
pace in sweeping UC Irvine (30-24, 30-28,
30-22) Saturday. With the two victories, the team will
travel to Lincoln, Neb. to face No. 9 seeded Nebraska in
its home gym.
“We’re excited about traveling to Lincoln,”
coach Andy Banachowski said. “Nebraska’s always
big, and they always have a strong attacking team. It’s
going to be a challenge; they’ll have probably 5,000 people
there cheering for them.”
UCLA’s sideline demeanor throughout the weekend suggested
the relative ease with which the Bruins cruised past their
opponents. Players were smiling, loose and relaxed as they
watched their teammates on the court dispatch two opponents that
were willing, if unable, to mount a serious threat to No. 8 seed
UCLA.Â
Behind a dominating blocking effort and a smooth offensive
performance, the Bruins (23-8) dominated USD in virtually every
facet of the game. The Torreros (17-13) were out-hit .342 to
.101 as a team, and perhaps more ominously, were out-blocked 13 to
3. In its previous four games, UCLA had not registered more than
seven blocks, and were badly out-blocked in each of those
contests.
“I was disappointed in the way we came out,” USD
coach Jennifer Petrie said. “We were hoping to compete
better.”
Senior middle blocker Cira Wright had a standout performance,
with an incredible eight block assists to go along with 13
kills on near-perfect .632 hitting.
UC Irvine (24-10) played the Bruins much more evenly, no doubt
inspired by the raucous Anteater crowd that showed up to
Pauley. The visiting team received loud support and ovations
from their fans throughout the night, but simply could not overcome
UCLA, and were slowly worn down by the Bruins’
athleticism.
“We played with great intensity. As things got close, our
inexperience showed,” Irvine coach Charlie
Brande said. “Still, we played maybe our best match
of the year. We were very competitive.”
Irvine stuck close to UCLA, hitting a respectable .242 while the
Bruins hit .295 as a team. The Anteaters also managed to
out-block UCLA eight to six. Most
impressively, Irvine received quite a performance
out of their best player, junior outside hitter Kelly Wing.
Wing, despite standing no more than 5-foot-10, set the single
season kill record for Irvine last season, and had a match-high 18
kills on .350 hitting to go along with 13 digs, two solo blocks and
an ace. In the end, however, it was at the service line that the
Bruins were able to find the separation necessary to put away a
plucky Irvine squad.
“Being able to come up with some aces was really what
enabled us to separate each game,” Banachowski said.
Conversely, after a hard-fought second game in which the
Anteaters stormed back from a five-point deficit at 23-18 to climb
within one point at 29-28, a service error by Wing let UCLA off the
hook.
Murphy served back-to-back aces in the third game to give UCLA a
20-15 lead and the extra separation needed to ice the game and the
match.
“We realized it was our last game at home, and we wanted
to go out on a good night,” Lyman said.
Now UCLA must turn its attention to Nebraska. The last time
the two teams met was in 2001, with the Cornhuskers winning in
a sweep. It remains to be seen if the Bruins can avoid a similar
fate in the third round of the NCAA tournament.