When UCLA senior Jonathan Hernandez walked into his first casting call as a 9-year-old, no one noticed him. He was a small child, and coming from a Latino background, he was passed over for traditional acting roles. But he wasn’t interested in what people told him he could not do. “Growing up as a child, […]
Author Archives: Sagar Parikh
Water polo’s stellar record makes excitement tough
Thirty wins. Four Olympians. Countless NCAA records. Considered by many to be the greatest college sports team ever assembled, the UCLA women’s water polo team has a chance this weekend to accomplish something that all UCLA fans can appreciate: a national championship. Yet the Bruins are about as easy to get excited about as a […]
M. volleyball: Volleyball confident in next year’s team
After Saturday’s championship loss, reporters asked UCLA men’s volleyball coach Al Scates how his team would recover from the disappointment. The smirk on his face should have told them a lot. Because he has signed one of the top recruiting classes in the nation for 2006, Scates is confident that the program will be able […]
M. volleyball: Denied
In a matter of 40 minutes, unrestrained joy turned into uncontrollable sorrow. The UCLA men’s volleyball team saw its lead, its national title hopes, and most frustratingly, its home-court advantage, dismantled by No. 1 Pepperdine on Saturday night at Pauley Pavilion in the NCAA Championship match. The third-seeded Bruins, ahead 2-1 heading into the fourth […]
M. volleyball: One win away from a championship
After four years on the bench, UCLA walk-on Brennan Prahler was given the best opportunity any volleyball player could ask for Thursday: The chance to start in the NCAA Final Four on his own home court. Prahler made the most of his opportunity, recording a match-high 17 kills to lead the third-seeded Bruins to a […]
M. volleyball: Devotion rediscovered: Volleyball’s David Russell back for the Final Four
Walking into UCLA men’s volleyball coach Al Scates’ office last spring, David Russell didn’t know what to expect. Just one season earlier, the redshirt junior had walked away from the team, and now he was asking the coach for a second chance. “I told him there was a spot open for him if he wanted […]
M. volleyball: Not giving up the fight
It seems like the perfect scenario for a retirement party. Al Scates, UCLA’s legendary men’s volleyball coach, hoists his 19th national championship trophy in front of his home crowd after Saturday night’s NCAA Championship game, and ends his career on top of the sport he’s devoted his life to. There’s only one problem: Scates is […]