The Bruins walked in with a fresh bull’s-eye on their chests. It’s no secret now; the UCLA men’s volleyball team is the No. 1 team in the country.
UCLA has become a marked target, and every team on its schedule is waiting for its shot. First in line was UC Santa Barbara.
In front of a raucous Gaucho crowd, No. 1 UCLA (12-1, 7-0 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) defeated No. 14 UCSB (3-7, 1-5) 3-1.
“Being No. 1 was definitely in the back of our minds, but we didn’t let it get to us tonight,” said redshirt senior middle hitter Weston Dunlap.
The Bruins took command early with a two-set lead, but the Gauchos refused to be swept at home.
Santa Barbara leaped out to a 4-1 lead in the third set. Behind junior outside hitter Miles Evans’ seven kills in the set, the Gauchos never let the Bruins recover and took the set 25-22.
“We were passing really well the first two games. Unfortunately we had some passing lapses and errors that brought the other team back into the game, but Kyle (Caldwell) set us really well tonight,” said redshirt senior outside hitter Jeremy Casebeer.
Five service errors by UCLA in the third set also attributed to the set loss.
Evans starred in his one-man show with 19 kills on a .273 hitting percentage. He was the only Gaucho starter to hit above .250.
“He averages about four kills a game, and he’s one of the leaders in the country. We held him down the last time but he got loose this time,” said coach Al Scates.
“He had a good night. We’re fortunate to beat these guys on the road when he was as hot as he was.”
Tied at 11-11 in the fourth set, the Bruins went on a decisive 5-1 run to take control for good.
“It was definitely (Thomas) Amberg with two key blocks on Evans. From then on, we got that fire back,” Dunlap said.
“We didn’t really block well the third game. But we once we got that ball down, we started blocking again and we got our momentum back, and it was over after that.”
UCLA topped its nation-leading hitting percentage of .366 with a .402 performance against the Gauchos.
“Well, it was another good hitting night for us. We hit over .400 tonight, and I thought Casebeer played real well,” Scates said.
“He led the team in kills again. He’s doing a fine job for us in his first year as a full-time starter for us.”
Casebeer finished with 15 kills and has now led UCLA in kills in seven of its 13 games.
Oft-used sophomore opposite hitter Spencer Rowe subbed in permanently in the third set and made the most of his opportunity to play. Rowe had five kills on a .833 hitting clip.
The Bruins’ trip to Santa Barbara also marked redshirt sophomore libero Evan Mottram’s return to his hometown. Mottram, a Santa Barbara transfer, didn’t disappoint his home faithful as he dug a career-high 15 balls to solidify the Bruin’s defense.
UCLA will continue its six-game road stretch against Hawaii on Friday.