The Bruins overcame an opening-set loss for their second win against the Trojans in three days.
No. 1 UCLA men’s volleyball (17-3, 7-1 MPSF) defeated No. 5 USC (17-6, 4-4) in a five-set match at Pauley Pavilion on Saturday evening. Using the same starting lineup as they did in their 3-0 win over the Trojans on Thursday, the Bruins swept the regular-season series between their crosstown rivals.
The blue and gold started off the match with a kill from redshirt junior opposite Kevin Kobrine, who led UCLA in its previous win against USC with 14 kills.
Trojan opposite/outside hitter Simon Gallas knocked down a kill in response, one of his 10 kills on the night. After a bad set from sophomore setter/opposite Miles Partain, the Bruins were unable to retake the lead for the remainder of the set.
UCLA tallied 10 service errors in the first set – including eight on opportunities to either tie or take the lead – en route to a 25-23 opening-frame triumph for USC.
Despite the Bruins’ season-worst performance at the service line, coach John Speraw said his team’s eventual success showcased its ability to operate under pressure.
“The stress was great,” Speraw said. “The fact that we were able to get a win without playing particularly well in different sets was great.”
The Bruins ran out with the same starting lineup in the second period, limiting the Trojans to seven kills on a -0.053 hitting percentage.
Despite playing to six ties in the second set, UCLA maintained the advantage throughout, tallying 14 kills with a .619 hitting clip.
After USC opened the third set with six kills within the first 10 points, UCLA took an early timeout while trailing 8-3. The Trojans pushed their lead to six points following a solo block from middle blocker/opposite Lucas Frassrand to force another timeout from the Bruins.
Tallying six service errors in the third frame, the Bruins ended with single-set match lows in hitting percentage and kills, with .045 and six, respectively. Following Frassrand’s block – one of his team-leading four on the night – UCLA was unable to grab the lead again and lost the set 25-17.
The Bruins nabbed the lead from the Trojans early in the fourth set after tying the score at two apiece. Behind three kills and one assisted block from sophomore outside hitter Ethan Champlin, UCLA raced to a 6-4 advantage.
Champlin, who finished with a match-high 16 kills, said the Bruins’ victory was more meaningful given the opponent.
“’SC is a good team. You hate losing to them. You love winning to them,” Champlin said. “A game like that, with a five-setter against them, is a good win,”
After a bad set from Trojan setter Chris Hall, the visiting team took a timeout. UCLA limited USC to 12 points and maintained its lead en route to a 25-12 triumph, the largest single-set margin of victory Saturday.
The Bruins took the fifth-set tiebreaker 15-12. The match ended with a kill from Champlin assisted by one of Partain’s contest-leading 46 assists.
With the NCAA tournament set to be held in Pauley Pavilion in May, Partain said the audience provided an optimal setting to imitate the postseason.
“A lot of people came out, so it was good to simulate probably what the national tournament would be like,” Partain said. “We’ll be better prepared because of this game.”
UCLA has four matches remaining in the regular season before beginning the MSPF tournament, which kicks off April 20.
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