Thursday’s bout won’t just be another chapter in the crosstown rivalry.
It’ll be at least seven Bruins’ last match in Westwood.
After a 4-0 run against top-20 teams at the Center of Effort Challenge on Friday and Saturday, No. 1 UCLA beach volleyball (28-4) is back on home sand for a clash against No. 5 USC (23-7) at Mapes Beach. Thursday’s match will also serve as the Bruins’ Senior Day.
“It’s Senior Day, which is bittersweet. I’m really excited to celebrate our seniors,” said redshirt sophomore Kenzie Brower. “They lead the team so well, and they’re such a special group of girls, so really excited to compete hard for them.”
The Bruins roster five seniors – Reagan Hope, Madeline Bonanni, Sophie Moore, Natalie Myszkowski and Jessie Smith – and two graduate students, Peri Brennan and Tessa Van Winkle.
The Trojans swept the Bruins in last season’s national title match and handed UCLA its first blow of 2025 with a 3-2 loss Feb. 22 at the Outrigger Duke Kahanamoku Beach Classic in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi. The battle brought the two rivals to a 2-2 deadlock, forcing the match to a tiebreaker on the threes court with Ashley Pater and Maya Gessner cementing the victory for the Trojans against redshirt sophomore duo Brower and Ensley Alden.
Five-set encounters have been a recurring theme for the Bruins this season, as they also played to five sets against three opponents in last weekend’s competition – a detail coach Jenny Johnson Jordan said is an important part of preparing for what lies ahead.
“That’s when you feel the most pressure,” Jordan said. “To be able to deal with that pressure and come out on top is a huge advantage going into the last few weeks of the season.”
Trojans Pater and Kennedy Coakley were named the AVCA’s April 6 Pair of the Week after going undefeated at the Best in the West tournament and became the first USC pair to tally 20 wins this season.
The Bruins have lost four of their last five contests against the Trojans, and freshman Sally Perez said preparation is going to be key for UCLA.
“We’re really going to take pride in protecting our home courts,” Perez said. “We haven’t played them in a while, and it’s going to be a good opportunity for us to come out, show them what we got and see what they bring to the table.”
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