LOS ANGELES – The No. 23-ranked UCLA women’s volleyball team will play three matches at the Outrigger Volleyball Challenge at the Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu, Hawaii this week.
The Bruins open competition versus West Virginia on Thursday, Sept. 1 at 7:45 p.m. PT and play Texas State on Friday, Sept. 2 at 7:45 p.m. UCLA closes the weekend versus Hawai’i on Sunday, Sept. 4 at 8 p.m. PT which will be available for streaming on ESPN+.
Week in Review
The Bruins split their season-opening weekend at the Utah State Invitational, losing to Utah State, 3-1, and bouncing back with a 3-0 sweep of Cal Poly. The loss to the Aggies marked UCLA’s fourth-ever loss in a season-opener. In that contest, UCLA tallied 20.0 team blocks which was its most in a match since Sept. 2, 2018 versus San Diego (22.0 team blocks). Three separate Bruins logged double-digit kills in their first victory of the season over the Mustangs: élan McCall (14), Iman Ndiaye (10) and Grayce Olson (10).
Westwood Block Party
The Bruins pace the nation in blocks per set with 4.29 roofs a frame. UCLA shattered last season’s high of 16.0 team blocks with 20.0 in its very first match of the 2022 season against Utah State. Sophomore middle blocker Francesca Alupei established a new career high of three solo blocks in that match. McCall also set a UCLA career high of six total blocks in that match (1-5).
Fresh Impact
Six new faces – three transfers, two freshman and redshirt freshman Katie McCarthy – made their first appearances in a UCLA uniform last weekend. Among the transfers were setter Matti McKissock (Georgia Tech), libero Mackenzie Cole (Duke) and Peyton Dueck (Cal Poly). Outside hitters Grayce Olson (Foothill HS) and Cheridyn Leverette (Eagle’s Landing Christian Academy) made their collegiate debuts. Freshman outside hitter Grayce Olson found her rhythm in the third set of UCLA’s victory over Cal Poly, going off for a team-high six kills and a solo block for 7.0 total points. The Pleasanton, Calif. native finished the match with 10 kills, reaching double-figures in just her second collegiate match.
Serving Looks
Sophomore defensive specialist Peyton Dueck served it tough all weekend for the Bruins at the Utah State Invitational. In UCLA’s win over Cal Poly, Dueck served a team-high 15 attempts and dealt two aces, including one for…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at UCLA…