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Men’s volleyball fails to finalize upset of No. 1 Hawai’i

Sophomore middle blocker Mitch Stahl led UCLA men’s volleyball both offensively and defensively in its closely contested loss to Hawai’i Monday night. (Hannah Ye/Daily Bruin)

Men's basketball


No. 1 Hawai'i3
No. 18 UCLA2

By Claire Fahy and Tanner Walters

March 31, 2015 1:43 a.m.

Mitch Stahl stood at the service line, Pauley Pavilion silent before him.

The sophomore middle blocker stared at the volleyball in his hands, breathing deeply. He was aware of the challenge before UCLA men’s volleyball: defeating the nation’s top-ranked team. As he ran toward the court and lifted a serve over the net, he resolved to do all he could to see his team through to the victory.

That he did.

No. 12 UCLA, however, failed to pull off the improbable five-set upset Monday night, falling to No. 1 Hawai’i 3-2 in a late collapse.

“It’s unfortunate,” said coach John Speraw. “That loss shouldn’t happen and we’re going to go watch some video and continue to learn from it. I’m a little frustrated in the way that we played at the end of the match.”

Stahl led the Bruins (11-10, 7-10 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) both offensively and defensively on the court, posting a .600 hitting percentage and registering six total blocks. Many times when it looked like the game was starting to slip away from the Bruins, Stahl was there with a block or a crucial kill to keep UCLA in the game.

“I think we got on our heels a little bit and stopped really attacking the ball like we did in the first two sets,” Stahl said. “We didn’t pass quite as well and I think we eased up on the serving. They’re just a good team – tough to beat.”

Hitting errors, missed calls and a strong Rainbow Warrior defense put the Bruins in a variety of tight spots throughout the five sets. Although the Bruins won the first two sets, the ‘Bows (20-3, 15-2) fought back to capture their 13th victory in a row.

“I think we looked a little tired during warmups, but then we were up 2-0 and just didn’t take advantage of it,” said freshman outside hitter J.T. Hatch. “We kind of let them back in, and they took the momentum and went with it.”

Despite the loss, UCLA started to prove on Monday night what it has failed to prove all season: The team can be resilient. The Bruins found themselves in a number of prolonged volleys with the ‘Bows, one which saw Hatch kick a ball midway to the rafters in order to save a play.

UCLA was willing to do anything it took to win Monday, showing a resolve that was not present when the team questioned its own work ethic in the early season.

The Bruins are right back in action tomorrow night at Pauley Pavilion when they take on the ‘Bows for the second and final time in the season series.

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Claire Fahy | Alumna
Fahy joined the Bruin as a freshman in 2013 and contributed until she graduated in 2017. She was the Sports editor for the 2015-2016 academic year and an assistant Sports editor for the 2014-2015 academic year. Fahy spent time on the football, men's basketball, men's water polo, men's volleyball and swim and dive beats.
Fahy joined the Bruin as a freshman in 2013 and contributed until she graduated in 2017. She was the Sports editor for the 2015-2016 academic year and an assistant Sports editor for the 2014-2015 academic year. Fahy spent time on the football, men's basketball, men's water polo, men's volleyball and swim and dive beats.
Tanner Walters | Alumnus
Walters joined the Bruin as a freshman in 2014 and contributed until he graduated in 2018. He was the Alumni director for the 2017-2018 academic year, Editor in Chief for the 2016-2017 academic year and an assistant Sports editor for the 2015-2016 academic year. Walter spent time on the football, men's basketball, men's volleyball, men's soccer, men's water polo and rowing beats.
Walters joined the Bruin as a freshman in 2014 and contributed until he graduated in 2018. He was the Alumni director for the 2017-2018 academic year, Editor in Chief for the 2016-2017 academic year and an assistant Sports editor for the 2015-2016 academic year. Walter spent time on the football, men's basketball, men's volleyball, men's soccer, men's water polo and rowing beats.
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