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Women’s volleyball sees offensive strength against Arizona, Arizona State

Freshman opposite Mac May recorded 26 total kills in UCLA’s wins over Arizona and Arizona State last weekend. The freshman has 219 kills and 25 aces on the season. (Amy Dixon/Assistant Photo editor)

By Angie Forburger

Nov. 6, 2017 10:54 p.m.

The Bruins haven’t had to rely on just one player this season.

No. 18 UCLA women’s volleyball (15-8, 8-6 Pac-12) showed its variety of offensive talent during the weekend against Arizona and Arizona State.

Freshman opposite Mac May, sophomore middle blocker Madeleine Gates and junior middle blocker Kyra Rogers all hit over .400 during the weekend, with May recording a season-high percentage of .636 against the Wildcats.

“I didn’t know I hit that well, but it’s super exciting to know you did well in a match,” May said.

The Bruins came into the weekend having hit under .200 in their past four matches. UCLA has struggled against big blocking teams this season and has often defaulted to its outside hitters rather than playing with a more versatile offense.

Coach Michael Sealy said the team had looked to improve this in practice.

“Everyone was focused really well,” Sealy said. “We worked on some specific things and you could tell that we were cleaner on offense.”

The Bruins’ offense has primarily been led by the outside hitters, senior Reily Buechler and freshman Jenny Mosser, who led the team in kills this year with 282 and 237, respectively.

Mosser posted a total of 13 kills and Buechler totaled 28 kills in the last two matches.

While the outsides were strong, Buechler said the offensive dominance is mostly because of the middles, who continue to be effective even in games when the pin hitters struggle. Gates hit .500 against Washington when no one else on the team hit above .235.

In the last two matches, Gates tallied a total of 24 kills in slide attacks and at the middle, and Rogers posted 11 kills.

This diversity of the offense has been key for the Bruins in outhitting their opponents, Gates said.

“(Our plan was) spreading the offense out and making sure everyone is getting up as much as they can so the defense has a hard time figuring out which side to go,” Gates said.

UCLA has had a relatively consistent lineup this season, with the exception of some starters missing a game or two because of injuries and illnesses. The five starting hitters have all recorded over 150 kills on the year and four different players have led the Bruins in kills in the last seven matches.

Buechler said this versatility on the roster shows the strength of the team.

“It’s cool to see everyone get their chance to shine,” Buechler said. “Everyone got their moment and played super well.”

With only six regular season matches remaining, three against teams the Bruins have lost to, UCLA will look to build off its offensive momentum, Sealy said.

“Everyone’s on the same page,” Sealy said. “If we (want to) be an elite team, we can’t have any hiccups.”

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Angie Forburger | Alumna
Forburger joined the Bruin as a freshman in 2016 and contributed until she graduated in 2020. She was the Editor in Chief for the 2019-2020 academic year and an assistant Sports editor for the 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 academic years. Forburger spent time on the women's volleyball, gymnastics, softball, swim & dive and rowing beats.
Forburger joined the Bruin as a freshman in 2016 and contributed until she graduated in 2020. She was the Editor in Chief for the 2019-2020 academic year and an assistant Sports editor for the 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 academic years. Forburger spent time on the women's volleyball, gymnastics, softball, swim & dive and rowing beats.
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