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UCLA beach volleyball prepares for trio of ranked matchups

Graduate student Jacqueline Quade split her first two matches against Stanford to begin her second season in Westwood. (Christine Kao/Daily Bruin staff)

Beach Volleyball


No. 6 Cal Poly
Thursday, 10 a.m..

Merle Norman Stadium
No TV info
No. 3 USC
Thursday, 2:30 p.m.

Merle Norman Stadium
No TV info
No. 8 California
Saturday, 1:30 p.m.

Mapes Beach
No TV info

By Bryan Palmero

March 4, 2021 12:35 p.m.

Correction: The original version of this article misidentified Jacqueline Quade as Lea Monkhouse in the photo caption.

This post was updated March 4 at 3:15 p.m.

Despite serving up a rivalry game this week, the Bruins are entering uncharted territory.

Since UCLA beach volleyball (2-0, 2-0 Pac-12) captured its first NCAA championship title in 2018, the team has held a top-two position in the weekly AVCA collegiate beach volleyball poll. That changed Monday, as the team will now open its three-game slate against No. 6 Cal Poly (3-1), No. 3 USC (2-0) and No. 8 Cal (2-0, 1-0 Pac-12) as the No. 4 ranked team in the nation.

In addition, when the Bruins face off against their crosstown rivals, the Trojans, at Merle Norman Stadium on Thursday afternoon, it’ll be the first time since 2019 UCLA will enter a game as underdogs.

“There’s always a little something extra when you’re playing the Trojans,” said coach Stein Metzger.

In the 2019 NCAA beach volleyball championship game, the Bruins competed as underdogs against the then-No. 1 Trojans and emerged victorious, securing a 3-0 sweep en route to UCLA’s second straight national title.

Before the Bruins battle in a rematch of the national championship, however, junior Lea Monkhouse made sure to point out a different rising opponent.

“Playing USC is always one of the funnest games to play, but (we’re) also excited to play Cal Poly as well,” Monkhouse said. “They have a really good program and are definitely getting better.”

UCLA last played Cal Poly in its 2019 season opener, sweeping it 5-0. Since then, the Bruins have lost eight starters from that season’s team, while the ranked Mustangs are returning nine.

Metzger said Cal Poly’s experience provides depth on its side of the net and it deserves attention from UCLA when they play on Thursday morning.

“(The Mustangs) have some really physical and talented kids who we’ve faced in the past, and they played us tough,” Metzger said. “So that’s the first match. Our focus is there and then we’ll get an opportunity to play against our rivals and see how we match up.”

Along with the changes on the court, the Bruins have also seen a shift in their coaching personnel. This season, the team added beach volleyball Hall of Famer Jose Loiola as a volunteer assistant coach along with a new strength coach.

As UCLA gears up for its Thursday match against the Trojans and its Saturday home game versus the Golden Bears – two Pac-12 rivals featuring at least four starters 6 feet or taller – Metzger said Loiola’s coaching provides the team with greater versatility on the defensive end.

“(Loiola’s) got an incredible pedigree,” Metzger said. “He’s been really instrumental in helping our team become better blockers. Traditionally, we’ve been great setters, but not necessarily great blockers. So we focused a lot on that.”

Graduate transfer Jaqueline Quade – who is tied for the Bruins’ tallest player at 6-foot-2 – said the team’s training will help it gear up for this week’s matchups.

“When the season starts, (training) gets a bit more match-specific, a bit more partner-specific,” Quade said. “We’re still just getting work done, getting 1% better every day, and seeing what we can do from there.”

The Bruins open their road doubleheader at Merle Norman Stadium against Cal Poly at 10 a.m before taking on USC later Thursday.

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Bryan Palmero | Daily Bruin senior staff
Palmero is a senior staff writer for Sports. He served as the assistant Sports editor on the softball, beach volleyball, women's volleyball, men's volleyball and men's golf beats from 2021-2022 and a Sports reporter on the beach volleyball and women's volleyball beats in 2021. He is a third-year mathematics and economics student.
Palmero is a senior staff writer for Sports. He served as the assistant Sports editor on the softball, beach volleyball, women's volleyball, men's volleyball and men's golf beats from 2021-2022 and a Sports reporter on the beach volleyball and women's volleyball beats in 2021. He is a third-year mathematics and economics student.
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