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No. 4 UCLA beach volleyball wins every set in Pac-12 South Tournament

Freshman Rileigh Powers and her partner redshirt freshman Jaden Whitmarsh scored twice as many points as their opponents at the Pac-12 South Tournament. The pair outscored them 126-63 as it went undefeated on the weekend along with every other partnership for No. 4 UCLA beach volleyball. (Ella Barnes/Daily Bruin)

Beach Volleyball


No. 4 UCLA5
No. 11 California0
No. 4 UCLA5
Arizona State0
No. 4 UCLA5
Oregon0

By Jay Fenn

March 30, 2021 2:06 p.m.

The Bruins continued their winning streak, sweeping a trio of Pac-12 rivals without dropping a set.

No. 4 UCLA beach volleyball (11-1, 6-0 Pac-12) defeated No. 11 California (8-3, 4-2), Oregon (2-6, 0-4) and Arizona State (4-7, 1-4) all by scores of 5-0 at the Pac-12 South Tournament at Bear Down Beach in Tucson on Saturday and Sunday.

Coach Stein Metzger said the team is starting to find its groove and is beginning to get over some rust and nervous energy that may have been present earlier in the season.

“The team gelled well together as a group, and I think we got past our early season jitters and found our sweet spot,” Metzger said. “From top to bottom, I think everyone played par, and if not, raised their level.”

Freshman Lexy Denaburg and graduate student Savvy Simo started off the weekend for the Bruins by defeating the Golden Bears’ duo of Jordan Polo and Ainsley Radell in straight sets by scores of 21-13 and 21-12 on court one. Denaburg and Simo remained on court one against the Ducks and Sun Devils and defeated each of the teams’ pairs without dropping a set.

“I do not think we played our 100% best volleyball, but the most important thing is we figured out how to win,” Denaburg said. “Even though (the matches) were not up to our standards, we still pulled out some sweeps.”

While Denaburg said Simo and herself did not perform as well as they wanted during their victories this past weekend, she said they found a lot of things to work on.

This season is the freshman’s first time teaming with the graduate student after spending the entirety of the 2020 season teaming with sophomore Lindsey Sparks, and she said she is enjoying every minute of it.

“It has been really great so far. We have a great relationship on and off the court,” Denaburg said. “On the court, we have great communication, and if there is ever any problems, we go right to each other, and we are always thinking about ways to get better.”

UCLA’s other courts saw similar successes throughout the three matches, with all its pairings winning their respective matches in straight sets.

One of these pairings was freshman Rileigh Powers and redshirt freshman Jaden Whitmarsh, who played on court five throughout the whole weekend and saw similar success, defeating all of their opponents in straight sets.

Powers said she was proud of not just her and Whitmarsh’s performance but also the team’s performance as a whole. The freshman said the Bruins came out ready to play and were excited to get out back on the sand.

“I think everyone was super fired up to play, and everyone was ready to take care of business,” Powers said. “We came in with a really strong mindset and knew not to underestimate teams.”

UCLA will have a week off before its next matches when they will face No. 2 Florida State and No. 3 LSU two times each.

Metzger said the team will use its week off to prepare for what it can expect to be some of its most difficult matches of the year. The two-time USMC/AVCA National Coach of the Year said his team will not only be spending time practicing on the sand but will also dedicate time to watching film and maintaining its health in the training room.

“I think we are at a good space as a team, and I think the timing is right because we are about to take on a couple of really good teams,” Metzger said.

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Jay Fenn | Sports staff
Fenn is currently a Sports staffer on the baseball beat. He was previously a reporter on the women's soccer beat and a contributor on the beach volleyball and men's and women's golf beats.
Fenn is currently a Sports staffer on the baseball beat. He was previously a reporter on the women's soccer beat and a contributor on the beach volleyball and men's and women's golf beats.
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