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Black History Month 2025

UCLA men’s volleyball advances to NCAA finals with five-set victory over UC Irvine

No. 1 seed UCLA men’s volleyball embraces in victory after securing a berth in the NCAA finals. The team will play either No. 2 seed Long Beach State or No. 3 seed Grand Canyon on Saturday (Jake Greenberg-Bell/Daily Bruin staff)

Men’s volleyball


No. 1 seed UCLA3
No. 4 seed UC Irvine2

By Anthony Aroyan

May 2, 2024 7:47 p.m.

LONG BEACH, CALIF. – Like the tide, volleyball is a game of highs and lows. 

One moment you’re riding the crest, and the next you’re beneath the waves, struggling to stay afloat. 

For the Bruins, it took every ounce of energy to ascend for air.

No. 1 seed UCLA men’s volleyball (25-5, 11-1 MPSF) defeated No. 4 seed UC Irvine (20-11, 7-3 Big West) in five sets in Thursday evening’s NCAA semifinals. Hiccups accompanied the Bruins’ ticket to their second consecutive national championship, as the Anteaters took the team to five sets for the second time this postseason.

“I think you saw a great volleyball team in UC Irvine,” said coach John Speraw, who won three national titles in six seasons as head coach of the Anteaters. “To come back from being down a little in the fifth, to tying it and making some plays at the end, I really could not have scripted it better. I think it’s going to make us better as a team and I’m just thrilled for the guys, especially the seniors.”

The Bruins began semifinals proceedings on the backfoot, failing to meet the Anteaters at any point. Irvine suppressed any scoring run UCLA concocted, and the Bruins’ performance behind the service line – typically a strength – did not find its footing in the opening frame, tallying seven errors. Despite losing the set 25-22, the bright spots of the Bruins’ performance foreshadowed the contest’s trajectory.

Senior outside hitter Ethan Champlin spearheaded UCLA’s hitting charge through the affair. The AVCA All-American tallied five kills in 10 attempts in the opening frame, cruising to season-high 19 through the bout. 

“I just envisioned myself having a good match last night,” Champlin said. “Rowan (sophomore setter Andrew Rowan) sets up such a good offense and trusts in me, and sometimes you just get kills. I knew it was coming to me. I was just trying to pick which shot to go in.”

Course-correcting in the second and third frames, UCLA’s arsenal rekindled to find its rhythm. Middle blocker Merrick McHenry – after attacking once in the opener – hit seven kills off nine attempts in the middle sets to thwart his foes’ scoring runs. 

The redshirt senior bookended a 7-1 UCLA run in the third, catapulting his squad to a 19-14 lead. The MPSF Player of the Year delivered whenever Speraw summoned his prowess, ending the match with 10 kills and leading the team with six blocks.

Senior Ethan Champlin draws his arm back and launches a cross-court kill. The outside hitter contributed on both ends of the floor for UCLA, registering a season-high 19 kills and notching 13 digs. (Jake Greenberg-Bell/Daily Bruin staff)

McHenry said the victory was dedicated to redshirt junior outside hitter Grant Sloane, who was injured prior to the match.

“Sloane is such a competitor. He’s such a team player, and he’s been such an important part of our team the entire year,” McHenry said. “To see him go down, I think we kind of bonded with that, and before the match we had a quick chat and said, ‘Do it for Grant.’”

Following an Anteater surge in the fourth set and a 25-16 defeat for the Bruins, a shot at national hardware hung precariously on the fifth set’s outcome. 

Champlin once again assumed command, leading the team with three kills and the match-winning kill. Sophomore outside hitter Zach Rama, who sat until midway through the fourth, leveled the final frame at 10 apiece to nudge his team to the precipice of victory.

UCLA will compete in its second national championship in as many years, and its third in the Speraw era. 

“Saturday is going to be my last game for UCLA, Merrick’s too, and for a couple guys who aren’t here,” Champlin said. “It means a lot to be playing and have the privilege of playing at UCLA.”

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Anthony Aroyan
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