Road games bring mixed results for women’s volleyball as Big Ten play looms
Junior outside hitter Cheridyn Leverette dives to dig a ball at Pauley Pavillion. (Shane Yu/Daily Bruin staff)
Women's Volleyball
UCLA | 1 |
UC Davis | 3 |
UCLA | 3 |
California | 0 |
By Chloe Agas
Sept. 22, 2024 9:04 p.m.
Nonconference play ended with a battle between Northern and Southern California.
UCLA women’s volleyball (6-3) traveled to Davis and Berkeley to wrap up its final series of nonconference matches before Big Ten action starts Friday. The Bruins faced UC Davis (5-4) at University Credit Union Center Sept. 19 and California (8-4) at Haas Pavilion Sept 21.
“It’s been a very long month – I think we’ve been in every timezone of the country playing,” said head coach Alfee Reft. “The cumulative effect of travel, week after week. That’s certainly something we wanted to experience, knowing that we’re moving into the Big Ten.”
In the end, the Bruins were defeated by the Aggies 3-1. Days later, they found triumph, sweeping the Golden Bears.
“I’m genuinely proud of what we were able to do and turn around in such a short amount of time,” said junior outside hitter Cheridyn Leverette. “It truly feels like we’re all clicking together like one unit.”
The team demonstrated strong attacking consistency, with kill percentages exceeding .400 across both matches.
After falling 26-24 in the first set against Davis, the Bruins came back to win the second set by ten points, with 15 of 25 points scored on kills. The Aggies regained control as the Bruins lost by four in the third set and three in the fourth, with the Bruins’ hitting percentage limited to .246 across the match.
Leverette dominated offensively, delivering 17 kills on a .567 clip. The outside hitter also reached double digits against Cal, with 11 kills in the first two sets alone.
The two day gap in between the matches allowed the Bruins to prepare for their final nonconference matchup against Cal.
“Our Davis match was a really tough loss,” said graduate student setter Audrey Pak. “We made a lot of good system updates, and in the way we’re going to communicate. I think it really showed in Cal and we were able to execute well.”
Against the Golden Bears, UCLA maintained control, with a .464 hit percentage in the second set and a .312 hitting percentage overall.
The Bruins’ attack force included junior opposite hitter Grayce Olson, who led the way with a .625 hitting percentage and 10 kills. Pak also etched her mark during the second set with 12 assists, finishing with 40 assists overall and four blocks.
During the third and final set, Cal inched up to a 16-10 lead but lost it as UCLA brought kill after kill, with eight in its last 10 points alone. Leverette tallied seven kills and Olson five, along with a three kill contribution from graduate student middle blocker Anna Dodson.
Ending pre-conference matchups on a high, the Bruins emerged victorious, coming back from the loss they had incurred two days prior.
For Leverette, the end of nonconference play shows just the tip of the Bruin iceberg.
“We haven’t even touched what we’re capable of this season,” Leverette said. “I’m super proud that we’re able to scratch the surface on what our improvement can look like in the short time period we have.”
Pak added that she hopes to keep learning and moving forward alongside the team.
“I’m proud of how our team has handled our whole preseason,” Pak said. “We’ve had a lot of random, unexpected things, and the way our team has really stayed together through all of that and been able to problem solve through it and be stronger from it.”
The Bruins are on the road once again as they head to the Midwest for their inaugural Big Ten matchup against Nebraska.