Winning isn’t a feat accomplished by just six players. Rather, it’s an achievement won in numbers.

And coach John Hawks did just that by tapping into the depth of his arsenal of players.

No. 3 UCLA (3-1) concluded its home opener at Pauley Pavilion on Thursday night with a four-set victory over No. 14 UC San Diego (6-1).

Bouncing back from the Bruins’ first loss of the season last Saturday, the Hawks made several rotational adjustments to add to the win column. Highlighting these changes was sophomore middle blocker Thiago Zamprogno, who played his first-ever collegiate minutes.

“You got to give guys shots, and you can’t talk about depth if you don’t use it,” Hawks said. “Thiago’s been ready. He trains hard. He plays hard, and it was really a substitution we made because we were just bleeding points in our rotation, and we had to slow down what was going on. Thiago went in and made the most of that move, so I’m so proud of him.”

Zamprogno saw valuable playing time in the third and fourth sets, where the foes split wins both decided by two points – UCLA dropping the tertiary match before recovering afterward. In his time at the net, Zamprogno added six kills on just seven total attempts, alongside a block.

With a .714 hitting percentage, the Fort Lauderdale, Florida, local credits team veterans for helping him be ready for his debut.

“I took a lot of time to learn from the older guys,” Zamprogno said. “They taught me how to prepare, and I wasn’t expecting it going into this match, but with their tips, I was ready at that moment.”

Elsewhere, sophomore Micah Wong Diallo entered the starting lineup for the most involvement he’s had in a game thus far in his UCLA career.

Although only playing in the first three sets, the middle blocker contributed two blocks to a formidable Westwood frontline.

“Our guys did a better job passing the ball last weekend, and if we can make improvements like that throughout the year, we’re going to be a good team,” Hawks said.

Handing the Tritons their first loss, the Bruins limited the visiting offense to a .184 hitting percentage. Additionally, the team poured in 12 total blocks, with junior middle blocker Cameron Thorne delivering a third of those.

Despite producing more service errors than the Tritons, it was the Bruins’ .312 hitting percentage, including .407 and .474 clips in the first and second sets, respectively, that steered them to victory.

“Our coaches’ scouting report helped a lot,” Thorne said. “We just stuck to what they told us to do in certain rotations.”

Nonetheless, the victory didn’t come without a fight. After clinching the first two sets by a combined margin of 14 points, UC San Diego narrowly won the following stanza 26-24, led by opposite Anthony Cherfan’s 11 kills on a .241 hitting percentage.

Spearheading the Triton’s attack was setter Bryce Dvorak who contributed 30 assists on the night and almost pushed the match to a fifth and final set.

“Dvorak hit the service line,” Hawks said. “We had opportunities to side out, and he got a couple of aces. They’re a team that plays with a ton of heart. They’re coached well. They do a good job, so all credit to them.”

The final set proved to be even more contentious, as the in-state rivals jostled between 12 tied scores and five lead changes. However, an aggressive offense captained by junior setter Andrew Rowan’s season-high 45 assists eventually put UCLA on top.

Alongside him were two double-digit kill performances by junior outside hitter Zach Rama and senior outside hitter Ido David. The latter had an assertive display, tying his previous season high in total attempts in just the second set before finishing with 11 kills off 24 attempts.

“He (David) felt some matchups that were in our favor, and Ido’s been great,” Hawks said. “To be able to go to Ido in those situations is not unusual for us.”

Although the notion of a reverse sweep was at risk, the team mustered the necessary effort to stave off a previously undefeated opponent.

“I keep believing,” Hawks said. “It’s believing in each other in those moments. We were calling some good defense calls. We were scoring points at the right time and, honestly, we had opportunities to score other points. We just had little tiny errors, … and that stuff happens. Just staying resilient in those situations, and our guys did that.”

In classic, explosive fashion, it was a kill off a Rowan assist that secured UCLA’s 31st point in the winning set.

“To think it’s going to be easy, that’s not our mindset at all,” Hawks said. “We could’ve gone to a fifth set and, truthfully, we’re ready in those situations. The goal isn’t to say we’re going to win every set. The goal is to just keep being resilient and stay tough.”