This post was updated Nov. 19 at 12:29 a.m.

Senior Day is about donning school colors one last time.

But for the Bruins, it was also about growth and development.

With four matches remaining in the regular season, UCLA women’s volleyball (15-11, 9-7 Big Ten) took down Rutgers (11-17, 2-14) on the Bruins’ Senior Day in a sweep. UCLA’s season has been up and down all throughout, but the squad currently ranks No. 36 in RPI going into the final stretch.

Although it was not the Bruins’ last time in Pauley Pavilion, the match struck an emotional chord for the team.

“When they were walking out tonight, you can’t help but reflect on all of the things they brought over their years here,” said coach Alfee Reft. “I’m just tremendously proud of the women they are, the badass women they are, not just on the court but what they do in their lives to help build and represent this program.”

The Bruins came out firing in the first set despite falling to Nebraska less than 24 hours prior to Saturday’s first serve – hitting almost perfectly in the set. The squad posted 16 kills on one attack error and a .455 clip.

Senior outside hitter Cheridyn Leverette closed out the first set with her seventh kill of the match, before going on to post 16 total on a .364 clip. This marked the seventh time this season Leverette finished with a hitting percentage of .300-plus.

Leverette has spoken of building her offensive repertoire throughout the season.

“It’s a new equation every time,” Leverette said. “We do a lot of work with our offensive scout and what the blockers are taking and what the defense is taking. … So with all the shots I’ve been working on in training and with working with Grayce (Olson), I just feel so confident entering every match – know when to pull out what tools and what the defense is doing.”

The Bruins held the Scarlet Knights to a sub-.055 hitting clip in both the second and third sets, tallying six blocks across the two frames. Only one of the Scarlet Knights reached double-digit kills, with middle blocker Zora Hardison notching 10.

UCLA hit .300-plus in the second set, and senior outside hitter Carly Hendrickson sealed the deal in the second stanza, hitting a line shot from the right side to close it out.

“(It was) super awesome,” Hendrickson said. “My family’s here for Senior Night, and (I’ve) just been developing how to hit on both sides of the pins. … Getting to play with the team and especially the seniors – tonight is always special.”

Although the Bruins came away with the sweep, the third set showed signs of seasonlong struggles. UCLA got to point 17 before allowing Rutgers to go on an 8-0 scoring run to take the lead 21-17 – illustrating a continuing trend of the Bruins having difficulty closing out sets.

However, the Bruins were able to rally back, going on a 8-2 run to win the match.

“I thought we did a nice job managing the ball in some situations that maybe we didn’t necessarily like, which is something we’ve been emphasizing over the course of the year is, ‘Can we put teams in situations?’” Reft said. “I thought some shots in the big spots and then some good block and defense behind that. So not necessarily crushing every ball, but we call it winning within the rally.”

During the Reft era, UCLA is 47-38 and has yet to make the NCAA tournament – although, as the years have gone on, Reft has continued to develop the program through recruits and transfers.

Creating a culture within a program is an important step in building for the future and something Reft has worked on with his squad.

“These two (Leverette and Hendrickson), actually, are the ones that have been here from the start with me, and so it is grueling work to be good at this level, and it doesn’t happen overnight,” Reft said. “We have to start with a foundation of players like Cheridyn and Carly. And I’m not just talking about killing the ball and winning matches. We’re talking about laying a foundation for a program, that it has trajectory for the long term.”