The end of conference play is a vital time as teams fight for postseason berths.

The Bruins are coming up on the end of a back-and-forth 2025 campaign with four matches remaining in the regular season while potentially eyeing a conclusion to their three-year postseason drought.

UCLA women’s volleyball (15-11, 9-7 Big Ten) will begin its final push, facing off against Illinois (13-12, 8-8) at Pauley Pavilion on Thursday for the final home game of the regular season before traveling to battle Washington (11-15, 6-10) at Alaska Airlines Arena on Saturday. The Bruins have not won back-to-back matches since Oct. 8 and Oct. 11, when they bested the Golden Gophers and the Trojans, respectively.

UCLA has never dropped a match to Illinois throughout the program’s history, and it will be playing longtime conference foe Washington for the second time this season after capturing a 3-1 set win against the rival squad on Nov. 2.

UCLA is coming off a sweep against Rutgers last weekend, when the team hit at a .324 clip – its third-highest hitting percentage of the season. Cheridyn Leverette has propelled UCLA’s offense throughout the campaign. The senior outside hitter posted a .364 clip against Rutgers, her highest tally since notching a .520 clip in the team’s bout against Maryland on Oct. 25.

“I thought we did a lot of good things in terms of finding solutions in some situations,” said coach Alfee Reft after UCLA’s contest against Rutgers. “Cheridyn tonight showed a lot of different repertoires out there, which she’s been doing now for a couple matches.”

Sophomore libero Lola Schumacher was another bright spot for the Bruins. The Carmel, Indiana, local recorded 15 digs against the Scarlet Knights, and her 4.31 digs per set is a conference-high mark. The Bruins hold the crown in the digs per set in the conference, posting 14.21 average compared to the Fighting Illini’s 13.69.

UCLA’s defense has been a strength throughout the season. This may lead a struggling Illinois offense – which holds a .229 hitting percentage – to falter.

The Bruins come into Thursday with four wins across their past eight matches, but the Fighting Illini and Huskies have captured just three combined victories across the same span.

Despite UCLA’s formidable defensive back row, lackluster blocking limited it in its last battle against Washington. The Huskies recorded 13 denials compared to the Bruins’ nine.

For a Bruin squad that has faced consistency issues all season, staying together in big moments has been crucial to its success.

“I think for me, staying present is super important, and staying in the moment with my teammates – like not thinking too far ahead or too far behind – just making eye contact and staying super present (and) together,” Leverette said.

And the Bruins seemingly haven’t let past struggles impact their present performance. Senior outside hitter Carly Hendrickson, a transfer from Florida, noted the team’s ability to turn around quickly after the Nebraska match and achieve a sweep. This resilience may be essential in UCLA’s final push for a postseason bid.

“I think coming to UCLA was not an easy decision for me in the transfer portal, but just continuing to believe in what this program is about and what we’re building and our plans for this year is something that just makes it so easy to stay involved,” Hendrickson said. “I’m super excited to see where this team is going to go this year.”