Home sweet home.

UCLA women’s volleyball (10-3, 1-1 Big Ten) returns to Westwood on Friday to face Michigan State (11-1, 1-1) before taking on Michigan (9-4, 0-2) Saturday at Pauley Pavilion.

The weekend’s events mark the first home game since Aug. 29th, where UCLA took down Long Beach State 3-0 in its second game of the season. Since then, the Bruins have been on the road for 11 straight games.

“All those road trips are definitely not the easiest to do because with all the time differences, all the uncertainties,” said senior outside hitter Maggie Li. “Our team really handled those situations well, and we took it as a team bonding moment for us.”

In the opening weekend of the Big Ten, the squad fell to then-No. 18 Indiana in straight sets.

Indiana jumped to a lead each set, and while UCLA managed to claw back into the first set to go 27-25, it was unable to make a full recovery in sets two and three, losing 25-19 and 25-21, respectively.

But the Westwood side quickly recovered to sweep Northwestern just two days later, taking each set by a margin of five points.

Freshman middle blocker Brooke Harwood spearheaded the offensive efforts with a career-high 14 kills on a .684 clip, while fifth-year middle blocker Marianna Singletary posted 10 kills and six blocks at a .500 clip. Sophomore outside hitter Eliana Urzua also tallied 10 kills at a .409 hitting percentage.

“Being away is really good for us in terms of building relationships and bonding,” said coach Matt Werle. “Luckily we’ve come on top in a lot of these matches, so less resentment and less tension is built. We have to keep building together and building belief and confidence.”

Junior setter Kate Duffey directed the offense with 40 assists. Sophomore outside hitter Ava Utterback established her presence in both the front and back rows with six kills, 10 digs and three aces.

The squad had previously posted a season-high team hitting percentage of .378 at the Lucky Aces Invitational, where it went undefeated to take home the trophy. Junior libero Lola Schumacher was named tournament MVP after her career-high 29 digs against Hawai’i in the final game of the weekend.

Now, the team looks to carry on those successes back on its home court.

Michigan State comes off its Big Ten opening weekend at home, falling 3-1 to Washington – its first loss and only loss this year – before taking down No. 14 Penn State with the same scoreline.

Both opposite Hayley Ogden and outside hitter Madi Andrews reached 13 kills across the four sets against the Nittany Lions, proving to be a potential threat for the Bruins.

Michigan faced the same teams during its Big Ten start, falling to both. During their game against the Huskies, the Wolverines tested a new lineup, with outside hitter Ella Demetrician leading the team with 18 kills, seven digs and a block assist.

In the 2025 season, UCLA defeated both teams in back-to-back five-set thrillers. But every year comes with new challenges.

“Every day I’m going to have to show up on and off the court,” Harwood said. “It feels amazing hearing my name called and getting to run out, high-five everyone, and be on the court, knowing that my family’s watching, friends are watching, and UCLA fans are watching. I play to make them proud, and my coaches and team proud.”