Bruins Reverse Sweep Stanford, 3-2
STANFORD, Calif. – No. 19 UCLA wrapped up its first week of Pac-12 play with two wins after rallying from a two-set deficit to upset No. 14 Stanford, 3-2, on Sunday afternoon.
The Bruins (9-1, 2-0 Pac-12) completed the reverse sweep over The Cardinal (6-4, 1-1 Pac-12) to earn their first win at The Farm since 2016. UCLA is now riding its best start through 10 matches since the 2016 season when it started 10-2.
UCLA trailed 15-11 in the third set with a straight-sweep in sight when freshman outside hitter Charitie Luper notched a kill to sideout and put herself at the service line. Luper remained at the service line for the Bruins' next six points, taking a 17-15 lead.
After Stanford knotted the score, 17-17, the Bruins went on another run for three more points, capped off by a kill from redshirt senior middle blocker Emily Ryan. Ryan started sets two and three and contributed three kills in each. Luper put away the set with her sixth kill of the frame after scoring six kills in the previous set.
Luper finished with a match-high 18 kills for the third consecutive contest and 13 digs for the second double-double of her career.
The Bruins opened the fourth set with a 6-3 lead thanks to two kills by Luper and a service ace by élan McCall – her third of four total service aces in the match. Redshirt sophomore middle blocker Anna Dodson led the Bruins with 5.5 points in the frame, four coming off kills and one-and-a-half off three block assists.
Graduate setter Shelby Martin teamed up with Dodson on three of Martin's five block assists in the match. Offensively, Martin picked up her 3,500th career assist amidst her 44-assist performance in today's match.
Senior libero Zoe Fleck continued her streak of double-digit digs to 32 consecutive matches following her 19-dig performance today. Fleck, the reigning Pac-12 Libero of the Year, completed the weekend with 32 digs and a .952 reception percentage.
Graduate outside hitter Mac May was the lone Bruin in the solo block column with three denials to go along with her one block assist.
May – who passed Patty Orozco (1,646, 1980-83) for eighth all-time on UCLA's kill leaderboard in the second set -- led the Bruins with seven kills in the final two sets. Her first kill in the fifth frame came with Luper at the service line where she orchestrated a four-point run to give UCLA an 8-2 lead. Sophomore outside hitter Iman Ndiaye recorded the final kill of the match to cement the Bruin victory. Ndiaye recorded nine kills in the match including a three-kill fourth set that came on just four attempts.
UCLA continues its three-match road slate next weekend when it faces No. 6 Washington (7-3, 0-2 Pac-12) at Edmundson Pavilion on Friday, Oct. 1, and Washington State (8-4, 2-0 Pac-12) at Bohler Gym on Sunday, Oct. 3.