UCLA Rallies to Five-Set Victory over Cougars
LOS ANGELES – No. 16 UCLA fought back from a 2-1 deficit to take down No. 22 Washington State for its sixth home win of the season at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom.
Four Bruins – graduates Mac May and Shelby Martin, senior Zoe Fleck and freshman Charitie Luper – tallied double-doubles in UCLA's five-set victory over the Cougars (13-8, 7-4 Pac-12) on Friday night. UCLA recorded a season-high 73 kills, tied for second-most by a Pac-12 team in a match this season. While holding the Cougars to a match-low .121 hitting percentage in the fourth set, UCLA cruised at a .429 hitting percentage for 15 kills to force a fifth set.
The Bruins bested that in the final frame, hitting at an astronomical .688 clip and scoring 12 of their 15 points off kills.
Set scores in the match were 25-21, 23-25, 22-25, 25-15, 15-11.
Outside hitters Mac May and Charitie Luper recorded 22 and 21 kills, respectively, marking UCLA's first time this season they had multiple 20-kill performances in one match. May is now tied with Minnesota's Stephanie Samedy for the most 20-kill matches this season with eight. May was active defensively as well, digging out 16 balls for her seventh double-double of the season.
Luper tallied her fifth double-double of the year with 11 digs tonight in addition to her 21 kills. Setter Shelby Martin notched her third 50-assist outing of the season with 53 helpers to go along with 11 digs.
Charitie Luper flying for the kill is nightmare fuel 🎃
📺: @Pac12Network
📲: https://t.co/shdlzEow4R#GoBruins pic.twitter.com/iXbMeERz3y— UCLA Women's Volleyball (@UCLAWomensVB) October 30, 2021
Libero Zoe Fleck paced the Bruins with a season-high 27 digs and was second behind Martin with a season-high 11 assists.
The Bruins took their first lead of the opening set when redshirt sophomore middle blocker Anna Dodson evened the frame with a kill, 14-14, and, on the next play, gave them the lead with a solo block. Dodson finished the match with a team-high five blocks.
Dodson also was responsible for nine of UCLA's kills.
.@annadodson19 gives the Bruins their first lead of the set! TIMEOUT.
Set 1: UCLA 15, Washington State 14
📺: @Pac12Network
📲: https://t.co/shdlzEow4R#GoBruins pic.twitter.com/XXTfHH3aQq— UCLA Women's Volleyball (@UCLAWomensVB) October 30, 2021
Back-to-back kills by May pushed UCLA into the lead, 23-21, and it would not look back, taking the set 25-21. May scored seven total kills in the first set.
Thirteen of Martin's assists came in the fourth frame, where she found her attackers at will at a .542 set percentage. Luper (4 kills), McCall (3 kills) and Dodson (2 kills) all hit above .500 in the set. McCall finished the match with 12 kills and two digs shy of a double-double (8).
The fifth set was all Luper, scoring seven of the Bruins' 15 points in the frame with six kills on just eight swings and a solo block for the match-finisher.
The Bruins go toe-to-toe with No. 8 Washington (16-3, 9-2), who is the only team tied with UCLA for first place in the Pac-12 standings, on Halloween Night Sunday at 4 p.m. in Pauley Pavilion.