UCLA
USC
No. 8 UCLA Falls to No. 1 USC 3-0
April 14, 2011 | Men's Volleyball
April 14, 2011
UCLA vs. USC Box Score 4.14.11
Los Angeles, CA -
The 8th ranked UCLA men's volleyball team fell for the second time this season to crosstown rivals USC, losing by the score of 3-0.
The Bruins fell to 16-13 on the year and are now 9-12 in MPSF play. On the other side, USC is now 20-2 overall and 19-2 in conference play. Game scores were 25-12, 25-22 and 25-21. The two sides will meet again for a third time in the MPSF Quarterfinals on April 23rd at the Galen Center.
The Trojans took the first set handedly 25-12 and continued that momentum in the second set, going up early by the score of 15-7. Things looked bleak at 18-8, but the Bruins fought back with the help of a couple of service aces by junior Jack Polales. They would push the score to 20-15, before finding themselves down 24-19 and looking at a two set deficit. UCLA again pushed back, winning the next three points before eventually relenting and losing the set 25-22. The Trojans would go on to complete the sweep by winning the third set 25-21.
Junior Thomas Amberg led the Bruins in the loss with 7 kills on a .583 hitting percentage. Polales also came off the bench and chipped in with 6 kills and 3 aces. Kyle Caldwell, Alex Scattareggia and Tom Hastings all led UCLA with 6 digs in the match as well.
Overall, the Bruins hit just .145 while the Trojans hit .380. In addition, USC enjoyed a 48-27 kill advantage over UCLA and served 7 aces against the Bruins as well. Tony Ciarelli led the Trojans with 16 kills.
The Bruins will be back on the court on Saturday, April 16th against the Pepperdine Waves in the season finale. Gametime is slated for 7:00 p.m. PT. The two teams met earlier in the season on January 26th at Pauley Pavilion with the Bruins emerging victorious 3-0.
