Friday, September 26
Columbus, OH
3:00 PM (PT)
UCLA
7-4,1-0Big Ten
3
at
2
Ohio State
3-6,0-1Big Ten
1
2
3
4
5
F
UCLA
20
25
26
22
15
3
Ohio St.
25
22
24
25
11
2
Photo by: Jake Cammarata
Bruins Outlast Buckeyes in Five-Set Thriller to Open Big Ten Play
September 26, 2025 | Women's Volleyball
COLUMBUS, Ohio. โย UCLA women's volleyball prevailed in a thrilling five-set affair against Ohio State to begin Big Ten Conference play with a win on Friday night inside the Covelli Center.
ย
Set scores were 20-25, 25-22, 26-24, 22-25, 15-11.
ย
The hotly contested match saw all five sets decided by five points or fewer. The was little to separate the two teams as UCLA (7-4, 1-0 Big Ten) hit .258 as a team, hitting above the .300 mark in three of the five frames.ย
ย
Ohio State (3-6, 0-1 Big Ten) hit. 244 as a unit by were hampered by 17 service errors. Hannah Jones led the Buckeyes with 23 kills.
ย
Freshman Eliana Urzua turned in another incredible performance, racking up a team-high 20 kills on an extremely efficient .381 clip. She also tallied five digs and two blocks to finish with 21 total points.
ย
Cheridyn Leverette turned in a strong all-around performance with 15 kills and eight digs, while Marianna Singletary joined her in double figures, contributing 12 kills, five blocks, and three digs.ย
ย
Kate Duffey orchestrated the offense with precision, posting a career-high 53 assists, just one dig shy of a double-double, in one of her most impressive outings in a UCLA uniform.ย
ย
Anchoring the back row, Lola Schumacher led the defensive effort with a season-best 21 digs.ย
ย
Ohio State jumped out to an early 4-1 lead, but UCLA responded with a 4-0 surge sparked by a Duffey ace to take a brief 5-4 advantage. The Buckeyes countered with a 3-0 run to enter the media timeout ahead 15-12, then widened the gap to 18-13 after landing their third ace of the set. Singletary's trio of kills kept the Bruins within reach, and Leverette added six kills to bolster UCLA's offense. Despite hitting an efficient .324, the Bruins were unable to halt Ohio State's momentum, and the Buckeyes secured the opening set.
ย
UCLA opened the second set with a 3-0 burst fueled by Singletary's kill and ace, building early momentum and five-point lead that forced an Ohio State timeout. Phekran Kong contributed three kills as the Bruins maintained a 15-12 edge at the media break and extended their lead to six before the Buckeyes closed the gap to 19-16. Key swings from Urzua and Singletary helped UCLA regain a four-point cushion, but Ohio State rallied late to pull within one at 22-21. Leverette's powerful attack set up set point, and Urzua sealed it with a decisive kill to even the match.
ย
Ohio State jumped out to an 11-6 lead in the third set behind a 5-0 run, but UCLA clawed back to tie it at 15-all, forcing a Buckeye timeout. The teams traded blows until Briscoe punished an overpass to give the Bruins a 20-19 edge. Singletary followed with two clutch swings to push UCLA ahead 23-22. Ohio State answered to reach set point, but Urzua delivered a critical kill to keep the Bruins alive. Leverette then hammered home back-to-back kills, the first to earn set point, then the second to seal the comeback and give UCLA the set.
ย
Set four saw a tightly contested start as the teams traded points to a 13-13 tie, but UCLA struggled to find offensive rhythm. Hendrickson delivered a clutch ace to even the score at 16, while Urzua led the attack with six kills in the frame. Ohio State responded with a late surge, building a 21-17 lead that forced a UCLA timeout. The Bruins hit just .094 with eight attack errors, ultimately falling 25-22 in the set to set up a decisive fifth frame.
ย
UCLA came out strong in the decisive fifth set, jumping to a 3-0 lead and extending it to 6-2 behind a pair of Urzua kills, prompting an Ohio State timeout. Urzua notched her 20th kill to make it 8-4, and Carly Hendrickson followed with consecutive aces for a commanding 10-4 edge. Ohio State responded with a six-point run to close the gap to 10-9, but key blocks from Singletary and Duffey helped UCLA regain momentum. Singletary added another block for a 13-10 lead, and Schumacher's dig-turned-kill set up match point, which was sealed by an Ohio State service error.
ย
UCLA takes on the reigning National Champions, No. 15 Penn State, on Sunday, Sept. 28 at 9 a.m. (PT). The contest will broadcast on Big Ten Network.
ย
ย
Set scores were 20-25, 25-22, 26-24, 22-25, 15-11.
ย
The hotly contested match saw all five sets decided by five points or fewer. The was little to separate the two teams as UCLA (7-4, 1-0 Big Ten) hit .258 as a team, hitting above the .300 mark in three of the five frames.ย
ย
Ohio State (3-6, 0-1 Big Ten) hit. 244 as a unit by were hampered by 17 service errors. Hannah Jones led the Buckeyes with 23 kills.
ย
Freshman Eliana Urzua turned in another incredible performance, racking up a team-high 20 kills on an extremely efficient .381 clip. She also tallied five digs and two blocks to finish with 21 total points.
ย
Cheridyn Leverette turned in a strong all-around performance with 15 kills and eight digs, while Marianna Singletary joined her in double figures, contributing 12 kills, five blocks, and three digs.ย
ย
Kate Duffey orchestrated the offense with precision, posting a career-high 53 assists, just one dig shy of a double-double, in one of her most impressive outings in a UCLA uniform.ย
ย
Anchoring the back row, Lola Schumacher led the defensive effort with a season-best 21 digs.ย
ย
Ohio State jumped out to an early 4-1 lead, but UCLA responded with a 4-0 surge sparked by a Duffey ace to take a brief 5-4 advantage. The Buckeyes countered with a 3-0 run to enter the media timeout ahead 15-12, then widened the gap to 18-13 after landing their third ace of the set. Singletary's trio of kills kept the Bruins within reach, and Leverette added six kills to bolster UCLA's offense. Despite hitting an efficient .324, the Bruins were unable to halt Ohio State's momentum, and the Buckeyes secured the opening set.
ย
UCLA opened the second set with a 3-0 burst fueled by Singletary's kill and ace, building early momentum and five-point lead that forced an Ohio State timeout. Phekran Kong contributed three kills as the Bruins maintained a 15-12 edge at the media break and extended their lead to six before the Buckeyes closed the gap to 19-16. Key swings from Urzua and Singletary helped UCLA regain a four-point cushion, but Ohio State rallied late to pull within one at 22-21. Leverette's powerful attack set up set point, and Urzua sealed it with a decisive kill to even the match.
ย
Ohio State jumped out to an 11-6 lead in the third set behind a 5-0 run, but UCLA clawed back to tie it at 15-all, forcing a Buckeye timeout. The teams traded blows until Briscoe punished an overpass to give the Bruins a 20-19 edge. Singletary followed with two clutch swings to push UCLA ahead 23-22. Ohio State answered to reach set point, but Urzua delivered a critical kill to keep the Bruins alive. Leverette then hammered home back-to-back kills, the first to earn set point, then the second to seal the comeback and give UCLA the set.
ย
Set four saw a tightly contested start as the teams traded points to a 13-13 tie, but UCLA struggled to find offensive rhythm. Hendrickson delivered a clutch ace to even the score at 16, while Urzua led the attack with six kills in the frame. Ohio State responded with a late surge, building a 21-17 lead that forced a UCLA timeout. The Bruins hit just .094 with eight attack errors, ultimately falling 25-22 in the set to set up a decisive fifth frame.
ย
UCLA came out strong in the decisive fifth set, jumping to a 3-0 lead and extending it to 6-2 behind a pair of Urzua kills, prompting an Ohio State timeout. Urzua notched her 20th kill to make it 8-4, and Carly Hendrickson followed with consecutive aces for a commanding 10-4 edge. Ohio State responded with a six-point run to close the gap to 10-9, but key blocks from Singletary and Duffey helped UCLA regain momentum. Singletary added another block for a 13-10 lead, and Schumacher's dig-turned-kill set up match point, which was sealed by an Ohio State service error.
ย
UCLA takes on the reigning National Champions, No. 15 Penn State, on Sunday, Sept. 28 at 9 a.m. (PT). The contest will broadcast on Big Ten Network.
ย
Team Stats
UCLA
OSU
Kills
64
61
Errors
24
21
Attempts
155
164
Hitting %
.258
.244
Points
77.0
82.0
Assists
58
58
Aces
4
10
Blocks
9
11
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
20
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
15
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Kills
12
Aces
1
Blocks
5
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Players Mentioned
S
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's VolleyballMB
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's Volleyball
DS/L
/ Women's VolleyballMB
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's VolleyballHighlights - W. Volleyball at Ohio State (Sept. 26, 2025)
Saturday, September 27
Highlights - W. Volleyball at Ohio State (Sept. 26, 2025)
Friday, September 26
UCLA W. Volleyball Postgame - Oregon (Nov. 29, 2024)
Friday, November 29
UCLA W. Volleyball Postgame - Iowa (Nov. 27, 2024)
Thursday, November 28