University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
UCLA
Michigan
#14 UCLA Rallies to Oust Michigan
December 06, 2015 | Women's Volleyball
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LOS ANGELES - Junior Claire Felix set a career high with 17 kills and tied a personal best with seven blocks, while three Bruins had double-doubles, as #14 UCLA battled back from 2-0 down to defeat Michigan in five on Saturday at the John Wooden Center in the second round of the NCAA Tournament
The Bruins improved to 25-7 and will face #3 Texas in Austin in the regional semifinals on Friday, Dec. 11 at 5 p.m. PT. The match will be broadcast on ESPN3.com. Michigan concluded its season with a 20-13 record.
Felix hit .500 with just two errors (none after the first set) in 30 attempts to go with five digs and two aces. In the double-doubles department, junior Taylor Formico recorded the first of her career with 20 digs and a career-high 10 assists, redshirt sophomore Jessyka Ngauamo had her fourth of the season with 17 kills and 13 digs to go with three aces and freshman Zana Muno posted her team-best 17th with 35 assists and 12 digs.
Senior Karly Drolson tallied a season-high 20 digs, senior Rachel Inouye added 13 digs and sophomore Reily Buechler posted 14 kills. Junior Jennie Frager was error-free with six kills in 13 attempts (.462) and four blocks, while redshirt junior Haley Lawless and junior Jordan Anderson each had five kills. The Bruins hit .238 for the match.
The Bruins led throughout most of the opening set, but Michigan came back late to take the first. UCLA scored the first four points on a Ngauamo kill, a solo block and kill by Felix and a Wolverine attack error. The Bruins still led by four at 9-5 before Michigan scored four straight to tie it up. The visitors would take their first lead at 14-13, but only had as big as a two-point lead for the set.
Trailing 17-15, four in a row for the Bruins on a Frager kill, an ace by redshirt sophomore Ryann Chandler, a kill by Ngauamo and an Anderson/Frager block put UCLA up by a pair at 19-17. With the Bruins up 21-19, the Wolverines scored three straight to re-take the lead. Michigan earned two set points at 24-22 and won it on its second try, 25-23. Felix paced the Bruins with four kills, while Anderson, Buechler and Ngauamo all had three kills. Chandler and Inouye each had six digs and Formico added four, as Michigan out-hit UCLA .208 to .171.
Set two featured 10 ties and five lead changes, but Michigan prevailed to take a 2-0 lead to intermission. The Bruins had two-point advantages at 2-0 and 4-2 before a 6-2 run by the Wolverines put the visitors up 8-6. UCLA regained the lead at 10-9, but a 7-2 run put Michigan ahead by a set-best four at 16-12. Trailing 22-20, the Bruins scored three in a row on kills by Muno, Buechler and Ngauamo to go ahead 23-22.
However, two straight for the Wolverines gave them a set point. A Felix kill saved the first attempt, but Michigan scored the next two to win the second 26-24. Buechler led the Bruins with five kills in the second, while Drolson added six digs, as the Bruins were out-hit .262 to .250.
The Bruins never trailed in the third to stay alive. Even at one, the Bruins reeled off six in a row on three straight Michigan errors, a Buechler/Felix block, a Buechler kill and a Ngauamo ace. Six would be the Bruins' longest lead at 7-1 and 8-2. Michigan closed to within one at 14-13, but the Bruins scored three straight on a Feilx kill and back-to-back Felix/Muno blocks to take a 17-13 edge. After a sideout, a Muno kill and Felix ace brought the lead up to five at 19-14.
The Bruins' lead stayed above two for the remainder of the set. On UCLA's second set point, a Felix kill closed out a 25-22 victory. Felix was 7-for-8 in the set, Ngauamo added four kills and Drolson and Formico each had four digs, as the Bruins out-hit the Wolverines .293 to .256.
UCLA didn't trail by more than two in the fourth and pulled away to force a fifth set. Down 10-8, the Bruins went on a 10-3 run to go up by five at 18-13. Ngauamo was a part of two of the points on a kill and ace, while Buechler, Felix, Frager and Lawless also had kills during the run.
The Bruins' largest lead of the set was six at 23-17. At 24-20 on UCLA's second set point, a Felix kill finished the 25-20 win to send the Bruins the distance for the sixth time in the last eight matches. Felix and Ngauamo both had four kills in the fourth, Drolson added eight digs and Formico had five, as the Bruins out-hit the Wolverines .220 to .043.
UCLA never trailed in the fifth to complete the comeback. Tied at three, the Bruins went on a 6-1 run to take a 9-4 lead. Lawless posted two kills, Formico got into the act with a dig-kill, Muno had a kill and Felix served an ace during the run. At 11-7, back-to-back kills by Ngauamo gave the Bruins a set-best lead of six.
Michigan scored the next three to get to within three at 13-10, but a Buechler kill gave the Bruins four match points, and on the second attempt, another kill by Buechler wrapped up the 15-11 win. Ngauamo had four kills, while Buechler had three in the fifth. Formico and Muno both had four digs, as the Bruins out-hit the Wolverines .265 to .241.
