Friday, August 26
Los Angeles, Calif.
4:00 PM
UCLA
1-0
3
vs
0
Niagara
0-1
1
2
3
F
Niagara
14
15
12
0
UCLA
25
25
25
3
Junior Reily Buechler recorded a match-best 14 kills to go with six digs.
#12 UCLA Sweeps Niagara in Season Opener
August 26, 2016 | Women's Volleyball
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LOS ANGELES -ย Junior Reily Buechler recorded a match-high 14 kills, hitting .414 with six digs and two block solos, while senior Taylor Formico added 16 digs, as the 12th-ranked Bruins opened their 2016 campaign with a sweep of Niagara on Friday at Gersten Pavilion. Set scores were 25-14, 25-15, 25-12.
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UCLA hit .344 for the match, as senior Jennie Frager posted six kills and just one error in 10 attempts for a .500 hitting percentage. Senior Jordan Anderson added eight kills and sophomore Kyra Rogers had four kills, six digs and three blocks. Junior Ryann Chandler started at setter and had 21 assists and five digs. Sophomore Zana Muno tallied five digs. In their collegiate openers, freshmen Madeleine Gates and Savvy Simo each had four kills, while Kylie Miller notched 16 assists.
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The Bruins never trailed in claiming the opening set. UCLA scored the first three on kills by Frager and Buechler and a Niagara attack error. The closest the Purple Eagles would get for the rest of the set was two at 6-4. From that point, UCLA scored eight of 10 to take a 14-6 advantage, as Buechler recorded two kills during that run and Chandler and Simo served aces.
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The UCLA lead reached double figures for the first time at 19-9 and reached as high as 11. On the Bruins' first set point of the opener, Buechler's team-best sixth kill wrapped up the 25-14 victory. Frager added three kills, while Formico posted seven digs, as the Bruins out-hit the Purple Eagles .231 to .030.
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UCLA also led set two from start to finish, scoring three of the first four points on two Buechler kills and a Niagara service error. The Purple Eagles evened things at four, but two straight blocks, first Buechler by herself and then a combo with Chandler and senior Claire Felix made it 6-4. At 8-7, the Bruins broke it open with six unanswered on a Frager kill, a Frager/Rogers block and four Niagara attack errors.
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The Bruins' lead remained between six and nine throughout the rest of the set, finally getting to double digits on the final point of the second on a solo roof by Buechler to give UCLA the 25-15 win. Buechler had six more kills in the set with no errors in 12 swings. Formico notched six digs and the Bruins out-hit Niagara .344 to .027.
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The Purple Eagles took their first lead by scoring the initial two points of the third, but UCLA came back with the next four on a Niagara service error and successive kills from Rogers, Buechler and Frager. The Bruins didn't trail for the rest of the set. At 8-5, five in a row for UCLA extended the lead to 13-5, as Anderson had two kills during the run.
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The first double-figure lead in the third for the Bruins was at 20-10, which was the end of a 6-1 UCLA run featuring two kills from Anderson and a double block with her and Frager. At 22-12, a pair of Bruin freshmen finished things off, as Simo had a kill, Gates posted a solo roof and Simo spiked another one to wrap up the 25-12 win. Anderson and Simo both had four kills in the third, as the Bruins hit .545 and held the Purple Eagles to a -.095 hitting percentage.
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The Bruins have a doubleheader on Saturday, starting at 9:30 a.m. against Illinois State. UCLA then faces host and 21st-ranked Loyola Marymount at 7 p.m. Both matches will feature free audio, free video and live stats on UCLABruins.com.
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Team Stats
NIA
UCLA
Kills
18
44
Errors
18
12
Attempts
91
93
Hitting %
.000
.344
Points
22.0
56.0
Assists
17
43
Aces
3
4
Blocks
1.0
8.0
Game Leaders
Kills
14
Aces
1
Blocks
2
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
6
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
4
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
L/DS
/ Women's VolleyballMB
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
OH/MB
/ Women's Volleyball
DS/OH
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