Friday, March 31
Phoenix, AZ
6:00 PM
UCLA
22-2,7-0MPSF
3
at
1
Grand Canyon
21-3,6-3MPSF
1
2
3
4
F
UCLA
29
27
25
25
3
Grand Canyon
31
25
20
13
1
Ethan Champlin led UCLA with a season-high 15 kills.
Photo by: Don Liebig/ASUCLA
MVB Aces 'Lopes in Four Sets
March 31, 2023 | Men's Volleyball
The No. 2 UCLA men's volleyball team dropped its first set of the season in Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) play on Friday night but rallied to take out host Grand Canyon by winning the next three to up its record to 22-2 overall and 7-0 in league play. Scores of the match were 29-31, 27-25, 25-20, 25-13. The same two teams will meet again on Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m.
The Bruins hit over the .400 mark in a match for the 13th time this season after swinging at a .439 clip against the No. 5-ranked Antelopes, now 21-3 overall and 6-3 in the MPSF. Ethan Champlin and Merrick McHenry provided the firepower for the Bruins with 15 and 14 kills, respectively. It marked a season-high total for Champlin. Ido David added 12 kills and three aces for the Bruins who out aced GCU 7 to 1 on the night. McHenry's five blocks, including a career-high tying three solos, paced UCLA and helped secure an 11.0 to 2.0 edge in total blocks. Troy Gooch and Alex Knight combined to handle 42 GCU serves without reception error.
In set one, UCLA broke open a back-and-forth beginning by using an Andrew Rowan ace and a McHenry kill to go up 9-7. David's ace grew the margin to 13-10. After GCU came back to even the score at 15-all, the Bruins tallied the next four points, three on plays by McHenry, for a 19-15 advantage. Champlin's kill pushed UCLA in front 20-17. The 'Lopes rallied with four straight points of their own on kills to go ahead 22-23. UCLA was forced to fight off five set points to stay alive before GCU put two kills together for a 29-31 win. Both teams hit over .400 in the frame.
UCLA separated first in set two by breaking an 9-all tie on kills by David and Guy Genis. Knight's ace and a GCU error put UCLA up 14-10. The Antelopes took advantage of a couple of Bruin errors to rattle off five straight points and move into the lead at 15-16. A Cole Ketrzynski block put the Bruins back in front 17-16. Zach Rama's kill leveled the score at 20-each. With the score tied at 21-all, UCLA capitalized on a GCU error and a David kill for a 23-21 lead. Grand Canyon came back to level the score at 24-all. Genis' kill put UCLA up 25-24 but a service error tied the score at 25. McHenry's swing was followed up by a Champlin kill for a 27-25 win.
The Bruins opened up an 8-6 lead in set three after a kill by Genis. Knight's spike made it 12-9. Grand Canyon closed to 15-13 but the Bruins tallied the next three points, two on a block and then a kill by McHenry. Another Knight kill put UCLA up 20-15. David's kill lifted UCLA into a 23-17 lead. A pair of Champlin swings closed out the set at 25-20.
Rowan began set four with an ace and the Bruins never let up on the way to taking a 5-1 lead. A pair of David kills and a couple of David aces expanded the margin to 11-3. Two more David spikes made it 16-9. UCLA led 20-10 after another David smash. Aryton Garcia-Jurado's kill left the Bruins in front 22-11. David's seventh kill of the frame pushed UCLA into a 23-12 advantage. A block by McHenry / Garcia-Jurado gave UCLA set point at 24-13. GCU's error ended the match at 25-13.
The Bruins hit over the .400 mark in a match for the 13th time this season after swinging at a .439 clip against the No. 5-ranked Antelopes, now 21-3 overall and 6-3 in the MPSF. Ethan Champlin and Merrick McHenry provided the firepower for the Bruins with 15 and 14 kills, respectively. It marked a season-high total for Champlin. Ido David added 12 kills and three aces for the Bruins who out aced GCU 7 to 1 on the night. McHenry's five blocks, including a career-high tying three solos, paced UCLA and helped secure an 11.0 to 2.0 edge in total blocks. Troy Gooch and Alex Knight combined to handle 42 GCU serves without reception error.
In set one, UCLA broke open a back-and-forth beginning by using an Andrew Rowan ace and a McHenry kill to go up 9-7. David's ace grew the margin to 13-10. After GCU came back to even the score at 15-all, the Bruins tallied the next four points, three on plays by McHenry, for a 19-15 advantage. Champlin's kill pushed UCLA in front 20-17. The 'Lopes rallied with four straight points of their own on kills to go ahead 22-23. UCLA was forced to fight off five set points to stay alive before GCU put two kills together for a 29-31 win. Both teams hit over .400 in the frame.
UCLA separated first in set two by breaking an 9-all tie on kills by David and Guy Genis. Knight's ace and a GCU error put UCLA up 14-10. The Antelopes took advantage of a couple of Bruin errors to rattle off five straight points and move into the lead at 15-16. A Cole Ketrzynski block put the Bruins back in front 17-16. Zach Rama's kill leveled the score at 20-each. With the score tied at 21-all, UCLA capitalized on a GCU error and a David kill for a 23-21 lead. Grand Canyon came back to level the score at 24-all. Genis' kill put UCLA up 25-24 but a service error tied the score at 25. McHenry's swing was followed up by a Champlin kill for a 27-25 win.
The Bruins opened up an 8-6 lead in set three after a kill by Genis. Knight's spike made it 12-9. Grand Canyon closed to 15-13 but the Bruins tallied the next three points, two on a block and then a kill by McHenry. Another Knight kill put UCLA up 20-15. David's kill lifted UCLA into a 23-17 lead. A pair of Champlin swings closed out the set at 25-20.
Rowan began set four with an ace and the Bruins never let up on the way to taking a 5-1 lead. A pair of David kills and a couple of David aces expanded the margin to 11-3. Two more David spikes made it 16-9. UCLA led 20-10 after another David smash. Aryton Garcia-Jurado's kill left the Bruins in front 22-11. David's seventh kill of the frame pushed UCLA into a 23-12 advantage. A block by McHenry / Garcia-Jurado gave UCLA set point at 24-13. GCU's error ended the match at 25-13.
Team Stats
UCLA
GCU
Kills
59
56
Errors
9
24
Attempts
114
125
Hitting %
.439
.256
Points
77
59
Assists
54
51
Aces
7
1
Blocks
11
2
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
15
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
14
Aces
1
Blocks
5
Kills
7
Aces
1
Blocks
1
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Men's Volleyball
L
/ Men's Volleyball
OH/Opp
/ Men's VolleyballOH
/ Men's VolleyballMB
/ Men's Volleyball
S
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