Friday, August 25
Baton Rouge, LA
4:30 PM
UCLA
at
LSU
The 2023 UCLA Women's Volleyball Team (photo: Don Liebig/ASUCLA)
Photo by: Don Liebig/ASUCLA
UCLA Begins New Era at Tiger Classic
August 23, 2023 | Women's Volleyball
LOS ANGELESย โ The UCLA women's volleyball team begins its 59th season with two matches in LSU's Tiger Classicย at the Maravich Center in Baton Rouge, La. on Friday, Aug. 25 at 4:30 p.m. (PT) and Saturday, Aug. 26 at 3 p.m. (PT). Both matches can be viewed on SEC Network+. Before heading home, UCLA will play at Northwestern State in Natchitoches, La. on Monday, Aug. 28 at 10:30 a.m. (PT) on ESPN+.
UCLA (0-0) at LSU (0-0)
Date: Friday, Aug. 25, 2023 - 4:30 p.m. (PT)
Location: Baton Rouge, La. (Maravich Center)
Television: SEC Network+
Talent: Lyn Rollins (PxP), Fran Flory (analysis)
Live Stats: uclalivestats.com
UCLA (0-0) at LSU (0-0)
Date: Saturday, Aug. 26, 2023 - 3 p.m. (PT)
Location: Baton Rouge, La. (Maravich Center)
Television: SEC Network+
Talent: Lyn Rollins (PxP), Fran Flory (analysis)
Live Stats: uclalivestats.com
UCLA (0-0) at Northwestern State (0-0)
Date: Monday, Aug. 28, 2023 - 10:30ย a.m. (PT)
Location: Natchitoches, La. (Prather Coliseum)
Television: ESPN+
Talent: Patrick Netherton
Live Stats: nsudemons.con/sidearmstats/wvball
ย
A New Era in Westwood
The Bruins start a new era under first-year head coach Alfee Reft, who was hired in December 2022 as the fourth coach in program history. Reft came to UCLA after leading San Diego to its first-ever National Semifinal appearance in the NCAA Tournament in his third year as associate head coach. The Oxnard, Calif. native also brings Big Ten Conference experience to UCLA after serving as an assistant at the University of Illinois from 2018-19 and at the University of Minnesota from 2010-12. He accumulated a 68-32 conference record across both stints and reached the Final Four with the Fighting Illini in the 2018 NCAA Tournament.
ย
UCLA, Reft in Season Openers
The Bruins are 49-4 all-time in season-opening matches dating back to 1970-71 when UCLA's official records begin. Two of those four season-opening losses have come within the last four seasons (2022, 2019). Last year, UCLA fell at Utah State after dropping the first two of four sets in extra points. Reft is 6-2 in his previous eight seasons as an assistant in season-opening contests. Those two losses were to No. 2 USC in 2011 when Reft was at Minnesota and to No. 1 Texas in Fall 2021 when he was at San Diego.
ย
UCLA Picked Fifth
The Bruins were picked to finish fifth in the annual Pac-12 Preseason Coaches Poll, it was announced on Monday. UCLA is coming off a seventh-place finish in the Pac-12 a year ago with a 10-10 conference record. The Bruins' notable 2022 wins included a five-set comeback at RV Hawai'i in the Outrigger Volleyball Challenge on Sept. 4 and their lone victory over a ranked foe at Washington State on Nov. 22.
ย
What's New, Bru?
Reft welcomes a group of seven newcomers to his first-year squad. Joining the Bruins are transfers Desiree Becker (MB, Northwestern), Carly Hendrickson (OH, Florida) and Joy Umeh (OH, UC Irvine) and freshmen Brooklyn Briscoe (MB), Sydney Breon (DS/L), Ashley Mullen (S) and Kat Lutz (DS/L). Becker is expected to contribute immediately to the UCLA lineup as a starting middle blocker alongside Anna Dodson. The 6-foot, 2-inch Becker comes to Westwood following her best season yet at Northwestern where she was the leading blocker on a Wildcats squad that finished with an 18-14 record for their highest win total since 2010. Becker finished the season with a team-high 118 blocks and ranked fifth with 177 kills over 110 sets on the season.
ย
Dodson: Preseason All-Pac-12
Redshirt senior middle blocker Anna Dodson was named to the Preseason All-Pac-12 Team for the first time in her career in 2023. Last season, Dodson was selected to the All-Pac-12 Team and AVCA Pacific South All-Region Honorable Mention after leading UCLA with a .330 hitting percentage on her 259 kills. Dodson achieved double-digit kills in 13 matches and ranked second on the team with 2.54 kills per set in her 27 starts and 102 sets played. She is UCLA's second-highest returning point scorer (259) behind outside hitter Iman Ndiaye.
ย
Dodson the Defender
Defensively, Dodson has led the Bruins in blocks in each of the last two seasons with 109 in her Fall 2021 campaign and 77 in 2022. The last Bruin to lead the team in blocks in three consecutive years was Zoë Nightingale who paced UCLA across the 2012-14 seasons. The Fort Collins, Colo. native enters her fourth season in Westwood averaging 0.90 blocks per set across her career.
ย
Ndiaye of the Tiger
UCLA's top returning attacker is senior outside/opposite Iman Ndiaye who ranked second on the team with 269 kills and third with 307.0 total points. Ndiaye reached double-digit kills on 14 occasions in 2022, including a career-best performance with 22 kills at a .421 clip (22-6-38) versus Colorado on Oct. 2. She is the only active UCLA player with a 20-kill match in their career. She is also the only active UCLA player to have a 10-block match in their career. The Plano West High School product (Dallas) was an All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention recipient last season. She was named to the All-Pac-12 First Team and All-Freshman Team in Spring 2021.
ย
High School All-American Ashley Mullen
The Bruins' most highly-touted incoming freshman is setter Ashley Mullen from Kansas City, Mo. (Liberty HS). Mullen was an AVCA First Team High School All-American her senior year and was selected as an UnderArmour All-American to compete in the annual All-American game. Mullen was ranked as the No. 4 setter in the nation and 26th overall recruit by PrepVolleyball in 2022. One of 25 nominees for All-USA TODAY Girls Volleyball Player of the Year, Mullen amassed 3,457 career assists in high school, including 1,124 as a senior (10.10 AST/S). She is currently in a position battle with senior Audrey Pak for the starting setter spot.
ย
Notable Position Changes
Two returning players have made moves to different positions this season. Sophomore Mokihana Tufono has switched from setter to libero and senior Kate Lane has moved from setter to opposite hitter. Tufono is expected to hold down the starting libero spot this season with junior Peyton Dueck operating as a backup in addition to her defensive specialist responsibilities. Last year, Tufono tied the UCLA single-match record for service aces with eight at No. 12 Oregon in the first start of her career on Nov. 18.ย She also recorded the first double-double of her career in that match with 24 assists and 16 digs (two aces shy of UCLA's first triple double since 1996).
ย
Dodson Selected to USAV Collegiate Team
Two-time All-Pac-12 middle blocker Anna Dodson received national attention this offseason when she was named to the USA Volleyball 2023 Collegiate Women's National Team (CNT). From June 18-24 in Anaheim, Calif., Dodson trained alongside the Women's National Team Olympic Champions as the prepared for the Volleyball Nations League.
ย
Headed to the Boot
UCLA will play in Louisiana for the second time in program history this weekend, last competing in the state 40 years ago in September 1983 at LSU's Jambalaya Jamboree.
UCLA-LSU Series History: UCLA is an undefeated 7-0 all-time versus LSU dating back to 1983. This will mark the first meetings between the two squads since 2008. The Bruins are 1-0 at LSU and 3-0 in Baton Rouge, including their neutral-site victories in 1983.
UCLA-Northwestern State Series History: This weekend will mark the first contest between UCLA and Northwestern State.
ย
Glad for Grads
Two Bruins on this year's 2023 roster have earned undergraduate degrees. In Spring 2023, Anna Dodson added two bachelor's degrees to her résumé in sociology and gender studies. She now is working toward her master's degree in John Wooden's Transformative Coaching and Leadership (education major). Transfer Desiree Becker earned her Bachelor of Arts in history from Northwestern in 2023. She is now pursuing a master's degree in legal studies with the career objective of becoming an entertainment lawyer.
ย
Alfee & Team USA
Head coach Alfee Reft also serves as a seasonal assistant for the USA Women's Volleyball National Team under legendary Bruin and UCLA Athletic Hall of Famer Karch Kiraly. In total, Reft has spent 12 years as both a player and coach on the U.S. Men's and Women's National Teams. As a result of his Team USA responsibilities, Reft will miss seven matches this season: at Northwestern State (Aug. 28), vs. Indiana (Sept. 1), at Long Beach State (Sept. 2), at Oklahoma (Sept. 15 and 16), vs. USC (Sept. 20) and vs. Oregon (Sept. 24).
Alfee's Official Statement:ย "As our team gears up for a strong start to the season, I'd like to share that I will be missing seven matches so that I can fulfill my pre-existing coaching commitments with Team USA at the NORCECA Continental Championships and Paris 2024 Olympic Qualifier. My heart will be with our Bruin team while away and I have complete confidence in my entire staff (associate head coach Jen Malcom and assistant coaches Amir Lugo-Rodriguez and Noah Casaquit) to carry out the vision and direction our program is moving in during this very exciting period of our season."
ย
Big Ten Bound in 2024
UCLA Athletics announced its decision to join the Big Ten Conference on June 30, 2022. This move will go into effect at the start of the 2024-25 season. In doing so, the Bruins will be joining the preeminent volleyball conference in the country with five of the last 10 NCAA Women's Volleyball Champions coming from the Big Ten. Joining UCLA in this move from the Pac-12 Conference are USC, Washington and Oregon. UCLA and USC have combined for seven NCAA Women's Volleyball Championships. UCLA won 10 conference championships while in the Pac-12, all coming under Hall of Fame Coach Andy Banachowski. Overall, the Bruins have played in 38 NCAA Women's Volleyball Tournaments which ranks fourth among all programs behind only Penn State, Stanford and Nebraska. In addition, UCLA has advanced to the NCAA Final Four 12 times and has posted a record of 94-35 in the NCAA Tournament.
ย
UCLA (0-0) at LSU (0-0)
Date: Friday, Aug. 25, 2023 - 4:30 p.m. (PT)
Location: Baton Rouge, La. (Maravich Center)
Television: SEC Network+
Talent: Lyn Rollins (PxP), Fran Flory (analysis)
Live Stats: uclalivestats.com
UCLA (0-0) at LSU (0-0)
Date: Saturday, Aug. 26, 2023 - 3 p.m. (PT)
Location: Baton Rouge, La. (Maravich Center)
Television: SEC Network+
Talent: Lyn Rollins (PxP), Fran Flory (analysis)
Live Stats: uclalivestats.com
UCLA (0-0) at Northwestern State (0-0)
Date: Monday, Aug. 28, 2023 - 10:30ย a.m. (PT)
Location: Natchitoches, La. (Prather Coliseum)
Television: ESPN+
Talent: Patrick Netherton
Live Stats: nsudemons.con/sidearmstats/wvball
ย
A New Era in Westwood
The Bruins start a new era under first-year head coach Alfee Reft, who was hired in December 2022 as the fourth coach in program history. Reft came to UCLA after leading San Diego to its first-ever National Semifinal appearance in the NCAA Tournament in his third year as associate head coach. The Oxnard, Calif. native also brings Big Ten Conference experience to UCLA after serving as an assistant at the University of Illinois from 2018-19 and at the University of Minnesota from 2010-12. He accumulated a 68-32 conference record across both stints and reached the Final Four with the Fighting Illini in the 2018 NCAA Tournament.
ย
UCLA, Reft in Season Openers
The Bruins are 49-4 all-time in season-opening matches dating back to 1970-71 when UCLA's official records begin. Two of those four season-opening losses have come within the last four seasons (2022, 2019). Last year, UCLA fell at Utah State after dropping the first two of four sets in extra points. Reft is 6-2 in his previous eight seasons as an assistant in season-opening contests. Those two losses were to No. 2 USC in 2011 when Reft was at Minnesota and to No. 1 Texas in Fall 2021 when he was at San Diego.
ย
UCLA Picked Fifth
The Bruins were picked to finish fifth in the annual Pac-12 Preseason Coaches Poll, it was announced on Monday. UCLA is coming off a seventh-place finish in the Pac-12 a year ago with a 10-10 conference record. The Bruins' notable 2022 wins included a five-set comeback at RV Hawai'i in the Outrigger Volleyball Challenge on Sept. 4 and their lone victory over a ranked foe at Washington State on Nov. 22.
ย
What's New, Bru?
Reft welcomes a group of seven newcomers to his first-year squad. Joining the Bruins are transfers Desiree Becker (MB, Northwestern), Carly Hendrickson (OH, Florida) and Joy Umeh (OH, UC Irvine) and freshmen Brooklyn Briscoe (MB), Sydney Breon (DS/L), Ashley Mullen (S) and Kat Lutz (DS/L). Becker is expected to contribute immediately to the UCLA lineup as a starting middle blocker alongside Anna Dodson. The 6-foot, 2-inch Becker comes to Westwood following her best season yet at Northwestern where she was the leading blocker on a Wildcats squad that finished with an 18-14 record for their highest win total since 2010. Becker finished the season with a team-high 118 blocks and ranked fifth with 177 kills over 110 sets on the season.
ย
Dodson: Preseason All-Pac-12
Redshirt senior middle blocker Anna Dodson was named to the Preseason All-Pac-12 Team for the first time in her career in 2023. Last season, Dodson was selected to the All-Pac-12 Team and AVCA Pacific South All-Region Honorable Mention after leading UCLA with a .330 hitting percentage on her 259 kills. Dodson achieved double-digit kills in 13 matches and ranked second on the team with 2.54 kills per set in her 27 starts and 102 sets played. She is UCLA's second-highest returning point scorer (259) behind outside hitter Iman Ndiaye.
ย
Dodson the Defender
Defensively, Dodson has led the Bruins in blocks in each of the last two seasons with 109 in her Fall 2021 campaign and 77 in 2022. The last Bruin to lead the team in blocks in three consecutive years was Zoë Nightingale who paced UCLA across the 2012-14 seasons. The Fort Collins, Colo. native enters her fourth season in Westwood averaging 0.90 blocks per set across her career.
ย
Ndiaye of the Tiger
UCLA's top returning attacker is senior outside/opposite Iman Ndiaye who ranked second on the team with 269 kills and third with 307.0 total points. Ndiaye reached double-digit kills on 14 occasions in 2022, including a career-best performance with 22 kills at a .421 clip (22-6-38) versus Colorado on Oct. 2. She is the only active UCLA player with a 20-kill match in their career. She is also the only active UCLA player to have a 10-block match in their career. The Plano West High School product (Dallas) was an All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention recipient last season. She was named to the All-Pac-12 First Team and All-Freshman Team in Spring 2021.
ย
High School All-American Ashley Mullen
The Bruins' most highly-touted incoming freshman is setter Ashley Mullen from Kansas City, Mo. (Liberty HS). Mullen was an AVCA First Team High School All-American her senior year and was selected as an UnderArmour All-American to compete in the annual All-American game. Mullen was ranked as the No. 4 setter in the nation and 26th overall recruit by PrepVolleyball in 2022. One of 25 nominees for All-USA TODAY Girls Volleyball Player of the Year, Mullen amassed 3,457 career assists in high school, including 1,124 as a senior (10.10 AST/S). She is currently in a position battle with senior Audrey Pak for the starting setter spot.
ย
Notable Position Changes
Two returning players have made moves to different positions this season. Sophomore Mokihana Tufono has switched from setter to libero and senior Kate Lane has moved from setter to opposite hitter. Tufono is expected to hold down the starting libero spot this season with junior Peyton Dueck operating as a backup in addition to her defensive specialist responsibilities. Last year, Tufono tied the UCLA single-match record for service aces with eight at No. 12 Oregon in the first start of her career on Nov. 18.ย She also recorded the first double-double of her career in that match with 24 assists and 16 digs (two aces shy of UCLA's first triple double since 1996).
ย
Dodson Selected to USAV Collegiate Team
Two-time All-Pac-12 middle blocker Anna Dodson received national attention this offseason when she was named to the USA Volleyball 2023 Collegiate Women's National Team (CNT). From June 18-24 in Anaheim, Calif., Dodson trained alongside the Women's National Team Olympic Champions as the prepared for the Volleyball Nations League.
ย
Headed to the Boot
UCLA will play in Louisiana for the second time in program history this weekend, last competing in the state 40 years ago in September 1983 at LSU's Jambalaya Jamboree.
UCLA-LSU Series History: UCLA is an undefeated 7-0 all-time versus LSU dating back to 1983. This will mark the first meetings between the two squads since 2008. The Bruins are 1-0 at LSU and 3-0 in Baton Rouge, including their neutral-site victories in 1983.
UCLA-Northwestern State Series History: This weekend will mark the first contest between UCLA and Northwestern State.
ย
Glad for Grads
Two Bruins on this year's 2023 roster have earned undergraduate degrees. In Spring 2023, Anna Dodson added two bachelor's degrees to her résumé in sociology and gender studies. She now is working toward her master's degree in John Wooden's Transformative Coaching and Leadership (education major). Transfer Desiree Becker earned her Bachelor of Arts in history from Northwestern in 2023. She is now pursuing a master's degree in legal studies with the career objective of becoming an entertainment lawyer.
ย
Alfee & Team USA
Head coach Alfee Reft also serves as a seasonal assistant for the USA Women's Volleyball National Team under legendary Bruin and UCLA Athletic Hall of Famer Karch Kiraly. In total, Reft has spent 12 years as both a player and coach on the U.S. Men's and Women's National Teams. As a result of his Team USA responsibilities, Reft will miss seven matches this season: at Northwestern State (Aug. 28), vs. Indiana (Sept. 1), at Long Beach State (Sept. 2), at Oklahoma (Sept. 15 and 16), vs. USC (Sept. 20) and vs. Oregon (Sept. 24).
Alfee's Official Statement:ย "As our team gears up for a strong start to the season, I'd like to share that I will be missing seven matches so that I can fulfill my pre-existing coaching commitments with Team USA at the NORCECA Continental Championships and Paris 2024 Olympic Qualifier. My heart will be with our Bruin team while away and I have complete confidence in my entire staff (associate head coach Jen Malcom and assistant coaches Amir Lugo-Rodriguez and Noah Casaquit) to carry out the vision and direction our program is moving in during this very exciting period of our season."
ย
Big Ten Bound in 2024
UCLA Athletics announced its decision to join the Big Ten Conference on June 30, 2022. This move will go into effect at the start of the 2024-25 season. In doing so, the Bruins will be joining the preeminent volleyball conference in the country with five of the last 10 NCAA Women's Volleyball Champions coming from the Big Ten. Joining UCLA in this move from the Pac-12 Conference are USC, Washington and Oregon. UCLA and USC have combined for seven NCAA Women's Volleyball Championships. UCLA won 10 conference championships while in the Pac-12, all coming under Hall of Fame Coach Andy Banachowski. Overall, the Bruins have played in 38 NCAA Women's Volleyball Tournaments which ranks fourth among all programs behind only Penn State, Stanford and Nebraska. In addition, UCLA has advanced to the NCAA Final Four 12 times and has posted a record of 94-35 in the NCAA Tournament.
ย
Players Mentioned
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
DS/L
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
DS/L
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
OH/OPP
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
L
/ Women's Volleyball
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