Anna 
The UCLA men’s volleyball team suffered a 3-0 loss to No. 1-ranked Long Beach State on Wednesday night at Pauley Pavilion, dropping their overall record to 6-3 for the season.
Despite the defeat, Cooper Robinson was a standout performer, leading the Bruins with 17.5 points and 16 kills, hitting an impressive .542 for the match. Andrew Rowan contributed 31 assists and led UCLA in digs with six. Cameron Thorne also added two blocks, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the Beach’s dominance.
The match saw both teams trading points early in the opening set, with neither side able to gain more than a two-point advantage. The Bruins managed to level the score at 12-12, following a service error from Long Beach. UCLA briefly took the lead at 17-15 with two big blocks, one from Thorne, but Long Beach rallied to take the set 25-23. Robinson led the way with eight kills in the first set.
In the second set, Long Beach established an early 7-2 lead, though UCLA fought back, with Sean McQuiggan marking his return from injury by scoring a crucial kill at 11-8. However, a pair of aces by Long Beach extended their lead to 16-11, and despite another kill from Robinson to make it 24-19, the Beach closed out the set 25-19, taking a 2-0 lead into the third.
UCLA came out strong in the third set, gaining a 5-3 lead thanks to a Robinson ace. But Long Beach responded, eventually tying the score at 18-18, and then went on a 3-0 scoring run to take a 21-19 advantage. McQuiggan’s third kill of the match brought UCLA back to within one point at 21-20, but the Bruins could not close the gap. Long Beach sealed the match with a 25-23 win in the third set.
Next up, UCLA will look to bounce back when they travel to Irvine, California, to face UC Irvine on Wednesday, February 19. First serve is set for 6 p.m. from the Bren Events Center.
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