#10-Seed Bruins Face #7 UNC in Regional Semis

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Friday, Dec. 9
NCAA Regional Semifinals
#15-seed Missouri at #2-seed Minnesota
5:15 p.m. PT/7:15 p.m. CT
Live Video
Live Stats

#10-seed UCLA vs. #7-seed North Carolina
7:45 p.m. PT/9:45 p.m. CT
TV: ESPNU
Live Stats

Saturday, Dec. 10
NCAA Regional Final
Missouri/Minnesota Winner vs. UCLA/North Carolina Winner
7 p.m. PT/9 p.m. CT
TV: ESPNU
Live Stats

All Matches at The Sports Pavilion in Minneapolis, Minn.

10TH-SEEDED BRUINS HEAD TO MINNESOTA FOR REGIONALS
The #10 Bruins travel to Minneapolis this weekend, facing #7-seed North Carolina in the Regional Semifinals. Friday's match will be at 7:45 p.m. PT/9:45 p.m. CT on ESPNU. The winner of UCLA-UNC will play the winner of #2 Minnesota-#15 Missouri on Saturday in the Regional Final at 7 p.m. PT/9 p.m. CT on ESPNU.

WHAT'S NEXT
The winner of Saturday's Regional Final heads to Columbus, Ohio for the National Semifinals, which will take place on Thursday, Dec. 15. The Minneapolis Regional winner will face the winner of the Madison Regional featuring #3 Wisconsin, #6 Stanford, Florida State and Ohio State. The National Championship will be played on Saturday, Dec. 17 at 6 p.m. on ESPN2.

BRUINS IN THE NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP
UCLA is making its 34th appearance in the NCAA Championship and holds an all-time record of 87-30 (.744). The Bruins are making their third straight trip to the Regional Semifinals. UCLA has lost the last two seasons at Texas (2015) and versus Penn State (2014 - Louisville, Ky.) in the round of 16. The Bruins are making their 27th appearance in the NCAA Regional round and hold an all-time record of 33-14 (.702). On 12 occasions, UCLA has gone 2-0 in Regionals to advance to the National Semifinals (2011, '06, '94, '88-'92, '83-'85, '81).

BRUINS IN THE GOPHER STATE
UCLA has played in the state of Minnesota two previous times (1-3 record). In 2002, the Bruins went 1-2 in a September tournament, sweeping Rhode Island, while getting swept by Minnesota and Northern Iowa. In 1988, UCLA was swept by Texas in the National Semifinals.

BRUINS IN THE POLLS
The Bruins stayed at eighth for the second week in a row in the final regular season AVCA Top 25 Coaches Poll (Nov. 28), announced on Nov. 28. Seven UCLA opponents are in the Top 25 (#7 Washington, #9 Stanford, #12 Hawai'i, #14 San Diego, #19 Oregon, #22 Utah and #25 Washington State), while Arizona (#29) and USC (#32) are receiving votes.

FIVE BRUINS NAMED TO AVCA ALL-REGION TEAMS
Five Bruins were named to the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Pacific South All-Region Teams on Tuesday, as seniors Taylor Formico and Jennie Frager and freshman Torrey Van Winden earned First Team honors, while senior Jordan Anderson and junior Reily Buechler were Honorable Mention

Anderson recorded her fourth straight All-Region award, earning First Team honors in 2015 and 2014 (at West Virginia) and Honorable Mention in 2013 (WVU). Formico notched her second consecutive First Team accolade and her third overall (Honorable Mention in 2012 at UC Santa Barbara). Buechler, Frager and Van Winden all tallied their first All-Region awards.

The five All-Region awards for UCLA are tied for the most in school history with the 1989 squad. The three First Team honors equal last year's total. The Bruins have earned 64 All-Region plaudits and 49 First Team nods.

Formico, the Pac-12 Conference Libero of the Year for the second straight season, leads the Bruins and all league players with 5.07 digs per set (25th in the nation), adding 21 service aces, which is tied for second on the team. Also named All-Pac-12 First Team, Formico has double figures in digs in 31 matches, including at least 20 on 15 occasions. The three-time Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week had a season-best 36 digs against Arizona on Oct. 9. She didn't just chip in with her defense though, as she has produced nine kills, tied a career high with four aces in the NCAA Second Round match versus Baylor (Dec. 3) and recorded the second double-double of her career with 20 digs and 11 assists against Utah on Oct. 29.

Frager, who was named All-Pac-12 First Team, leads the Bruins with 1.14 blocks per set and is second with a .348 hitting percentage, adding 2.19 kills per set and six service aces. She is sixth among Pac-12 players in hitting and seventh in bps. Frager has 14 double-figure kills contests, has hit over .400 on 11 occasions and posted at least five blocks in 12 matches. The senior set career highs this year in kills and blocks, notching 16 kills versus Colorado on Oct. 28, while posting 10 blocks at Loyola Marymount on Aug. 27. She also earned her first Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week award on Aug. 29.

Van Winden was honored on the All-Pac-12 First Team and Pac-12 All-Freshman Team. She is third on the squad with 2.94 kills and 3.42 points per set, adding 10 service aces, a .282 hitting percentage, 1.87 digs per set and 0.68 blocks per set. Van Winden has 15 double-figure kills matches, six double-figure digs contests and three double-doubles. She was recognized with three Pac-12 weekly awards, picking up a pair of Freshman of the Week honors and an Offensive POW plaudit. On three occasions, Van Winden had 19 kills to set a season best, reaching that mark in both matches against Stanford (Oct. 21 and Nov. 12), as well as at Oregon (Oct. 12). She also set a career high with 19 digs in the Bruins' NCAA First Round match against Murray State on Dec. 2.

Anderson, who picked up All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention accolades, is second on the team with 3.12 kills and 3.43 points per set, adding 1.12 digs per set, 0.41 blocks per set and six service aces. Anderson has double figures in kills 22 times, adding three double-doubles. Her season best in kills came versus Colorado on Oct. 28 when she had 18. Anderson's Bruin high in digs of 19 occurred versus Washington State on Sept. 23, while her career best in blocks came at Oregon with a six-roof effort on Oct. 12. Anderson has led UCLA in kills in nine contests.

Buechler, an All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention winner for the third year in a row, leads the team with 3.27 kills and 3.71 points per set, ranking ninth among Pac-12 players in kps. She also ranks tied for second with 21 service aces and third with 2.21 digs per set, adding 0.42 blocks per set. Buechler has 20 double-figure kills matches, 11 double-figure digs contests and eight double-doubles. She has reached the 20-kill mark three times, including a season-best 21 against USC (Sept. 21) and Murray State (Dec. 2). Buechler also produced a career high 15 digs against Pacific (Sept. 1) and Oregon State (Nov. 16).

BACK-TO-BACK LIBERO OF THE YEAR FOR FORMICO
Senior Taylor Formico was named Pac-12 Libero of the Year for the second straight season, as announced on Nov. 28, and was one of five Bruins to earn league honors. Formico, senior Jennie Frager and freshman Torrey Van Winden were each named to the All-Pac-12 First Team, while senior Jordan Anderson and junior Reily Buechler picked up Honorable Mention accolades. Van Winden was also selected to the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team.

Formico picked up her third consecutive All-Pac-12 award after earning Honorable Mention as a sophomore and junior, while Buechler notched her third straight All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention nod. Frager earned her second All-Pac-12 honor after receiving Honorable Mention plaudits a year ago, as did Anderson, who was First Team in 2015.

CLIMBING THE CHARTS
Senior Taylor Formico moved into third place on UCLA's all-time digs list against Colorado on Oct. 28 and now has 1,639 for her Bruin career. She trails only Chrissie Zartman (2,064) and Lainey Gera (2,009). Formico's overall career total is now at 2,431 (792 at UCSB in 2012), which is 21st in NCAA history. She is 45 away from entering the Top 15 ... junior Reily Buechler surpassed the 1,000-kill mark with her first kill of the third set at Arizona State on Nov. 5, becoming the 28th Bruin to reach that plateau. She has 1,113 for her career, ranking 26th in school history ... senior Jordan Anderson's 3.75 kills per set would rank her eighth in Bruin history ... senior Claire Felix's .338 hitting percentage currently ranks sixth in school history.

TEAM NOTES
UCLA started its season at 7-0, its best start since 2006 when it began with 20 consecutive victories. The previous two times the Bruins opened a year with at least six straight wins, they have reached the third weekend of the NCAA Tournament (2006 - National Semifinals; 2011 - National Champions) ... keeping with the 2011 parallel, UCLA swept its season series with Stanford for the first time since that championship campaign ... Oct. 9 against Arizona marked the only time this season that the Bruins lost when holding their opponent under a .200 hitting percentage (18-1 record) ... the Arizona loss was also the only time the Bruins were defeated when winning the hitting battle (26-1) ... UCLA is 15-0 when either leading or tying its opponent in blocks ... the Bruins are 23-1 when winning the third set.

PLAYER NOTES
Senior Jordan Anderson recorded her 22nd double-figure kills match of the season against Murray State in the First Round when she had 12 with a .345 hitting percentage. Anderson has at least nine kills in six of her last seven, posting 2.68 kills per set during that stretch. Her season best in kills came on Oct. 28 when she had 18 versus Colorado ... sophomore Kyra Rogers started five straight matches from Nov. 10-23 and recorded 21 kills, 10 digs and six blocks in 18 sets. She had at least four kills in four of those five contests ... junior Reily Buechler tied a season high with 21 kills versus Murray State and is averaging 4.50 kps over her last three matches. She has reached the 20-kill mark thrice this year, with the other two coming versus USC (21 on Sept. 21 and 20 on Nov. 26). Buechler has at least six digs in eight in a row and an ace in four of her last six ... senior Haley Lawless has started the last three matches and had six kills and five blocks in those contests. She has 33 swings in her last three, which accounts for 45 percent of her attempts on the year ... freshman Torrey Van Winden has at least seven kills in 19 matches in a row, including tying a career high with 19 at Stanford on Nov. 12. She has also collected at least six digs in 12 straight, while adding nine aces in her last 10 matches. Van Winden has hit over .300 in six of eight, while notching at least three blocks in six of eight ... freshman Kylie Miller tallied her fifth double-double of the season against USC when she had 30 assists and 10 digs. She has at least five digs in seven in a row. Miller, who is fourth on the team in aces, has 10 in her last nine contests ... senior Claire Felix is averaging 2.25 kps over her last four. She was error-free in the First Round match versus Murray State, producing 11 kills in 17 attempts for a season-best .647 percentage. Defensively, Felix has eight matches this season with at least five blocks ... senior Jennie Frager has hit over .400 on 11 occasions, posting 10 kills and a .421 percentage in the regular-season finale versus USC. She has 14 double-figure kills contests and at least five blocks in 12 matches. Frager notched six blocks against Murray State ... senior Taylor Formico recorded her 15th match this season with at least 20 digs when she had 26 against Murray State. In the two victories last weekend, Formico served six aces, tying a career best with four versus Baylor. She also added her ninth kill of the season against the Bears ... senior Ryann Chandler has 10 aces in her last six contests, posting three against both Murray State and Oregon (Nov. 18). She has seven matches with at least two aces this season. Defensively, Chandler has at least six digs in 12 in a row, posting a pair of double-doubles last weekend.

BRUINS IN THE NATIONAL AND PAC-12 RANKINGS
Entering the Regional round, UCLA ranks 10th in the nation in digs per set (17.59), 14th in assists per set (13.47), 24th in kills per set (14.19) and 44th in opponent hitting percentage (.173). Individually, senior Taylor Formico is 25th in dps (5.07). Among Pac-12 teams, the Bruins are first in dps, second in opponent hitting and aps and fourth in kps. Formico is first in dps, while senior Jennie Frager is sixth in hitting (.348) and seventh in blocks per set (1.14). Senior Claire Felix is fifth in hitting (.350), senior Ryann Chandler is seventh in aps (7.41) and junior Reily Buechler is ninth in kps (3.27).

SCOUTING THE NORTH CAROLINA TAR HEELS
North Carolina (29-3) improved its winning streak to 10 following a sweep of High Point in the First Round and a four-set triumph versus Coastal Carolina in the Second Round. The Tar Heels, who have no common opponents with the Bruins this season, are hitting .275 as a team, averaging 13.60 kills, 1.17 aces, 14.72 digs and 2.97 blocks per set. Sophomore Taylor Leath (3.13) and freshman Julia Scoles (3.05) are first and second on the team in kps. Senior Abigail Curry (6.75 assists per set) and freshman Mariah Evans (4.03) split the setting duties. Senior Sheila Doyle is tops on the squad with 4.64 dps, while juniors Taylor Fricano (1.35) and Beth Nordhorn (1.06) are each posting at least a block per set. The Bruins have won both matchups against North Carolina, but between the soon-to-be three meetings, there have been gaps of 20 years and 19 seasons. UCLA beat UNC in two sets in the 1977 AIAW National Tournament. Twenty years later, the Bruins claimed a 3-1 decision on Sept. 6, 1997 in Honolulu.

SCOUTING THE MINNESOTA GOLDEN GOPHERS
Minnesota (27-4) ran its winning streak to 12 following sweeps against North Dakota and Hawai'i last weekend. The Golden Gophers have three common opponents with the Bruins, beating San Diego and Hawai'i, while losing to Stanford (UCLA 3-1 versus those teams). Minnesota is hitting .293 as a team, averaging 14.10 kills, 1.13 aces, 14.65 digs and 2.68 blocks per set. Senior Sarah Wilhite is tops on the squad with 4.18 kps, freshman Alexis Hart is second (2.84 kps) and senior Hannah Tapp is third (2.71 kps). Sophomore Samantha Seliger-Swenson quarterbacks the offense and is posting 11.55 assists per set. Junior Dalianliz Rosado is tops on the squad with 4.03 dps, while junior Molly Lohman (1.40), senior Paige Tapp (1.08) and Hannah Tapp (1.04) all block at least one per set. The Bruins are 4-1 all-time against Minnesota, but dropped the only matchup in Minneapolis in three sets (Sept. 6, 2002). Three of UCLA's four victories, including the most recent matchup on Aug. 31, 2003 in Honolulu, have been sweeps.

SCOUTING THE MISSOURI TIGERS
Missouri (27-5) defeated Purdue in four sets (Second Round) and Northern Illinois in three (First Round) last weekend. The Tigers' only common opponent with UCLA was Utah, which beat Missouri in five. Missouri is hitting .279 as a team, averaging 13.73 kills, 1.29 aces, 14.07 digs and 2.58 blocks per set. Junior Melanie Crow leads the team with 4.01 kps, while senior Carly Kan is second at 3.09. Junior Courtney Eckenrode handles the setting duties and is posting 9.81 assists per set. Senior Alexa Ethridge is tops on the squad with 3.75 dps, while sophomore Alyssa Munlyn leads with 1.26 bps. UCLA and Missouri have never met.

FORMICO NAMED PAC-12 DEFENSIVE POW FOR THIRD TIME
Senior Taylor Formico was named Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week for the third time this season, as announced by the conference on Nov. 21.

The Bruins have won seven Pac-12 weekly honors this season, with Formico also earning DPOW accolades on Oct. 17 and 31. Freshman Torrey Van Winden is a three-time award winner, having claimed Pac-12 Freshman of the Week on Oct. 24 and Nov. 14, as well as Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 17. Senior Jennie Frager was the conference's Offensive POW on Aug. 29. Since 2011, when the conference started handing out Offensive, Defensive and Freshman of the Week honors, UCLA has won 11 Offensive, eight Defensive and six Freshman awards (25 total). The Bruins have 86 all-time Pac-12 weekly awards.

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