People often escape their problems in Waikiki.
But the white sands of Hawaii exposed some of the Bruins’ flaws.
Yet, the squad seemingly shored up these mishaps in its Los Angeles homecoming.
No. 2 UCLA beach volleyball (7-2) secured 4-1 victories against Boise State (4-4) and No. 3 Cal Poly (6-2) on Friday, sweeping No. 11 Long Beach State (4-2) and Pepperdine (2-6) 5-0 on Saturday at Mapes Beach in the Battle for LA tournament. The Bruins’ achieved the tournament sweep after recording a 3-2 record at their season-opening tournament outing in Honolulu from Feb. 19-21.
Coach Jenny Johnson Jordan said her players embraced the challenges at the Outrigger Duke Kahanamoku Beach Classic, particularly with Honolulu’s windy conditions, and improved in the areas that hindered them in the inaugural matches.
“We were exposed in some ways,” Jordan said. “We were able to come back and work on those things, and we’re excited to be back at home to do that. We handled it really well and grew a lot over the last week, and we have more to go.”
Court one pair senior Maggie Boyd and sophomore Sally Perez lost just one set throughout the weekend, boasting straight-set triumphs against Boise State, Long Beach State and Pepperdine. The 2025 MPSF Pair of the Year has dropped only one game this season, falling to Stanford’s Anna Pelloia and Tanon Rosenthal on Feb. 20.
Although the duo helped spearhead the team’s triumph last weekend, its four victories also solidified an individual milestone.
Boyd reached her 100th career collegiate win in her and Perez’s victory against Pepperdine’s Emma Eden and Michaela Cyrani on Saturday.
“Maggie (Boyd) is one of one,” Jordan said. “There are some times when I don’t really have to tell her anything. I trust her implicitly in terms of game planning, and she’s been a great example of somebody who puts in the work.”
But the Bruins’ newcomers also achieved success at the Mapes Beach slate.
Freshman Jesse Dueck jumps to hit the ball at the net. Dueck recorded an undefeated record across four games at the Battle for LA tournament. Her family boasts deep ties to beach volleyball, as the freshman has an older sister who played at Pepperdine along with a cousin who currently competes for Cal Poly. (Leydi Cris Cobo Cordon/Daily Bruin senior staff)
Freshman Jesse Dueck, whose sole outing in Honolulu ended in an unfinished result against USC on the final day of the competition, recorded a 4-0 record alongside junior Ava Williamson and redshirt sophomore Harper Cooper on court four last weekend. Dueck dropped just two sets across the two-day competition, and she helped close out two third-set stanzas against Cal Poly and Long Beach State tandems, respectively. In their one game as a duo, Dueck and Cooper clinched a dominant 21-14, 21-5 victory against Pepperdine’s Ginerva Merlini and Emi Erickson in a match that lasted just 29 minutes.
Dueck joined the Westwood squad as part of its five-player freshmen class. The Santa Cruz local – alongside fellow freshman Mallory LaBreche – is one of two first-year players who have played a match this season.
And the freshman said the Bruins relied on their strong sense of support to harness their Honolulu struggles as motivation.
“We focused on letting the losses not take us down but to motivate us,” Dueck said. “We’re all in this together, and we have a huge army of support. Everybody showed how capable we are, and it showed with the games this weekend. It just motivated us more, never tore us down. … It was uplifting.”
Fellow newcomer Williamson notched her first court three appearance on the competition’s final day, pairing with redshirt junior Ensley Alden to claim a straight-set victory. The Arizona State transfer improved her record to 9-0 after boasting another untarnished weekend performance.
Junior Ava Williamson spikes the ball over the net. The Arizona State transfer has yet to lose a match in her first campaign with the Bruins, boasting a 9-0 record on courts three and four. The Dripping Springs, Texas, local earned an AVCA Second Team All-American selection in 2024. (Leydi Cris Cobo Cordon/Daily Bruin senior staff)
UCLA will return to Mapes Beach from March 6-7 to host the MPSF Midseason Rumble, where it will face conference opponents such as Grand Canyon, No. 18 Washington, Oregon and No. 1 Stanford, a squad that defeated the Bruins 3-2 in Honolulu.
But regardless of where the Bruins travel or who their opponent is, they are focused on using challenges to foster growth.
“It’s about growing and challenging ourselves, whoever we’re playing, bringing the same mindset to every team,” Boyd said. “We want to continue an upward trajectory each year and each tournament so we’re at our best in May.”