Bruins beat Florida State to earn ticket for final showdown – 2011 NCAA Tournament
The 9th-seeded Lady Bruins of University of California (UCLA) defeated Florida State in the national semi-final match on Thursday, December 15. They played an impressive game and earned victory in straight sets of 25-16, 25-17, and 25-21.
Success in the crucial match enabled UCLA to reserve a berth at the final of 2011 NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1994. Bruins improved to 29-6, while Florida State ended up with 28-7 on the year. The action packed thriller took place at Alamodome
in San Antonio, Texas. In the next run, the Bruins will meet 3rd-seeded Fighting Illini of Illinois in the championship final at the weekend.
Junior Rachael Kidder emerged as the driving force behind the success of UCLA in the match. She collected 21 kills and 12 digs, in order to lead her team to a win. It marked her eight double-double of the season. Sophomore Kelly Reeves notched seven kills,
10 digs and three aces. Likewise, senior Lauren Van Orden did an amazing job of helping her team-mates and gave 43 assists in the match. She was also credited with eight digs, while senior Lainey Gera produced 17 digs. On the whole, it was a team effort and
each player from UCLA played an active role in winning the match.
The Bruins jumped out of gate to build an early lead of 6-2, which forced Florida State to call the first timeout. As the play resumed after break, the Seminoles hit back strongly and rallied a 4-2 run. However, UCLA kept the operations of game well under
hand and did not allow FSU to come up. The Seminoles trailed behind throughout the set and eventually gave up at 16-25. Kidder and Reeves of UCLA were the most highlighted players of first frame.
After dropping the opening set, the Seminoles sat down and discussed the prospects of second set. They regrouped and overcame their flaws in the next set. With better combination of attack and defence, they managed to score well but still lagged behind the
resilient rival. Kidder and Van Orden of UCLA kept the momentum going and helped the Bruins to secure second set, 25-17. Kidder paced in second set with 10 kills, while Tabi Love contributed three kills.
UCLA was in a commanding position after winning the first two sets. They seemed pretty much sure about victory in straight sets. Nonetheless, the Seminoles wanted to make a difference. They played to their full potential in third set as it was their only
chance to save the match. It resulted in long rallies, while the scoreboard showed nine ties and five lead changes.
It really turned into a heated competition as both sides displayed good action on the net. The score shifted up with close gap but UCLA turned the game in its favour through the latter half of third set. They added some solid points with cross court hits
and closed off the third set (25-21). The Bruins clinched success in the semi-final and settled for the final match.
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