Volleyball upsets UCLA to earn program’s first Sweet 16 appearance

Saturday, Baylor volleyball upset traditional powerhouse UCLA in the second round of the NCAA Tournament to advance to the Sweet 16 for the first time in program history. (Video highlights below courtesy of Baylor Athletics’ Facebook page.)

How big a deal is this? Well, aside from marking the Bears’ best postseason performance ever, the win also came on UCLA’s court, where the Bruins had lost just twice this season. In fact, UCLA had not lost a match at home in the first or second round of the NCAA Tournament since the field expanded to 64 teams in 1998 (15-0 until Saturday’s loss).

UCLA was the No. 8 seed in this year’s NCAA Tournament and ranked ninth in the latest AVCA poll, giving Baylor the program’s first-ever win over a top-10 team — and on the road, at that. It also was just the second time in the last 10 years that the Bruins did not advance to at least the Sweet 16.

Head coach Jim Barnes’ Bears now advance to play 9th-seeded Cal on Friday in Gainesville, Fla. The winner of that match will face either No. 16 seed Florida or top-ranked Penn State for the chance to go to the Final Four.

Sic ’em, Baylor volleyball!