Parra’s 33 Kills Power Volleyball Past UCLA, 3-1

Friday, September 13

Fort Worth, Texas

6:30 PM

TCU

5-2,0-0Big 12

UCLA

5-2,0-0Big Ten

UCLA

TCU

Parra’s 33 Kills Power Volleyball Past UCLA, 3-1

9/13/2024 11:17:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

Frogs finish Fight in the Fort with a perfect 3-0 record

FORT WORTH – Nearly tying her own program record for kills in a four-set match, senior Melanie Parra turned in another offensive masterpiece, finishing with 33 kills on a .373 clip to help No. 25 TCU volleyball take care of business against UCLA 3-1 on Friday night in Schollmaier Arena.

Playing in front of their home crowd on Family Weekend, the Horned Frogs (5-2, 0-0 Big 12) dominated UCLA (5-2, 0-0 Big Ten) to win the Fight in the Fort with a perfect 3-0 record in the round-robin tournament. On the offensive side, the reigning AVCA National Player of the Week was too much for the Bruins to handle. Parra was nearly unstoppable, racking up her second 30-plus kill match in the last seven days and the fourth of her career. She was joined in double figures by Jalyn Gibson and Becca Kelley, who came alive in the final set to help TCU pull away.

Setter Lily Nicholson had a strong outing, dishing out 51 assists to her offense and leading the team to a strong .291 hitting percentage against a solid UCLA squad. On the other end, libero Cecily Bramschreiber led the way with 16 digs, followed by freshman Alice Volpe, who tied her career-high with 14.

It was no surprise that TCU turned to Parra right out of the gate for its first two kills of the match. Through the first half of set one, both teams were locked up at 12-12 before the Frogs sparked an 8-1 scoring run. Sarah Sylvester was a difference-maker over that stretch, tallying a pair of kills and a massive block. Forced to burn both timeouts, UCLA stopped the bleeding and attempted to chip away at the seven-point TCU lead, but Parra helped the Frogs close it out with the final three kills of the opening set, 25-19.

In the second, the Bruins kept things much closer. Tied at 22 in crunch time, an attack error gave TCU a chance to make a run and take the set, but UCLA rattled off three unanswered points to battle back and even the match at 1-1.

With both teams tied at a set apiece, it was a brand-new game in the third. The Frogs and Bruins traded the lead back and forth nine times and saw 18 ties in the set alone. TCU ran the offense through Parra as she lit up the scoreboard with 12 kills in the set on 24 swings for a blistering .458 clip, giving her 29 through just three sets of play. Trailing 21-23, head coach Jason Williams called his team in for a reset that resulted in a mini 3-0 run to retake the lead and give the Frogs set point.

UCLA tied the match up at 24, but not before Parra quickly put her team back in front. It seemed just as though TCU had won the set on a Bruin attacking error, but upon replay review, the call on the court was overturned, once again tying the set up. This time, it was UCLA on the attack with set point looming, but the Frogs looked unphased, rattling off three straight points to take the third 28-26.

All the momentum in Schollmaier was behind the Frogs after a gritty set three win. Parra picked up kill number 30 in the first few points of the fourth before TCU closed it out behind a strong six kills from Kelley. The Rockwall, Texas, native stepped up to help squash any hope of a UCLA comeback, slamming down the final two points of the match.

No. 25 TCU is back in action on Tuesday, Sept. 17, against UT Arlington. First serve is set for 6:30 p.m. CT in Schollmaier Arena.

For all the latest TCU volleyball news, follow the Frogs on X at @TCUVolleyball, on Instagram at @tcuvolleyball and on Facebook at TCU Volleyball.