Just a day after losing its second consecutive five-set bout Friday at No. 17 USC, the No. 4 Washington volleyball team found itself in another huge Pac-10 matchup Saturday at No. 6 UCLA.

But with their backs against the wall and first place in the Pac-10 at stake, the women stepped up big time. Behind a match-high 18 kills from junior Kindra Carlson and 40 assists from junior Jenna Hagglund, the Huskies came up with a huge 3-0 sweep of the Bruins to maintain their conference lead.

“The weekend started out rough,” head coach Jim McLaughlin said via telephone. “But it ended well.”

After a nerve-racking 3-2 loss to USC the day before, the UW needed to respond in a big way. It buckled down on defense, as the Huskies (21-4, 11-4 Pac-10) held the Bruins (20-7, 10-4) to a season-low .101 hitting percentage. Senior Tamari Miyashiro had a game-high 23 digs, while Hagglund added a season-high 18 digs.

The last time UCLA lost was Oct. 16 against the UW in Seattle, as the Huskies snapped UCLA’s seven-match win streak.

“We played well defensively and offensively,” McLaughlin said. “Our transition game was good, and we served well. We put pressure on them and kept it on them.”

Hagglund was a key part of UW’s offensive attack. After racking up 54 assists a day earlier in the loss to USC, the junior had another 40 against UCLA. During practice last week, Hagglund had worked on the placement of her passes. The extra work ended up paying off for Hagglund, and, in the end, the team’s success.

“She did a much better job,” McLaughlin said of his junior. “She was really good against UCLA. She had a good week of practice, and I just liked her composure. She was making good choices and kept us in rhythm.”

A day earlier against USC (17-9, 6-8), the UW found itself in another five-set dogfight. The UW wasn’t there offensively, as it hit a season-low .196. The Huskies fell behind early, losing the first set 25-18. They won the next two sets but couldn’t close the match out, losing the fourth set 25-21, and the fifth set 15-13.

Despite getting a season-high 17.5 blocks, the Huskies still couldn’t pull out the victory. The UW made some unusual errors in the USC match that McLaughlin wasn’t happy with.

“It was the little things that shouldn’t happen at this point in the season, and we paid the price,” McLaughlin said. “You’ve got to have concentration from start to finish.”

McLaughlin was happy with the way his team’s focus and concentration following the USC loss.

“From the film sessions to pregame to the whole match, they came on it from start to finish,” McLaughlin said.

The Huskies now control their own destiny for the Pac-10 title. They play two of their final three matches at home over the next two weeks. Three more wins, and the Huskies have their first Pac-10 title since 2005.

Reach reporter Taylor Soper at sports@dailyuw.com.