UCLA won the NCAA beach volleyball national championship in Gulf Shores, Ala., on Sunday, coming out of the losers bracket to eliminate Hawaii and then defeat Florida State 3-1 in the final, delievering the school’s 116th NCAA title.

That ties Stanford for most NCAA titles. It’s the first beach volleyball title for the Bruins in the third year of the championship. USC won the first two.

Former Sherman Oaks Notre Dame standout Zana Muno, wearing a knee brace from a torn ACL three weeks ago, teamed with Savvy Simo on the No. 3 team to give the Bruins a 2-1 lead over Florida State.

The team of Izzy Carey (Westlake Village Oaks Christian) and Megan Muret (La Costa Canyon) won for the No. 5 team. The Bruins clinched the title when the No. 2 team of Lily Justine and Sarah Sponcil swept their two sets.


Coach Stein Metzger is a former Bruin setter who won three NCAA titles when he played for the men’s indoor team.

eric.sondheimer@latimes.com

Twitter: @latsondheimer