KATHRYN OGLE Senior Elisabeth Bachman
strikes fear in USC’s blockers as she prepares to spike in a game
Oct 1. WOMENS’ VOLLEYBALL PREVIEW vs. Today,
October 12 7 p.m. Tuscan, AZ Live on www.uclabruins.com
By Christina Teller
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
Not even a week has passed since they faced the undefeated
Trojans, and members of the UCLA women’s volleyball team are
on the road again. This time, the Bruins will face Arizona, which
is undefeated in conference play.
“We’re looking forward to a tough competition
against them,” senior Elisabeth Bachman said.
“It’s a challenge because they’re undefeated and
it’s something that we’re willing to take and hopefully
stop.”
With only three days of practice this week, the Bruins had to
regroup quickly after the draining defeat against USC last
Friday.
“We played a long, hard, hot match the other night and it
was tiring,” said Andy Banachowski, UCLA’s head coach .
“We know we got tired and it was something that we talked
about postgame and something that we’ve been working on this
week.”
And they know what they have to do in order to shutdown the
tough squad they will face in Tucson.
“We’re trying to get ready to combat Arizona’s
big block,” Banachowski said.
Having been out-blocked 15 to 9 and out-dug 75 to 68 in their
match against the Trojans, UCLA has been focusing on defense in
preparation for the weekend.
“We’ve been working on defense all around ““
looking at left back, right back, middle back,” Bachman said.
“And we spent a lot of time blocking, making sure we’re
closing the block and filling in the seams.”
Up against a defense as tough as the Wildcats’, it is
vital that the Bruins execute on their attack.
“We need to be very effective with our offense spreading
them out and making sure that we’re covering our
hitters,” Banachowski said.
Beyond the attack and the block are the members of the team
themselves. Consistency, a strong start, and everyone working
together are the main objectives of this weekend’s match.
These are the objectives in any athletic outing, but they are ones
that the Bruins have struggled with so far this season.
Paradoxically, the Bruins are just third in the conference but
sport many of the league-leaders in statistics.
Kristee Porter leads the conference with 5.89 kills per game,
Bachman with 1.44 blocks and Lauren Fendrick with .53 aces. Erika
Selsor is second in assists with 14.19. With these numbers, the
Bruins have all the weapons they should need.
The explanation for their 5-2 conference record lies in the
tough competition they must face. With Arizona climbing the polls
to No. 6, the Bruins play another top-10 team for the second week
in a row.
Arizona is on a 14-match winning streak, only losing to UC Santa
Barbara in its season opener. The Wildcats lead the league in kills
with 18.43 per game. With players such as Marisa DaLee and Stefani
Saragosa, who rank first (.471) and fourth (.382), respectively, in
league hitting percentage, on the other side of the net, the Bruins
have their work cut out for them tonight.
But they’ve been successful in McKale Center before. With
an all-time record of 39-7 against Arizona, including a 15-5 record
in Tucson, UCLA holds an advantage.
“U of A is always a fun match,” Porter said.
“I look forward to that match.”
But despite the fun the Bruins will have on the court, the match
is one they must win.