KEVIN KLAUS

Junior middle blocker Stefani Saragosa (10) attempts a kill as senior setter Dana Burkholder (21) and senior outside hitter Jill Talbot (32) look on during UA's game against Oregon State Friday night in McKale Center. The Wildcats swept the Beavers to advance their record to 7-0.

Monday September 24, 2001

UA sweeps OSU, hits season-high kill percentage

It was one of those nights when everything seemed to drop for the UA volleyball team.

No. 3 Arizona (7-0, 2-0 Pac-10) had a season-high kill percentage of .436 and took control of the match early in its win over Oregon State (6-3, 0-1) in a three-game sweep; 30-25, 30-13, 30-20.

The Wildcats opened a 17-13 lead in the first game, but the Beavers managed to keep it close. OSU pulled to within one at 26-25, but the Beaver's Jessica Papell was unable to keep her serve inbounds, and Arizona ran off four straight points to close out the game.

"(In the first game) Oregon State was so steady," UA head coach Dave Rubio said. "They didn't break down a lot. We gave them eight service errors, but I was really pleased because we kind of stepped up to a different level."

Junior setter Dana Burkholder said that while Arizona did not play exceptionally well, it was just a matter of time before their play caught up to their level of energy.

"We played steady even though we made some errors," Burkholder said. "We had a lot of energy."

Arizona picked up where it left off in the second game, gaining a 7-1 lead quickly, fueled by junior middle blocker Stefani Saragosa's kill and two blocks.

OSU closed the gap to 8-6, but UA senior Erin Sebbas responded with a kill on the quick set from Burkholder, and the Beavers were unable to keep up for the rest of the game.

The Beavers committed seven attack errors while recording only six kills in the second game, compared to Arizona's 14 kills and four errors in the 30-13 win.

With an imposing 2-0 lead in the match, the Wildcats went for the kill early in the third game. Once again, it was Saragosa that set the tone early with a kill and active play at the net. But as in the previous two games, the Beavers managed to keep it close as they rallied from three down to tie the game at 10.

This time junior outside hitter Lisa Rutledge gave UA the needed boost with one of her match-high 13 kills, and Saragosa added another to give Arizona the breathing room it would need.

Following an OSU timeout, Burkholder knocked a high-arching, over-the-head shot two feet from the scoring table that landed in front of three Beavers defenders.

The kill effectively ended any threat of an OSU comeback.

"I didn't expect it to go down," Burkholder said. "It just kind of flew up in the air."

Arizona cruised from there en route to a 30-20 finish and the victory.

"I think we have matured and stepped up," Saragosa said. "You can't discount any team. The Oregon schools are great schools. They are great competitors. We see them fighting every step of the way and it makes us fight, too."

Arizona travels to UCLA next weekend for a key conference match up against the No. 7 Bruins.