Wildcats begin the 2001 NCAA Tournament against Eastern Illinois

KEVIN KLAUS/Arizona Daily Wildcat

UA junior middle blocker Stefani Saragosa sets the ball as senior middle blocker Erin Sebbas prepares to slam it.

The UA women's volleyball team's run at its first Final Four berth starts tonight as the No. 5 Wildcats (21-4 overall) take on Eastern Illinois (21-8) in Urbana-Champaign, Ill.

"The road to the Final Four is a long one," UA head coach David Rubio said. "We have been preparing for the tournament all season and we are prepared to go on the road. We have been a good road team all season, and we are prepared to handle all the circumstances that face us."

The path these two teams took to reach this match differs greatly.

The Wildcats earned an at-large bid by finishing third in the Pacific 10 Conference. The Pac-10's top two teams, No. 3 Stanford and No. 4 Southern California, received top seeds in the tournament.

This marks the 17th NCAA appearance for Arizona, which is 10th best among postseason teams.

The Panthers, on the other hand, received an automatic bid as the Ohio Valley Conference Champions and will be making their first NCAA postseason appearance.

UA and Eastern Illinois have never played against one another and they share no common opponents this season.

For the Panthers to have a chance against the heavily favored Wildcats, they will look to outside hitter Erica Gerth and middle blocker Leslie Przekwas to lead the way.

Gerth leads the team with a 3.27 kills-per-game average, while Przekwas is second on the team with a 3.20 kills-per-game average on a .335 hitting percentage on the season.

The Wildcats counter EIU's offensive attackers with seniors - setter Dana Burkholder and middle blocker Jill Talbot, who were named first team All-Pac-10 and are All-America candidates.

Burkholder finished the season with a 13.01 assist-per-game average, which led the Pac-10.

Talbot led UA in hitting with a .431 hitting percentage to go along with 3.26 kills per game. She also added 3.36 digs per game.

Besides Burkholder and Talbot, junior outside hitter Lisa Rutledge was named first team All-Pac-10 by averaging a team-high 4.20 kills per game.

The only question for the Wildcats is the health of junior outside hitter Shannon Torregrosa, who is out indefinitely due to an ankle sprain.

Rubio said Torregrosa's status will be a game-time decision.

If Torregrosa is unable to suit up, sophomore outside hitter Christina Frost will take her spot in the starting rotation.

"Christina has done a good job for us all season," Talbot said. "We are not worried about how she will do if Shannon can't play. It is the playoffs, and everyone has to step up their play."

If the Wildcats win tonight, they will then take either on Illinois or Missouri.

Junior middle blocker Stefani Saragosa said that the Wildcats will treat every match like the championship is on the line.

"We need to take it one game at a time," Saragosa said. "Every team that makes the tournament is good, and the minute we overlook one of them is when an upset can occur. We can't overlook anyone, or it will come back to bite us."