JON HELGASON/Arizona Daily Wildcat Angie Ayers and the Arizona volleyball team upset No. 1 Stanford before losing to Cal this weekend.

After one of the greatest comebacks in UA volleyball history Friday night, the Wildcats couldn't utilize the momentum and lost an uninspired match Saturday.

Prior to "Midnight Madness" on Friday and in front of a Pacific 10 Conference record crowd of 9,141, the underdog Wildcats upset the defending national champion and No. 4 Stanford Cardinal in a grueling five-game match.

"The fans were awesome," freshman hitter Kim Glass said. "We feed off of their energy and we want to play well for them. They were just great tonight."

However, all of the emotion and joy from Friday was erased on Saturday, as California came in and ruined the weekend celebration for Arizona, sweeping the Wildcats, 3-0.

Friday's match against the Cardinal was a wake-up call to the rest of the Pac-10 and the country that Arizona has the ability to play with the best teams in the country.

The No. 20 Wildcats (8-7 overall, 3-4 Pac-10) dropped the first two games to the Cardinal, including a 17-30 game-two defeat.

Defensively, Arizona was unable to stop senior Logan Tom, who had nine kills in the first two frames.

Tom, the reigning NCAA player of the year and former U.S. Olympian, is the nation's top volleyball player, according to Arizona head coach David Rubio.

But as the crowd started to file in for "Midnight Madness," it seemed like the emotion of the UA team changed and the Wildcats were able to control Tom.

Instead of giving up and conceding, Arizona came out and scorched Stanford 30-16 in game three, which included ending the third game on a 21-6 run.

"I told them after game two that anything can happen," Rubio said. "No one except the people in our locker room felt we could come back. All that matters is that we believed in ourselves."

Defensively, Arizona was up for the challenge against Tom and held her to zero kills in game three.

In game four, the score went back and forth until Arizona was able to win the game, 32-30.

The key to the fourth game was the play of Glass, who had 12 kills alone in the fourth game.

"Kim thrives when the game is on the line," Rubio said. "She loves to be in that type of environment. She had 61 swings, and for a freshman that is remarkable. Kim played great, but I still feel that she is far from being as good as she can be."

With each team feeding off the crowds' emotion, they came out and battled to the finish. The fifth and final game was a head-on dual between Tom and Glass.

Each team continued to set their star, but at the end, it was Glass and the Wildcats who were able to come away, as Arizona won the final frame, 15-13, to take the 3-2 victory over the Cardinal.

The match featured 32 ties and 23 lead changes before Arizona was able to pull off the upset.

Glass finished with a match-high 28 kills and senior Lisa Rutledge added a double-double with 15 kills and 14 digs.

"We grew up as a team," Rubio said. "As a coach you lecture and teach, but there is only so much that you can do. This match reinforced that the players believe and know they are gradually going to continue to improve."

With emotions riding high after the big win, Rubio was concerned that his team would not have anything left in its match with California the following night.

He was right.

It was apparent from the start that Arizona was fatigued, as Rutledge was blocked at the net twice to begin the match

Such would be the theme for Arizona.

The usually dependable Rutledge finished with a season-low three kills on a dismal .190 hitting percentage.

For the first time this season, Rubio was forced to sub out his senior leader due to her performance.

"The stats tell the story," Rubio said. "Lisa had three kills and she was in and out of our lineup. I had a big fear that she would be tired from the night before and she was. She told me she was fatigued and she was unable to play up to her normal level of play."

Even with Arizona's lackluster performance, they still had many opportunities to win the match.

Arizona had game points in the first and third games, but they were unable to capitalize. Glass finished the match with a team high 25 kills, but she was displeased with her performance.

The loss snapped a 12-win streak for the Wildcats. The Wildcats next take the court on Thursday at Oregon State.