The UA women's rugby team ended a five-game winless streak Sunday with a 63-0 blowout of Occidental College.
The Tigers could do little to contain senior Kanisha Saunders and junior Tonyella Arphul in the first half. Saunders ran past the defense in seemingly effortless fashion, and played a key role in nearly all of the UA's first-half scoring tries.
Arphul provided a two-pronged attack, running the ball and scoring more than half of her kick tries.
Senior and co-captain Danielle Bus led the Wildcat charge in the scrums, and added one of the numerous UA scoring tries.
"It's been a difficult season so far, but this was a good game for us," Bus said. "We were able to get the ball into the try zone a lot more, and we're playing with a lot more confidence."
The win gives Arizona much-needed momentum as it heads to San Diego for Southern California Conference play Sunday against division rival UC San Diego.
A win against UCSD would take the Wildcats out of the league cellar in time for the conference tournament.
Synchronized swim gears up to host regional invitational
Much will be on the line Sunday at the Student Recreation Center when the UA synchronized swim team hosts the Pac-10 Regional Invitational.
The top two finishers in the three-team meet will compete in this season's collegiate synchronized swim championship.
The UA squares off against defending Pac-10 champion and favorite Stanford, along with a strong Washington team.
Returning to the national championships will be an uphill battle for the Wildcats, who have been hampered by injuries this season.
Senior captain Michelle Meyer fell with an injury, and new swimmers have had to take on leadership responsibilities, UA head coach Jill Ranucci said.
Arizona finished third at a competitive Stanford meet over Valentine's Day weekend, behind the Cardinal and Alabama.
The loss in Palo Alto gives the team perspective as to the type of performance they must have Sunday in order to qualify for another national championship berth, Ranucci said.
The advantage of performing at home, the dedication of the swimmers and the goal of returning to and winning the NCAA championship has the team prepared for an excellent outing Sunday, according to Ranucci.
"Despite the injuries, the girls have been great. We've got really good swimmers," she said.
The competition begins Sunday at 10:30 a.m.