After feasting on three straight second-tier conference foes, UA volleyball can now prove it belongs in the top ten with four matches in a row against top-10 competition, starting at Stanford tonight.

Fresh off three straight conference match sweeps and a near-upset of No. 2 Hawaii, Arizona (10-11, 4-6 Pacific 10 Conference) travels to Maples Pavilion to face the No. 9 Cardinal (15-5, 8-3) at 8 p.m. tonight. The last time the Wildcats played Stanford, Arizona was coming off four straight losses.

"I think we're playing the best that we've played all season long," said head coach Dave Rubio.

The last time the Wildcats played four top-10 teams in a row, they left Los Angeles with a split after falling to California and Stanford in Tucson.

Rubio doesn't think the trip to Southern California differs much from the Bay Area trip - and he believes that rival ASU will help wear the Wildcats' opponents down.

"I don't think it's really that much different," Rubio said. "We're talking about two great programs having to play back-to-back. That's why you want your travel partner to be very competitive also, because that way, whoever plays the same night you do, the next night they have to prepare for a good opponent."

Rubio doesn't think that one stretch of four top-10 opponents will prove to be any more difficult than the other.

"I think it's the same. They were close to being top-10 teams anyway back then; it's not like we haven't faced them before," Rubio said. "We know that all four of these teams are terrific teams. We feel like (we are) one of those top teams in the conference and the country so we need to let our actions prove that."

The Cardinal are led by two-time American Volleyball Coaches' Association All-American Ogonna Nnamani, Stanford's leader in kills, digs and hitting percentage. The Cardinal ranks in the top half in the conference in hitting (3rd), assists (4th), blocks (1st) and kills (5th).

The trip to the Farm has always been a tough one. Arizona has beaten the Cardinal in Maples Pavilion just once. That victory came in 2000, when the UA won the conference.

This year figures to be no different.

Stanford, a team that has been to the Final Four three times in the last four years - winning it all in 2001 and finishing second last year -is seventh in the country in attendance with 1,889 per match, which leads the Pac-10.

"I think that we do match up well - in fact, I think we match up well with all the teams, but the difference is that they have a little bit more experience than we do," Rubio said. "We made up some ground in that area (due to) the way that we've being playing recently, so I think it's going to be a good match, but I think we're capable of winning that match."