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Women's team remains upbeat about Pac title

Despite suffering a sweep in Los Angeles last weekend, the UA women's basketball team remains optimistic about attaining the Pacific 10 Conference title.

When the Wildcats left Tucson en route for California last Wednesday, they were alone atop the Pac-10 at 9-2.

However, after losing 80-68 to Southern California and 80-66 to UCLA, they returned Saturday evening in fourth.

Their dreams of becoming conference champions are still a reality, senior guard Lisa Griffith said.

"We are still very much optimistic, but just disappointed with the weekend," she said. "Of course, we are not happy about how we played, but the team is still at the point where the goal of being champions can be a reality, it is just not in our hands anymore."

Griffith said she believes that for Arizona to claim its first title the team will have to win their remaining five games and need some others to lose.

Senior guard Felecity Willis agreed, predicting the conference title is enigmatic.

"With the way that this league is going, it's hard to say what it is going to take to win the title," she said. "A lot of the teams are beating other teams, so really nobody, right now is a favorite to win it."

Griffith and Willis - along with the three other seniors - will be playing in their final five regular season games as Wildcats.

"For us seniors, you have got to put it all on the line over these last five games and just not only play hard, but enjoy the rest of it," Griffith said. "When the reality sets in that it is our last conference games, we'll be playing with a lot of emotion. It will be positive emotion though, because last weekend, we didn't play anywhere near where we could have, and I think that what we did last weekend is going to make us inspired for the rest of the season."

Leaving Tucson on top would be the final touch to an enjoyable career at Arizona, Willis added.

"I want it really, really badly," she said. "Since I have been at Arizona, we haven't won a Pac-10 title, and it even goes back further with me. I have never won a national conference title, but it would be nice to go out my senior year as Pac-10 champion."