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Volleyball team earns first victory at Southern Cal

UA's win in four games at Southern Cal Saturday was head coach David Rubio's first career victory at USC.

"The win at Southern Cal was big, not for me as much as for the whole team," Rubio said. "To prove that we could defeat a ranked team on the road really showed a lot about what kind of a contender we could be."

Rubio has been the Wildcats' head coach since 1992 and in the history of the program, UA has only won three matches at USC (1986, 1990, 1999).

With a win against Arizona State Friday, the Wildcats will match their best starts in program history. No Wildcat team has won four of its first five Pacific 10 Conference matches since 1993 and 1998.

"I think we may have turned a corner with the win over USC," Rubio said. "If we can beat ASU and get a little head of steam going, we will compete in the Pac-10."

Friday's match against the Sun Devils is not being taken lightly.

"Both teams take the matches very seriously due to the inter-state rivalry," Rubio said. "It could get nasty out there."

The Wildcats have won the past five matches, dating back to Nov. 6, 1996. Seven of the last eight matches between the two schools have gone five games.

The Los Angeles road trip may have brought extra pressure on the players.

"A lot of the girls' families made the trip out to LA, simply because so many of the players are from California," junior middle blocker Marisa DaLee said. "Even my parents (who live in Phoenix) went. The Los Angeles trip is always a lot of fun for the families."

Of the team's 15 players, 11 are from California, and of those 11, five are from the San Diego area and three from the greater Los Angeles region. Rubio was an all-state player and head coach at Cal-State Northridge.

"The L.A. road trip always brings a sense of trepidation," Rubio said.

Freshman outside hitter Lisa Rutledge posted 22 kills against Southern Cal Saturday, the highest total from a UA player since Keisha Johnson-Demps had 25 kills against Oregon State in 1997.

"Lisa was in a league of her own," Rubio said. "In all my years of coaching, I've never seen a player in a zone like that."

Rutledge competed in the Junior World Games this year, causing her to miss the first five matches of the season.