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Middle blocker has 'awesome' night in Wildcat victory

Sophomore middle blocker Erin Sebbas, a career backup who had posted just five kills and six blocks in nearly two seasons, was the unlikely hero in Friday night's 14-16, 15-5, 15-7 and 15-13 victory over California at McKale Center.

Sebbas, who was replacing injured Stefani Saragosa (shin splints), made her first career start against the Golden Bears. In the match, Sebbas posted 10 kills, doubling her career totals.

Senior outside hitter Raelene Elam called Sebbas' match "awesome."

"She was awesome this weekend," Elam said. "In practice, she's been doing a really good job."

Sebbas also may have opened some eyes last weekend and put herself into the rotation for the remainder of the season.

"I just hope that I can be a dependable player," she said. "Whatever time I get isn't as important as whether or not we win."

Following her final regular season home match, Elam noted the program's evolution since she started as Raelene Morton four years ago.

Elam got married during her collegiate career.

"There's definitely been a major improvement in the program," Elam said. "The program's getting some major recruits, now more than ever."

UA freshman Lisa Rutledge is a prime example of the kind of players gravitating towards McKale Center in recent years.

Rutledge, from Vista High School in San Diego, was rated as one of the nation's top outside hitters, behind Stanford's Logan Tom.

UA head coach David Rubio even went so far as to say that Rutledge was the second-best outside hitter in the nation.

"The thing with Lisa is not really that she's strong," he said. "Lisa has really good volleyball instincts."

Rubio and Elam agreed that the margin of difference between Stanford, which is currently ranked second in the nation, and a team like Arizona, is closing quickly.

"The difference between Stanford and Arizona is not that big," Rubio said. "Although a lot of the players get intimidated, talent-wise, we're not that far off."

If volleyball is a numbers game, last Saturday night's match against Stanford was the lowpoint of the season.

Not one Wildcat player logged double-digits in kills, as Marisa DaLee and Lisa Rutledge led UA with nine kills.

Two UA players, Allison Napier and Elam, had a negative kill percentage. Elam was a paltry 0-for-12 from the field with seven errors. Do the math, and that's a -.583 kill percentage from the field.

Napier was 0-for-8 with three errors, for a .-375 kill percentage. Sebbas, freshman Rachel Williams and junior Elvina Clark all hit .000 from the field as well.