UA volleyball downs No. 15 Santa Barbara, wins Classic

By Ron Parsons

Arizona Daily Wildcat

The Arizona's women's volleyball team, ranked No. 16 in the country by USA TODAY, opened its season last weekend with three straight victories, including a hard-fought win over 15th-ranked UC-Santa Barbara.

The games were part of the Wildcat Classic Tournament, which UA won. In Friday's matches, the Wildcats beat Missouri 15-3, 15-7,15-9, then defeated UCSB 7-15, 15-9, 15-12, 15-10. Arizona beat Texas Tech 15-3, 15-7, 15-9 on Saturday to clinch the tournament title.

While the Wildcats' victories over Missouri and Texas Tech were quick, straight-set demonstrations of dominance over much smaller teams, Friday's late match against the Gauchos was a different story.

In front of about 800 fans at the McKale Center, UCSB took the first game handily, 15-7. Then Arizona began displaying some of the characteristics that coach Dave Rubio thought in the preseason might help the team advance to its third straight NCAA Sweet Sixteen berth. The Wildcats rallied behind the setting of senior Laura Bartsch and the hitting of junior Barb Bell to take the second game 15-9.

"I always felt that we had great chemistry and that we would be fighters, and that's exactly what happened," Rubio said of the UA's comeback. "We demonstrated a tremendous amount of poise, character and tenacity."

One player who showed all three of those characteristics was Bell, who finished with a career-high 26 kills from only 53 swings against UCSB. She recorded 56 kills in the three games and was named the tournament's most valuable player.

"(Bell) is consistently demonstrating the poise and composure of a veteran player, someone who's been through the wars a little bit," Rubio said.

Bell has undergone four knee surgeries in the past three years, but showed no ill effects as she hit eight kills in the third game.

UCSB led 11-4 in the third when Arizona began a tenacious comeback. Carolyn Penfield, a sophomore outside hitter who had recorded just four kills in her entire career, hit seven of them in the third game to help the Wildcats close the gap. She finished the match with 16 kills.

And Bartsch, a senior who is third on the UA's career assist list, showed why she beat out newcomer Michaela Ebbens for the starting spot. She had 62 assists and consistently got the ball into Bell and Penfield's hands.

Rubio was encouraged by the play of Bartsch and Bell, both of whom have provided leadership for Arizona's young squad.

"They are providing confidence and a very comfortable environment for the young players on the floor," Rubio said. "Both of them are playing like experienced veterans, and that's what we need from them."

In the fourth game, with the crowd at its feet, UCSB was trailing 11-4 when it launched a furious rally. Kim Keys nearly single-handedly kept UCSB in the match, hitting for 22 kills. The Gauchos closed the gap to 11-10 before Penfield buried a cross-court kill to side the ball out. UA won the game to take the match.

"In the fourth game we were up big, and we could have folded," Rubio said. "But we hung in there. I like what the team demonstrated. It was great to win against a team that has such a history and is regarded as one of the better teams in the country."

During the preseason, Rubio spoke of the Wildcat Classic, and the UCSB game in particular, as a "measuring stick" to determine his team's progress. He said he was especially encouraged by the confidence and ability shown by Penfield and middle blockers Laura Reckmeyer and Stephanie Venne.

"I was really excited about all those young players," Rubio said. "They just came in a stepped it up a level."

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