Arizona Daily Wildcat
The Arizona men's club volleyball team will face its toughest challenge to date when it travels to Davis, Calif., this weekend for the Far Western Club Volleyball Tournament.
Arizona is seeded 10th and will play a strong UC-Davis squad in its opening match of the tournament Saturday.
"They are a tough team," assistant coach Skip Greenberg said of UC-Davis. "If we upset them, we could make it out of pool play."
Coming off a disappointing fifth-place finish at the Longhorn Invitational at the University of Texas last December, Greenberg is confident of better results, as are the players.
"This is the first time all season that we've seen competition like this," junior outside hitter Mark Pabst said. "If we just play our game, we will do well."
This year's team is loaded with six talented freshmen, three of which are starters. One of those talented freshmen is middle blocker Michael Wagner, who is described by Greenberg as a "blue chip" prospect.
"We have the talent to be in the top five of this tournament," Wagner said.
Greenberg was a little more optimistic.
"If we can pull a few upsets in the earlier matches, we could win it all," he said. "We need work on our passing, and we are a young team, but I think our size and power will carry us."
The Far Western is the biggest tournament before the Club Nationals in April, and is loaded with quality teams.
Cal, the defending club champions, and Utah Valley State, the defending NCAA Division II champions, are both likely to make a serious run for the title. Arizona State, Chico State and Humboldt State will also be there.
Ä Jason A. Vrtis
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The Arizona club rugby team is about to kick off its 1995 season.
The rugby team has been preparing for the start of its season by holding intra-squad scrimmages during practice and are now ready to take on real opponents.
The Wildcats begin their season with a trip to California. Today, they face Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo and Sunday, they play UC-Santa Barbara.
Arizona is looking forward to playing both of these teams. The Wildcats are especially eager to face Santa Barbara because the Gauchos have provided tough competition in the past.
Still, Coach Dave Sitton wishes the team had more time to prepare.
It is not certain what one can expect from the UA this year. Sitton feels that the team is still trying to define itself, meaning that through the first few games they will be searching for their identity.
Right now, Sitton wants to take the new season one step at a time.
"(I hope) they improve each time they step on the field," he said.
Sitton feels that the team's performance will be largely dependent on certain team members.
"It will all come down to the leadership of the upperclassmen," he said.
However, the Wildcats still do not know what to expect this weekend.
Ä Julie Shiroma