Thursday, September 4th, 2008

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Second-year outside hitter Heather Cullen will need a strong hitting performance on Friday night if the Bruins want to upset No. 6 Stanford.

Second-year outside hitter Heather Cullen will need a strong hitting performance on Friday night if the Bruins want to upset No. 6 Stanford.

Women’s volleyball keeps positive attitude

Team faces no. 5 Stanford, Cal; hope to end three-game losing streak

A new weekend, same old story. The UCLA women’s volleyball team is confident that their focus in practice will result in wins on the court. The Bruins (12-9, 5-6 Pac-10) face No. 6 Stanford (19-3, 9-2) today and unranked Cal (15-6, 5-6) on Saturday.

Like last week, hitting and serving have been the focal points in practice. Another disappointing showing in the state of Washington, however, has the Bruins hoping that playing at home will be the catalyst for change.

“We’re working on being smart and making good decisions with our attacking,” second-year student Brynn Murphy said.

Although they’re happy with what they have accomplished in practice, the team knows executing in games is another matter especially when the opponent is Stanford. They are the clear underdogs, but the Bruins did manage to take a game from the Cardinal in their previous game.

“We have to play with that same intensity on our court,” head coach Andy Banachowski said. “I believe in the team and what we can do. We just need to make good decisions and adjustments in the game.”

The Bruins are riding a three-game losing streak, and Stanford may make it four. The losses are mounting, and UCLA is in danger of falling out of the race for third place in the Pac-10. The Bruins are currently stuck in a four-team jumble with Cal, Washington and Washington State, where only a game and a half separates third place from fifth.

“We’ve got to get hot down the stretch and pull away from the pack,” Banachowski said.

The teams schedule finally relents after Stanford. Cal has never beaten UCLA in 41 tries, and the Bruins are also unbeaten at home this year. Still, the Bears are not the doormat they may appear to be, as they recently defeated Arizona, and took No. 1 USC to five games Oct. 5.

Still, if there is any such thing as a a game the Bruins simply must win, the game against Stanford is it.

Despite their recent poor showing, the Bruins feel that their season is still promising.

“I think our confidence is high right now,” second-year student Krystal McFarland said. “We know we’ve got nothing to lose.”