UCLA briefly tastes No. 1

[bigfan]

UCLA briefly tastes No. 1

MICHAEL R. CHEN/daily bruin

Rachell Johnson and the Bruins managed to defeat Cal on Friday, but fell to Stanford on Saturday.

By Allison Ho
DAILY BRUIN CONTRIBUTOR
[e-mail]

This weekend was the perfect chance for the women's volleyball squad to prove itself as one of the top teams in the nation. With No. 12 California (17-8, 6-8 Pac-10) and No. 2 Stanford (21-3, 12-2 Pac-10) on their plate, the Bruins were hoping to sweep the weekend and put a stamp on their already remarkable season.

And for a moment, the Bruins (25-3, 12-3 Pac-10) sat atop the Pac-10 standings with Washington. UCLA beat the Cal Bears on Friday while USC took down the Cardinal, putting the Bruins and the Huskies both at 12-2. On Saturday, however, the Bruins were brought down by Stanford, 17-30, 30-25, 30-26, 30-27.

At first it seemed as if the Bruins' momentum from the Cal victory would help them steamroll over Stanford. UCLA cruised to a 30-17 victory in Game 1, amassing a lead as large as 14 points and holding the Cardinal to its lowest point output of the season.

"(The Stanford team was) very disorganized at the start of their match because (middle blocker) Foluke Akinradewo didn't play and they were getting used to the lineup," UCLA coach Andy Banachowski said. "It took them a little while to figure out what they were going to do."

But once the Cardinal did figure out how to work around the absence of their top middle blocker, the Bruins were not able to respond.

"Our outsides didn't have good nights," Banachowski said. "Maybe we became a little predictable so they were able to release their blockers to the outside and camped there."

The Bruins dropped from their Game 1 average of .464 to .082 for the remainder of the match. Meanwhile, Stanford, which was not significantly more efficient than UCLA, hit a notch higher at .167 in the final three sets.

Only middle blockers Nana Meriwether and Rachell Johnson were able to hit efficiently against the Cardinal, Meriwether's with 17 kills at a .361 clip and Johnson with 12 kills at a .296 average.

However, UCLA was able to quash Stanford's outside duo of Cynthia Barboza and Kristin Richards. Though the two put down 15 and 12 kills, respectively, they combined for a meager .069 kill percentage.

"Our right-side blockers are getting better and better," Banachowski said. "Those two started hitting negative after the first game."

Friday's game against the Bears was a different story altogether. In four sets, UCLA came back from a one-game deficit to take down Cal, 23-30, 30-23, 32-30, 30-28.

The Bruins were hitting at -.026 until Game 2, when they began to turn up the heat. From that point on, UCLA outhit the Bears, .294 to .232, for the rest of the night. And the Bruins were sure to key in on Morgan Beck, who was virtually unstoppable in the October matchup.

"We did a much better job, certainly, on (Beck)," Banachowski said. "Our blocking is really paying dividends, helping us to control offenses."

Perhaps the biggest thrill of the night was UCLA's third-set rally. Down 29-25, the Bruins staved off four game points to overtake the Bears in the pivotal Game 3.

"It was really encouraging to see us go back and hold off those game points and go on that scoring run that we did," Banachowski said. "The team plays hard and plays with a lot of heart. They're not afraid to lay it out there."

Though the Bruins did not reach their goal of beating Stanford this season, they still have their sights set on finishing off the regular season with a bang, beginning with cross-town rival USC this Friday.

DIG FOR THE CURE: Saturday's match against Stanford was dubbed the "Dig for the Cure" match in an effort to raise awareness for breast cancer. Though National Breast Cancer Awareness Month was officially in October, the Cardinal and Bruin players alike wore pink ribbons sporting their jersey numbers in their hair for the first two sets, after which the ribbons were sold to support the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. Money was also pledged per dig.

[P10lurker]

Against Cal Johnson had 1 kill, hit a whopping -.173 and was pulled from the match yet she is highlighted as having an impact in the match with Cal?! She actually did well against Stanford probably one of her better performances of the whole year. I am under whelmed with her inconsistency and don't understand why she is not being utilized more on the outside where she pounds the ball.

If Johnson does not get into a better rhythm with Spicer and if Johnson does not settle down, this rotation is a very big vulnerability for UCLA that teams will exploit!

[blastingsand]

What UCLA really needs is Outside Hitters. They're OHs right now cannot put the ball down!! Yet they can play good defense. Ever since the home game vs. Washington, Ali Daley had slowed down for them. Carter can have off and on nights. Colby Lyman hadn't been playing as well as she had in the past and they aren't using Sather a lot this year.

[roofed!]

p10lurker said:

If Johnson does not get into a better rhythm with Spicer and if Johnson does not settle down, this rotation is a very big vulnerability for UCLA that teams will exploit!

Yup, that could be one big problem for UCLA especially if the OHs remain inconsistent. Teams would play side-out when Meriwether is in front-row, and then try to go on point-runs when she is subbed out.

[beachman]

UCLA has one of the top 3 setters in the country, period. A very good MB, and are stacked at OH, with at least 7 on full scholarship.....if they can't get it done they one must look at the coaching up there.....they are loaded at OH....."old school' Andy as he was referred to this weekend by former UCLA alum and TV Commentator Holly McPeak maybe needs to do a little more training and coaching?? In fact I will go so far as to say that there isn't a school in the PAC-10 or anywhere else that is this stacked on the leftside!!

[blastingsand]

beachman said:

UCLA has one of the top 3 setters in the country, period. A very good MB, and are stacked at OH, with at least 7 on full scholarship.....if they can't get it done they one must look at the coaching up there.....they are loaded at OH....."old school' Andy as he was referred to this weekend by former UCLA alum and TV Commentator Holly McPeak maybe needs to do a little more training and coaching?? In fact I will go so far as to say that there isn't a school in the PAC-10 or anywhere else that is this stacked on the leftside!!

They also have great defense. But again, the offense is very inconsistent, and for now, weak, on the outside, which is suprising considering they are stacked.

[hammer]

blastingsand said:

What UCLA really needs is Outside Hitters. They're OHs right now cannot put the ball down!! Yet they can play good defense. Ever since the home game vs. Washington, Ali Daley had slowed down for them. Carter can have off and on nights. Colby Lyman hadn't been playing as well as she had in the past and they aren't using Sather a lot this year.

Yes, agree. My impressions watching UCLA vs. Stanford was -- good defense, very good setting, solid blocking, strong middle attack, pretty solid passing, but weak outside hitting. Obviously if this continues, they will need pinpoint passing to get their middle attackers more balls. I've only seen them play one match,
so haven't seen their total body of work. Maybe they had a bad
night at the OH position.

[jgrout]

Baseball analysts have developed advanced metrics that try to measure the distance a player is above replacement level (e.g., Baseball Prospectus's VORP... Value Over Replacement Player). Measured that way, a team that is "stacked" with slightly above average players (for the league) in one area that they can switch in and out (e.g., for platoon advantages) has a low aggregate VORP for that area... far less than a team with one or two stars and average bench players to back them up.

In 2001, the back end of John Dunning's roster at Stanford was "stacked" with a fair number of "volleyball players" (solid fundamentals, lots of club experience) without the exceptional athletic abilities of a Logan Tom or Ogonna Nnamani. Instead of switching them in and out (ala UCLA's stable of interchangeable outside hitters) or leaving them on the bench to rot, he took advantage of their solid fundamentals by converting them to full-time defensive specialists. The improvement in Stanford's defense... first displayed in home matches against USC and UCLA... was breathtaking... without it, Stanford would never have won in San Diego that year.

[P10lurker]

beachman said:

UCLA has one of the top 3 setters in the country, period. A very good MB, and are stacked at OH, with at least 7 on full scholarship.....if they can't get it done they one must look at the coaching up there.....they are loaded at OH....."old school' Andy as he was referred to this weekend by former UCLA alum and TV Commentator Holly McPeak maybe needs to do a little more training and coaching?? In fact I will go so far as to say that there isn't a school in the PAC-10 or anywhere else that is this stacked on the leftside!!

UCLA is stacked on the outsides, the problem is all of these hitters are always on the bubble, Banachowski has so much depth that he is constantly changing the line up and goes to the bench without hesitation.

Much of the game of volleyball is trust and knowing the persons tendencies who is standing next to you. Luckily Spicer is so talented she normally adjusts to the hitters or the hitters are adjusting to her sets, I do see issues with the constant juggling of the hitters and getting into a steady rhythm. Banachowski thinks he is developing a competitive environment having so many people competing for a chance to play while realistically these girls are playing in fear of making a mistake. For instance Carter gets more confident and better the more swings she takes, as do most of these athletes.

I know I belabor this point but Johnson should not be in the middle, last year she was devastating on the outside and is ho hum in the middle, I would like to see Johnson back on the outside against USC, this is something they would not be prepared for. Carter and Johnson with Sather as the utility hitter, unfortunately I am not sure Schoen can hold up the middle for a whole match but from what I have seen she is no worse than Johnson.

Banachowski is not fully utilizing the talents of his players and I believe is causing underlying distrust instead of competitiveness.

[beachman]

P10lurker, I think you just made my point!

[beachman]

p10lurker said:

beachman said:

UCLA has one of the top 3 setters in the country, period. A very good MB, and are stacked at OH, with at least 7 on full scholarship.....if they can't get it done they one must look at the coaching up there.....they are loaded at OH....."old school' Andy as he was referred to this weekend by former UCLA alum and TV Commentator Holly McPeak maybe needs to do a little more training and coaching?? In fact I will go so far as to say that there isn't a school in the PAC-10 or anywhere else that is this stacked on the leftside!!

UCLA is stacked on the outsides, the problem is all of these hitters are always on the bubble, Banachowski has so much depth that he is constantly changing the line up and goes to the bench without hesitation.

Much of the game of volleyball is trust and knowing the persons tendencies who is standing next to you. Luckily Spicer is so talented she normally adjusts to the hitters or the hitters are adjusting to her sets, I do see issues with the constant juggling of the hitters and getting into a steady rhythm. Banachowski thinks he is developing a competitive environment having so many people competing for a chance to play while realistically these girls are playing in fear of making a mistake. For instance Carter gets more confident and better the more swings she takes, as do most of these athletes.

I know I belabor this point but Johnson should not be in the middle, last year she was devastating on the outside and is ho hum in the middle, I would like to see Johnson back on the outside against USC, this is something they would not be prepared for. Carter and Johnson with Sather as the utility hitter, unfortunately I am not sure Schoen can hold up the middle for a whole match but from what I have seen she is no worse than Johnson.

Banachowski is not fully utilizing the talents of his players and I believe is causing underlying distrust instead of competitiveness.

So do you think that maybe, just maybe, that when you recruit over your OH's to this degree that perhaps no one really wins....the players, as you pointed out, are 'always on the bubble", thus providing no consistency at all at the position and. Furthermore since you have recruited over and over each of them that some never reach their potential because all they ever do is practice and don't get actual game time....all of this, in the end, just creates problems for the TEAM because your OH line-up is NOT stable and your team underachieves??