Volleyball set with No. 4 seed @supost.com

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Date: Mon, Nov 27, 2006, 08:00 AM

The road to the Final Four is a one that UCLA women?s volleyball coach Andy Banachowski has walked many times before. But it?s been quite awhile since Banachowski?s Bruin team has actually seen the end of that road. By attaining the fourth overall seed in the NCAA Tournament on Sunday, the Bruins have earned themselves a great chance to finally get back to competing for a national title. ?I told them (Saturday night) after the match that it was very rewarding to go through the year as we did,? Banachowski said. ?(The high seed) is really a tribute to their hard work, determination and focus throughout the season. I was really quite pleased that we were able to get this No. 4 seed.? The Bruins completed their most successful regular season in 12 years with sweeps of Oregon State and Oregon on Friday and Saturday. UCLA?s 29-3 overall record is the program?s best since 1994, when the Bruins went 32-4. Incidentally, 1994 was the last season the Bruins made it to the Final Four, where they lost in the national title game. The team?s last national title came in 1991. But Banachowski, who has won six national titles (three NCAA titles) as UCLA?s coach, thinks this team has the makeup and capability to end that drought. ?This year?s team has all the qualities of a national championship team,? Banachowski said. ?They?ve been able to respond to challenges, adjust to different styles and be successful. We have excellent setting, our passing has been solid, our serving has been improving, and our blocking has been outstanding this year. Those are all key ingredients to have.? What could bode even better for the Bruins? chances is the fact that the path to the Final Four does not include No. 1 Nebraska; nor does it include No. 2 Stanford or No. 6 Washington, the two teams that have knocked off the Bruins this season. But the Bruins do not get pushover teams in the early rounds of the tournament, either. UCLA hosts the University of Alabama, Birmingham in the first round ? which, after starting poorly in Conference USA play, ended the season with 13 straight victories to claim the conference?s automatic bid. And Utah, whom the Bruins could potentially face in the second round, finished the season 27-3, with two of those losses being very close ones to No. 9 Florida and No. 5 USC. Should the Bruins win their two home matches and advance to the NCAA Regionals, the team would travel to Honolulu to face prospective matches against No. 12 Hawai?i and No. 5 USC. The Bruins are a combined 3-0 against those teams this season, having swept Hawai?i early in the year in Honolulu and also having earned two victories over the Women of Troy. ?I think it?s a good path,? Banachowski said. ?I always think its kind of a waste of energy to (look ahead). It?s tough having to play Pac-10 teams again, and its going to be a tough matchup if we had to play ?SC again.? With the tough teams UCLA faces in the early rounds of the tournament, the Bruins can certainly not afford to overlook anyone. But it?s even hard for Banachowski not to get a little excited about the ability that his team has to play deep into the tournament. ?It?s very exciting to look forward and see the potential that this team has to get to the championship,? Banachowski said. ?As with all teams, you just have to play one match at a time, prepare for every opponent, and be able to bring your best.? PAC-10 GETS SEVEN: Tournament selection day was a great day not only for the Bruins, but for the entire Pac-10 Conference. The Pac-10 got seven teams in the NCAA Tournament, including No. 4 UCLA, No. 2 Stanford, No. 5 USC, Washington, California, Arizona State and Oregon. Although the former five had been expected to get into the tournament since the beginning of the season, few foresaw the latter two getting in. The Ducks, which have been perennial cellar-dwellers in the Pac-10 for the last few years, had not had a winning season since 1990 and have not made a tournament appearance since 1989. Arizona State, which has not made the tournament since 2002, closed out a 15-14 season by winning four of its final five matches. The Sun Devils were 8-20 last season. ?Oregon has had a tremendous turnaround this season and has played some very good volleyball throughout the year, as has ASU,? Banachowski said. ?It?s great that they were able to get seven teams in the tournament. It?s very indicative of how thorough the Pac-10 has been this year.? <a href='; target='_blank'>;