Women’s volleyball coach Andy Banachowski is beaming.
Not because his team recorded a 3-1 conference victory over
Arizona on Friday, but because the team now has a new weapon to
showcase this year.
Middle blocker Nana Meriwether, UCLA’s transfer from Duke,
was installed as a server for the match and registered three of
UCLA’s season-high ten service aces against the Wildcats,
which Banachowski attributes to the Bruins’ recent
success.
“Nana served really well,” Banachowski said.
“Her deep serves kept the Wildcats off balance.”
No. 10 UCLA’s (10-3, 3-1 Pac-10) serving offense was part
of its game plan to limit No. 17 Arizona’s (8-6, 0-4) top-two
hitters, Jennifer Abernathy and Kim Glass.
UCLA averaged 3.3 aces per game against the Wildcats, more than
twice its 1.6 average during the season.
The plan worked as the Bruins cruised to a 30-20, 30-18, 19-30,
30-25 victory before 1,741 people in Tucson, Ariz.
“Our game plan going into the match was to serve well and
disrupt their offense,” UCLA coach Andy Banachowski said.
“We forced them to set mostly to their outside
hitters.”
UCLA followed Friday’s match with a 30-18, 30-28, 30-22
victory over Arizona State on Saturday, its third consecutive sweep
over the Sun Devils.
“It felt really good to get two wins on the road,”
Banachowski said. “We played a very steady game against
Arizona and had an excellent performance against the Sun
Devils.”
The victory over Arizona was UCLA’s first in its past six
meetings against the Wildcats and its first victory over a ranked
opponent since Sept. 4 against No. 14 Texas A&M.
UCLA’s attack was led by Colby Lyman, who had 18 digs and
11 kills against the Wildcats.
“Colby did a very good job, despite suffering from a head
cold,” Banachowski said. “Her passing was integral to
our offense.”
Setter Krystal McFarland has also played a stabilizing role in
the “True Blue” offense, recording 41 assists and 13
digs against Arizona and 42 assists against Arizona State.
McFarland and Lyman’s passing made for Meriwether’s
fabulous weekend in which she had 23 kills and five blocks in both
matches.
“Nana has really come along quite well,” Banachowski
said. “She is quite an intimidating blocker, and a big part
of our defense.”
“Our “˜True Blue’ offense is designed for us to
get our best passers in the middle. This allows us to maximize
Nana’s ability in the middle.”
UCLA’s string of solid-hitting performances continued with
a .260 hitting percentage over Arizona State and a .211 against
Arizona. They have now had three consecutive matches, all
victories, with a hitting average over .200.
With the confidence gained from the tough road wins against
Arizona and Arizona St., UCLA moves on to face No. 11 Stanford and
No. 12 Cal next weekend.
Both teams have given UCLA trouble in the past and the matches
will be a measuring stick that determine how much experience the
Bruins have gained against top teams this past weekend.