Week after week, UA coach Dave Rubio talked about the fight his team was showing despite all its injuries.
The Wildcats’ persistence paid off last weekend, when they took their first Pac-12 weekend sweep and their first five-set win in conference play. With the wins over Oregon and Oregon State, Arizona is now 14-14 overall and 4-12 in league play.
Arizona has an outside chance of making the postseason if it wins its final four matches of the regular season.
That’s not an easy feat, as UA hosts No. 10 Washington (21-5, 12-4) Friday night and No. 22 Washington State (22-6, 11-5 Pac-12) on Sunday at noon.
The Wildcats will finish up at home next week against UCLA (14-11, 9-7), which received 48 votes in this week’s Top 25, and ASU (15-12, 7-9).
“The difference between a team that goes to the playoffs like last year and one that doesn’t make the playoffs is so small,” Rubio said.
For the Wildcats, the difference could be one more body off the injured reserve list. Senior libero Makenna Martin returned last week, starting at outside hitter after missing 23 matches. She had 20 digs against OSU, and Rubio said her serve made a difference against Oregon.
“Having Makenna back has really been impactful for us,” Rubio said.
Rubio said he won’t get Liz Shelton, Shardonee Hayes or Whittnee Nihipali back this week — they have all been out with concussions.
The fact that Arizona still has a chance without them is a credit to the Wildcats’ attitudes and Rubio’s coaching.
“Everyone measures success with wins and losses, but I certainly don’t do that,” Rubio said. “…Especially in a situation like we are in right now, when the outcome is so unpredictable, that you really focus on the individual improvement by the players. And that’s what we do.”
This season has included plenty of improvement. Arizona had just 16 attack errors against Oregon State, the fewest its had a five-set match in more than a decade.
Junior outside hitter Paige Whipple finished with 22 kills and 20 digs, the first 20-20 performance by a Wildcat since 2016. Senior Julia Patterson added 38 assists, 13 digs, five kills, four blocks and two aces.
Junior Katie Smoot had only two errors on 53 swings.
These are the things that make Rubio happy.
The coach “has timetables for everybody on when they should be reaching or getting closer to their potential,” assistant Greg Whitis said. “This year, a lot of that sped up for him, so it’s easier for him to focus on those things than the success — winning or losing matches.”
Rubio has seen a lot in his 38 years of coaching, but an injury-ravaged “down” year is rare. However, he says he’s not stressed — just the opposite.
“I’ve had really good years and won a lot of matches. I’ve been deep in the tournament and it was miserable,” he said. “The old adage is, ‘You can’t control what you can’t control and your attitude means everything.’ …I’ve really enjoyed this year so far. I don’t hate the losing. I hate the disappointment of that and the agony of that.”
Extra points
- Each week the Wildcats hold a “Team Try,” where they sample new or crazy flavors of snacks and post their reviews to Instagram.
Whitis has some favorites.
“Any kind of Oreo or any kind of cookie, of course. I can never eat a bad Oreo or cookie — never had one of those in my life,” he said. “The kids keep trying to find a nasty tasting Oreo, but you can’t really do it,” he said.
- Kamaile Hiapo
was named Pac-12 Freshman of the Week for the first time. She returned to her regular position at libero against the Oregons and had 40 digs. Against OSU, she had a career high 29 — the most by any UA freshman.
