VOLLEYBALL: WAVES SETTING LOFTY GOALS PEPPERDINE'S ASPIRATIONS NOT JUST WCC.Byline: ERIK BOAL Special to the Daily News Kekai Crabbe and Sophia Milo Milo, athlete of ancient Greece Milo (mī`lō) or Milon (mī`lŏn), fl. 500 B.C., athlete of ancient Greece, b. Crotona. spent part of their offseason training with the U.S. women's national A2 team in New Orleans New Orleans (ôr`lēənz –lənz, ôrlēnz`), city (2006 pop. 187,525), coextensive with Orleans parish, SE La., between the Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain, 107 mi (172 km) by water from the river mouth; founded . Julie Rubenstein devoted almost two weeks of her summer competing with the U.S. national select team in Argentina. And Rachel Lumsden and Kiah Fiers were busy dazzling the crowds in Atlanta at the U.S. Junior Olympic Championships. A lot of positive things have happened for the Pepperdine women's volleyball team since its run to the third round of the NCAA Tournament NCAA Tournament can mean: Men's Sports
``We have an extremely talented group in our gym right now,'' said Matthies, whose team reached the Sweet 16 for the sixth time in seven years last season, losing to West Coast Conference rival Santa Clara Santa Clara, city, Cuba Santa Clara (sän`tä klä`rä), city (1994 est. pop. 217,000), capital of Villa Clara prov., central Cuba. . ``I can honestly say that, one through 13, we don't have a weak link on this team.'' Although Pepperdine, which was 19-12 last season, is ranked 19th in the coaches' poll -- behind No. 10 UCLA UCLA University of California at Los Angeles UCLA University Center for Learning Assistance (Illinois State University) UCLA University of Carrollton, TX and Lower Addison, TX and No.14 USC An abbreviation for U.S. Code. -- the Waves might be the most talented group in Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, . ``We have so many good players that every practice has been challenging,'' said Rubenstein, who set several freshman records on her way to earning all-conference honors last season. ``Everyone is working so hard, and (the newcomers) have all helped us to improve. They add more elements and more depth to our team.'' Rubenstein is one of three all-WCC picks returning for Pepperdine, along with three-time selection Milo and Lecca Roberts. Add the nation's seventh-ranked recruiting class, and Matthies believes Pepperdine can challenge No. 6 Santa Clara in the WCC WCC n abbr (= World Council of Churches) → COE m (Conseil œcuménique des Églises) WCC n abbr (= World Council of Churches) → Weltkirchenrat m . ``We kind of come in as the underdogs, but I think we're in a pretty good spot,'' Matthies said. ``The freshmen come in with incredible experience. I haven't had three freshmen with their competitive spirit (in my career).'' Pepperdine faces one of the nation's toughest schedules, featuring No. 7 Hawaii, No. 8 Texas, No. 16 Purdue, No. 17 Cal, UCLA and USC. ``I think over the years we've shown we can compete with anyone,'' Matthies said. ``We were inconsistent last year, but we took care of business at the end when we needed to. It helped the core of this group playing against a top-20 team almost every night, and I think this group will benefit from it as well.'' erik.boal@dailynews.com (818) 713-3607 CAPTION(S): photo, box Photo: Pepperdine's Sophia Milo spent part of her offseason training with the U.S. women's national A2 team. Courtesy of Pepperdine University Box: WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL CAPSULES |
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