<p><div class=fright><strong><font color=blue>W. VOLLEYBALL</font></strong><hr><font size=1>Today, 8 p.m.<br>UAB<br>Pauley Pavilion</font></div>Now the real test begins.
<br/>A triumphant 2006 regular season has given the UCLA women?s volleyball team a great chance to make a run deep into the postseason.
<br/>The Bruins are seeded in the top four for the first time since 1994, which was also the last year UCLA went to the Final Four.
<br/>As No. 4 UCLA (29-3, 15-3 Pac-10) heads into tonight?s first-round match against the University of Alabama at Birmingham (27-9, 10-6 Conference USA), the Bruins have set high aspirations for themselves.
<br/>?We?re going into this tournament with the best team so far that I?ve played on,? senior Colby Lyman said.
<br/>By earning the No. 4 seed, UCLA has set itself up for some interesting matchups.
<br/>Should UCLA advance to Regional play in Honolulu, the Bruins could be matched up with No. 5 USC ? which UCLA has already beaten twice this season ? in the regional final for a spot in the Final Four.
<br/>?Our bracket is very beatable,? senior middle blocker Nana Meriwether said. ?But you can?t take any team for granted. It?s championships, so people are going to play differently and more aggressively. It?s going to be tough.?
<br/>On paper, UCLA shouldn?t have any problem with UAB tonight. The Bruins have a better record and have faced much tougher opponents than the Blazers have this season.
<br/>But the Blazers, after a slow start in conference play, have been blazing hot as of late.
<br/>After starting Conference USA play with a measly 2-6 record, something started to click for UAB.
<br/>The Blazers went on to win their last eight matches of Conference USA play and finished third in the conference.
<br/>UAB went on to defeat Central Florida, Tulane, top-seeded Tulsa and Memphis in the Conference USA Tournament and captured the highly coveted automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
<br/>?They?re certainly going to be playing with a lot of confidence,? UCLA coach Andy Banachowski said. ?That?s an amazing run to win that many games. We?re facing a hot team.?
<br/>The Bruins, meanwhile, wrapped up their season with four consecutive victories against USC, Pepperdine, Oregon State and Oregon after falling to No. 2 Stanford in Maples Pavilion.
<br/>
<b>OTHER NOTES:</b> If the Bruins defeat the Blazers tonight, it will mark the first time that the Bruins have reached the 30-win mark in a season since 1994. ... Senior middle blocker Nana Meriwether finished the season leading the nation with a .459 hitting percentage. Meriwether was also tied for first in blocking, with 1.94 blocks per game. ... Sophomore setter Nellie Spicer ended the season fifth in the nation in assists with 13.66 per game. Spicer?s assist numbers were the top mark among sophomores and freshmen. ... Prior to the UCLA-UAB game, which begins at 8 p.m. in Pauley Pavilion, Utah will take on Michigan State at 5:30 p.m. Students can buy all-session tickets for $10 or $6 single-game tickets to any of the matches.</p><br><br><a href='http://www.dailybruin.com/news/articles.asp?id=39192&#039; target='_blank'>http://www.dailybruin.com/news/articles.asp?id=39192&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br>