COLLEGE NOTEBOOK : SDSU Was Looking for a Moral Victory

No fear here.

San Diego State’s women’s volleyball team faced top-ranked, undefeated and two-time defending NCAA champion UCLA on Tuesday night without so much as a quiver.

“It’s nice to have the No. 1 team walk into your gym,” SDSU Coach Myles Gabel said before the match. “They’ve been ranked No. 1 and have only lost three games all year. Psychologically, if you can win a game, it’s a moral victory in the match.”

History proved it had potential as another morally uplifting contest for SDSU.

Two years ago, UCLA (21-0) came to Peterson Gym under similar circumstances. The Bruins were undefeated, top-ranked and had dropped few games before their meeting with the Aztecs (18-8). Then, UCLA had to come back from a 2-1 deficit to win in five games.

“They probably don’t know much about us,” Gabel said. “When you’re in the situation they’re in, sometimes you tend to overlook some other teams. They’re definitely a dynasty. We just hope they have a bad game or the bus has a flat tire on the way down here.

“We’re looking for moral victories. We want them to know they’ve been in a match.”

SDSU gave the Bruins a scare, albeit a short one. After breezing through the first two games, the Aztecs took a 12-3 lead in Game 3 before UCLA came back for a 16-14 victory.

Gabel had support for his cause. In 1977, Gabel was an assistant coach at USC, the year the Trojans won the national championship with a 38-0 mark. Since then, no volleyball team has won the NCAA title without a loss, and some of those 1977 team members sought SDSU’s help in handing UCLA its first defeat.

“I’ve gotten three calls about it,” he said. “It’s a personal situation. We want to make sure (USC) keeps that record intact.”

So while USC must now pin its hopes on someone in the national championship to blemish UCLA’s record, the Aztecs still have their playoffs to look forward to.

SDSU, in the middle of the pack in the Western Athletic Conference, must win crucial WAC road games against Wyoming and Colorado State this weekend if it hopes to reach the playoffs. SDSU has defeated Wyoming once and lost to Colorado State in five games.

Stat city: If not for two former football standouts from San Diego, Arizona State’s 23-13 loss to USC Saturday could have been worse.

Receiver Bob Brasher, a senior out of Point Loma High, had a career-high six receptions and 117 yards and scored the touchdown that drew ASU to 14-7. Brasher’s previous high was five catches against Arizona in 1991. Before Saturday, his single-game yardage high was 66 yards, recorded a week earlier against UCLA.

Brasher wasn’t the only San Diego factor for ASU. Orange Glen graduate Lenny McGill, a junior cornerback, had five tackles (two solo), a pass deflection and a 24-yard interception return that set up the Sun Devils’ 46-yard field goal. It came close to his best game of the year, when he had eight tackles--three solo--against Washington in Week 1.

McGill is third on the all-time list of San Diego high school triple jumpers. His 51-foot, 2-inch jump in 1989 trails Willie Banks (51-3, 1974) and Dokie Williams (51-2 1/2, 1977).

Quadruple Crown Watch: The University of San Diego’s Scott Sporrer, who became the Toreros’ career leading rusher earlier this season, has the chance to become USD’s first Quadruple Crown winner--the school record-holder for single-season and career rushing yardage and single-season and career carries.

Sporrer needs 171 yards--his career high was 178 against Redlands in 1991--against Menlo this weekend in USD’s final game to break the single-season mark of 1,177, established by Sammy Croom in 1972.

The other marks won’t be as tough to get. One carry will give Sporrer a record 508 career carries to better the 507 Joe Henry compiled from 1977 to 1981, and 16 carries will break the single-season carries of 224 that Jerome McAlpin had in 1983.

Playoff jockeying: Point Loma Nazarene’s volleyball team finishes its regular season this weekend with a pair of District 3 games against The Master’s College and Cal Baptist at home.

The games are significant in that Saturday’s game against Cal Baptist could determine who gets the second playoff berth, which means a bye in the first round. Westmont and Cal Baptist lead PLNC in a tight District 3 race.

If recent history holds up, the Crusaders should fare fine. They were 10-2 for the month of October and are 9-0 at home this season. Individually, senior Roberta Smith in second in the district in kill percentage (.389) and junior Sunday Renzema is fourth (.376).

Courting collegians: Application deadline for USD’s All-College Tennis Tournament, Nov. 23, 24, 30 and Dec. 1-5 at USD, is 5 p.m. Nov. 12. Entries are $15 for singles and $20 for doubles. Call Torero Coach Ed Collins for information, 260-8889.

Devine Intervention: USD’s Hilary Devine, a junior transfer from Santa Rosa Community College, set a school record in her first swim meet of the year. In the 200-yard individual medley, Devine’s 2-minute 13.02-second swim eclipsed the 2:14.2 set last year. Devine also won the 100 fly and 100 breast and swam in one winning relay in a 161-140 loss to UC Irvine.

Against UCI, the Toreros were hurt by their diving. USD actually won the swimming portion of the meet 134-129, but lost the diving segment, 32-6.