ARIZONA 3, #25 USC 2 (25-23, 18-25, 22-25, 25-17, 15-7)
Wednesday, November 2 | 7 p.m. MST
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ARIZONA (15-10, 7-6 Pac-12) vs. #9 UCLA (18-4, 9-3 Pac-12)
Friday, November 4 | 6 p.m. MST
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CATS AT A GLANCE

• The roller coaster of the 2016 Arizona volleyball continued last weekend, as Arizona upset No. 20 Oregon on the road before falling to Oregon State, which had just one conference win entering the match. In the last four weeks, the Wildcats have been historically good, with four straight road victories over ranked opponents for the first time in program history, but some equally puzzling losses. Still, the Wildcats are playing well as we head into the home stretch of the season.
• It's tough to win on the road, right? Especially tough in the grueling Pac-12 conference, which has seven ranked teams and two more receiving votes, right? Maybe not. Arizona has four road victories in Pac-12 play compared to just two at home. USC and UCLA come to Tucson a combined 8-1 on the road in conference play. There have been 29 matches between the top eight teams in the Pac-12 this year, the road team is 22-7 in those 29 matches.
• Arizona is beginning to play well and play to its potential in large part due to its health. Arizona's top three scorers (Kendra Dahlke - concussion; Kalei Mau - dislocated shoulder & slipped disc; Katarina Pilepic - broken finger) have all missed extended time this year. The trio have been in the starting lineup together just 11 times this season, including the last eight matches.
• Penina Snuka was named one of the 10 best setters in the country by FloVolleyball. Snuka averages 10.47 assists and 3.06 digs per set. The senior leads the Pac-12 in total assists (942) and is second in double-doubles (16), including each of Arizona's last seven matches. 
• Kendra Dahlke and Kalei Mau are both in the top five in the Pac-12 in kills, making them the best offensive duo in the Pac-12. Dahlke is second in the conference with 4.10 kills/set and Mau is fifth with 3.77 kills/set. Oregon State is the only other team in the conference with two in the top 10.
• Arizona's success this season can be traced to where it all starts: serve and pass. In Arizona's 14 wins, UA is averaging 1.60 aces/set while in losses, the Cats are averaging just 0.85 per set. Additionally, in losses the Cats have allowed 1.23 aces/set compared to just 0.72/set in victories. Arizona has 94 service errors in its 10 losses.
• Since the start of 2014, Arizona is 47-9 (.855) vs. unranked competition and 10-25 (.265) vs. ranked teams since the start of 2014.
• Arizona's opponents (future and past matches) have a combined record of 328-181 (.644), making the Wildcats' schedule the eighth hardest in the country.
• Kendra Dahlke is enjoying a breakout campaign in her sophomore year. After averaging 1.57 kills/set as a freshman with four double-digit kill matches, Dahlke leads the Wildcats with 4.10 kills/set and has had 10-or-more kills in 20 of the 22 matches she has played in. Dahkle is second in the Pac-12 in kills.
• Earlier this season, Penina Snuka became the fifth player in school history to surpass the 4,000 career assist plateau, and has since moved into third in Wildcat history with 4,721. Now, Snuka will turn her sites on the 5,000-assist club, where on only one other Wildcat resides: Dana Burkholder (5,424 career assists).
• 2016 marks the 25th season as the head coach of the Wildcats for Dave Rubio, the conference's active leader victories as a Pac-10/12 coach (473). In 2016, the team will celebrate his quarter century of excellence, which includes a 2000 Pac-10 championship and a trip to the 2001 Final Four.
• After finishing second-to-last in the Pac-12 in aces/set a year ago (0.85/set), the Wildcats are second in the conference in aces nine weeks into 2016 (1.27/set). Penina Snuka, who had never averaged more than 0.2 aces/set in her career, leads the team and is fifth in the Pac-12 with 0.28 aces/set.
• Penina Snuka is third in Arizona history with 4,721 career assists and second with 1,484 career digs. Snuka has led the Pac-12 in double-doubles in each of her previous three seasons at Arizona. She has 16 this year, giving her 82 for her career.

 
THIS WEEK: Arizona returns home this week, ready for its third and fourth games in an eight-day span. The Wildcats (14-10, 6-6 Pac-12) welcome No. 25 USC and No. 9 UCLA on the short week. Arizona will try to duplicate its performance the last time it faced these two teams when Arizona swept the Trojans and the Bruins in Los Angeles for the first time in school history. The victories helped elongate a streak of now six seasons in which the Wildcats have upset either USC or UCLA while they were ranked (2016 - #22 USC & #18 UCLA; 2015 - #11 UCLA; 2014 - #20 UCLA; 2013 - #1 USC; 2012 - #5 UCLA; 2011 - #2 UCLA twice). It could prove to be a more difficult task this time around, though, as USC and UCLA are a combined 8-1 on the road in the conference play this season.
 
The Cats and Trojans meet Wednesday at 7 p.m. on the Pac-12 Networks while Arizona welcomes UCLA on Friday at 6 p.m. for a match that will be streamed live on Twitter.
 
OPPONENTS
USC: The 25th-ranked Trojans (15-8, 7-5 Pac-12) come to Tucson winners of four of six since dropping the match to Arizona in Los Angeles ... USC is led by Elise Ruddins, the conference's leader in hitting percentage (.431) and the team leader in blocks (1.12 blocks/set) ... Freshman Khalia Lanier leads the offensive attack, averaging 4.02 kills/set ... Taylor Whittingham is third in the Pac-12, averaging 4.96 digs/set.
 
UCLA: Since dropping the final three sets in Arizona's miraculous five-set victory in Los Angeles, the Bruins (18-4, 9-3 Pac-12) have reeled off six straight victories , including three wins vs. ranked teams, and have rocketed into the top 10 in this week's AVCA poll ... UCLA pairs one of the top offenses in the conference with one of the top defenses ... The Bruins lead the conference in kills (14.58/set) and digs (18.24/set) and are second in opponent hitting percentage (.166) ... Taylor Formico is tied for the Pac-12 lead in digs (5.06/set).
 
RANKINGS: Arizona is receiving votes in this week's AVCA Top 25.
 
STARING AT THE STATS: Penina Snuka enters this week's matches eight sets away from tying Arizona's all-time record in sets played. Should the matches go a combined nine sets this week, Snuka will break Halli Amaro's record from last season (454) ... Arizona's 73 kills last month vs. Stanford are the third most in the NCAA this year in a four-set match ... Laura Larson became the 16th player in Arizona history to surpass 1,000 career digs two weeks ago and is closing in on Arizona's top-10 career list. She need 73 digs to crack the list ... Kalei Mau had 20 kills and 23 digs vs. Washington on Sunday for her first career 20-20 match; it was her sixth double-double the season ... Penina Snuka currently leads the Pac-12 in total assists (838). She led the conference in total assists last season.
 
SETTING THE TONE: All-conference setter Penina Snuka has excelled in her three-plus seasons as the Wildcats' setter. Snuka has been an honorable mention All-American each of the last two seasons. Snuka has led the Pac-12 in double-doubles in each of her three seasons at Arizona (2013 - 19, 2014 - 25, 2015 - 22) and has 16 in 2016, second in the conference. Snuka is currently third in Arizona history with 4,721 assists and is Arizona's top digging setter (second overall) with 1,484 digs.
 
CAN YOU DIG IT? After leading the conference in digs each of the last three years, Arizona is fourth this year, averaging 15.70 digs/set. Laura Larson is seventh in the league, averaging 3.86 digs/set. The senior has double-digit digs in 36 of Arizona's last 39 matches.
 
WHAT SOPHOMORE SLUMP? After averaging 1.57 kills/set as a part-time player in 2015, Kendra Dahlke has burst onto the scene in a big way as a sophomore. Dahlke leads Arizona with 4.10 kills/set and has had double-digit kills in 20 of her 22 matches. In 2015, she had four total double-digit kill efforts. Dahlke is second in the Pac-12 in kills/set (4.10) and third in points/set (4.57).
 
PUTTING THE TEAM ON HER BACK: In the 49 matches that Kalei Mau has played in since the start of 2015, she has led the team (or tied for the team lead) in kills in 36 of those matches. Mau's 11 20-plus kill matches in that span rank eighth in a career in Arizona history.
 
ACE IN THE HOLE: Arizona is second in the Pac-12 with 1.27 aces after finishing in the bottom third of the conference each of the last three years. The Wildcats' 114 aces are 10 more than their 2015 total in nine fewer matches. Six Wildcats have double digit aces: Penina Snuka (25), Laura Larson (16), Makenna Martin (14), Reilly Killeen (14), Kalei Mau (12) and Katarina Pilepic (11).
 
PERFECT 10: Arizona's 2016 recruiting class was ranked as the 10th best class in the country by PrepVolleyball.com. The Cats have seven freshmen, including two top-100 recruits (#60 Shardonee Hayes & #67 Julia Patterson).
 
A CLASS OF THEIR OWN: Arizona's senior class has won 77 matches, with the opportunity to become the winningest class in over a decade. Should the 2016 team win four more matches, it will make the senior class the winningest in Arizona history since the 2003 class won 90. These seniors are trying to become Arizona's first to make four NCAA Tournament appearances since the 2005 class capped off Arizona's run of 10 straight NCAA Tournaments.
 
FOLLOW THE CATS: Get a behind-the-scenes look at the Arizona volleyball team on its various social media accounts to keep up with the Cats all season long.
 
Twitter: @ArizonaVBall
Instagram: @ArizonaVBall
YouTube: Arizona Volleyball
 
UP NEXT: The Wildcats head to Washington to face the Cougars and Huskies next week.