This could be their year

When Jerry Green finished his star-studded career last season

there seemed to be a feeling of an end-of-an-era for the UC Irvine

men’s basketball program. However, while the Green era ended, the

foundation was set. The Anteaters still believe they can reach the

NCAA Tournament, a feat that has not been accomplished in the

program’s Division I history.

UCI has never reached the Big Dance, never been a bracket-buster,

or a bubble breakthrough.

Still, no matter what the critics predict or expect, and no matter

what has happened in the past, the Anteaters believe they will be

dancing in March. The ‘Eaters have won the Big West Conference title

the past two years, but UCI failed to maintain its momentum in the

conference tournament and settled for NIT appearances. Yet, that

serves as their motivation for the upcoming season.

“We’re ready to take off,” Douglass has said about the season

ahead. “We’re going to take the next step forward. You’re going to be

surprised.”

Turns out, Douglass has made believers out of at least one

publication, CollegeInsider.com, which has ranked the Anteaters No.

10 in their Preseason Mid-Major Top 25 poll. Irvine is the top-ranked

Big West school, as UC Santa Barbara, last year’s Big West Tournament

champion, is No. 12, and Utah State, which shared the conference

regular-season title with UCI, is No. 13.

Western Kentucky received the top spot with Gonzaga at No. 2.

Pepperdine, which hosts the Anteaters Nov. 30, is ranked third.

“It’s good that we’re recognized and some people realize that even

without Jerry Green, we can be good,” Douglass said. “We’re usually

ranked higher in that poll.”

Last year, UCI ranked sixth in the same preseason poll and was the

only Big West team in that top 25.

This year, Douglass’ squad will know more about itself after it

takes on the Pepperdine Waves. The Anteaters are a mix of youth and

experience. Four starters return, minus Green who is playing pro ball

in Germany, and four redshirt freshmen are expected to step up their

game quickly.

Adam Parada, Irvine’s 7-foot junior center who was a second-team

All-Big West selection last year, said this will be his breakout

season. He figures to be one of UCI’s leaders, along with Jordan

Harris, a Big West honorable mention who is rehabbing from a knee

injury.

The Anteaters began practices this week, with sessions on Tuesday

and today.

“We had a spirited practice,” said Douglass, who expects Harris’

return will be vital to the team’s chances of repeating as Big West

champion. “(Trainers) think in a couple of weeks, he can work out.

His leg is stronger. He’s in good shape. It’s just going to be a

matter of finding out when he can do the stopping and going on the

court.”

* This will be a huge weekend for Coach Marine Cano’s women’s

soccer team (5-6-1, 2-0-1 in the Big West), which will play its Big

West home opener Friday at 7 p.m. against UC Riverside, which is in

second in the Big West. The Anteaters, who are in third and unbeaten

in Big West play, will then host conference leader Cal State

Fullerton, ranked No. 25 in the nation, Sunday at 1 p.m.

* Coach Charlie Brande’s women’s volleyball team has become a

hot item among the athletic teams at Irvine. Brande has continually

said his team could contend with just about any team. The Anteaters

continue to improve. They swept St. Mary’s last week, their fourth

sweep of the season, and recorded their 11th win, the most victories

in the program since the 1993 team finished 15-13.

“Most of the colleges coaches are surprised when they see our

record, but I felt all along that this would be a good team,” Brande

said of his team. “We’re getting closer and closer all the time. They

are starting to really gain confidence in the system and in

themselves. Chanda (McLeod) has really started to get in a rhythm

hitting. Dana Kurzbard and Rebecca Larsen have been stepping up.”

UCI sophomores Ashlie Hain and Kelly Wing are ranked fifth and

eighth, respectively, among the nation’s best according to the NCAA.

Hain, the ‘Eaters’ starting setter, holds a 13.69 assists per game

average, while Wing carries a 5.50 kill per game average.

To put the combo’s stats in perspective, Hain tops UC Santa

Barbara’s Brooke Niles (13.41 assists per game) and Idaho’s Mandy

Becker (12.72), ranked eighth and 24th, respectively. Wing is

averaging 5.67 kills per conference game, which leads the Big West.

Larsen, one of only two UCI seniors, has found herself at the top

of the Big West for the first time this season with a .389 hitting

average (145 kills, 35 errors, 283 attack attempts), while Hain is in

first place for the sixth consecutive week with her 13.69 assist per game average.

One of the keys to the Anteaters’ production has been the senior

leadership of McLeod, who has moved from her normal right outside

hitting spot to the left, allowing other players to step up.

* UCI Coach George Kuntz said his men’s soccer team played its

best game of the season after the Anteaters defeated host Cal State

Northridge, 2-1, in a Big West-opener Wednesday. UCI, which had been

depleted with injuries, used its week off last week to gain health.

“We went through a bad spell of injuries,” Kuntz said. “We’re

still missing two guys (Brad Aspey and Sebastian Galmarini), who can

help us. But, we looked sharp. We played much more composed. I’m

proud of the guys. They’re a good squad. They have a good character

about them.”