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Senior Chrissie Zartman and the UCLA women’s volleyball team will face second-seeded Penn S

Five out of the last six years, the UCLA women’s volleyball team has advanced to the NCAA Regional Semifinals.

And in all those years, the Bruins have fallen short of their ultimate goal of reaching the Final Four.

Then what, if anything, makes this year’s team confident as it prepares to play second-seeded Penn State on Friday in the third round of the NCAA Tournament?

“It’s our seniors,” said coach Andy Banachowski of his 15th-seeded Bruins. “They’ve been in this position before, and I think they are ready to forget the past. ... They realize the success of the team falls on their shoulders.”

A pair of wins this weekend would not only rectify the past losses of the team in the NCAA Tournament, but would also help people forget about a disappointing regular season this year in which UCLA (20-10) began the season ranked No. 3 in the nation and needed a late-season surge to earn a top-16 seed.

The senior class of Krystal McFarland, Chrissie Zartman, Heather Cullen, Brittany Ringel and Brynn Murphy have a chance to distinguish themselves from their predecessors, being the first UCLA team to advance to the Final Four since 1994.

It would be particularly special for Zartman, UCLA’s libero, who has secured numerous postseason awards but has never played in a Final Four.

“All the seniors deserve it,” Banachowski said. “Its just a matter of whether they’re ready to take it.”

The Bruins were in a similar position last season when they faced top-ranked and undefeated USC in the regional final. The Bruins were up 1-0 and leading 24-23 in the second game, but an injury turned the game to favor USC.

Sophomore Colby Lyman went down with an ankle injury and the momentum swayed toward the Trojans; the Bruins lost 3-1. At the time, the Bruins said they would be back and have one extra year to accomplish their goal.

For this core group of seniors, however, this tournament will be their last hurrah and their last chance to prove that last year’s loss was just the beginning of things to come.

“I think it’s just a matter of maturity,” senior Brittany Ringel said when asked about the difference between this year and last year’s team. “We’ve been in this position and know what to expect.”

The last time the Bruins traveled to Seattle, they faced No. 3 Washington last month before 3,414 fans and were overwhelmed by the atmosphere, losing the match 3-1.

“I almost feel like the last match was like a warm-up,” Ringel said. “I think we’ll ready to play this time around.”

“It’s definitely an advantage,” middle blocker Nana Meriwether said. “We’ll be more used to our surroundings than the other teams.”

The trip may end up helping the Bruins, but if the team wants to have a different outcome from last time, they’ll have to play one of their best matches of the season.

The Penn State Nittany Lions have lost only three total games in their past 10 matches and have defeated No. 4 Minnesota and No. 5 Ohio State in that time span.

The Lions are led by freshman Kate Price and senior Ashley Pederson, who are averaging 3.94 and 3.86 kills per game on the season, respectively.

“They have a pair of really strong attackers,” Banachowski said. “Both play well behind the setters, and they present a different approach then we have seen this season.”

On the Bruins’ side of the ball, UCLA will need the similar production out of their top two hitters, sophomore Becky Green and senior Brynn Murphy, as they received this past weekend. Murphy had a match-high 19 kills in Friday’s match against LMU, while Green had a team-high 15 kills on Saturday against Long Beach State.

“I really want Brynn and Becky to continue their production,” Banachowksi said. “At the same time, though, I want to see the rest of the players step up.”

If there was any time for the team to step up, it would be now, where several teams have failed before.

A berth in the Final Four is there for the taking. All UCLA has to do is grab it.