Moderator: Alright, welcome everybody. We've got UC Irvine, the No. 1 seed. Coach John Jordan DuFault, Nick Spittle, Taylor Wilson. We'll start with a statement from Coach

Coach: Obviously we're very excited to be here. I think the more videotape the more excited I am to be here. I'm ready to play the Trojans. I'd like to do it tonight but we'll have to wait for tomorrow. We had a great match with them last time, and it wasn't very easy for us. They played great volleyball, but I think we learned a lot. I think we're ready. We've beaten that team, I think someone said five years in a row or something like that, and at some point that team was going to beat us, and they went out there and did that. You can ask these guys, but I think we're ready to go out there and compete against that team again.

Question: What's it like going up against an opponent that's so familiar, that you've played three times already?

Player: It's good because we know them and we know their tendencies. The more we play them the more comfortable it is. We've seen them so many times over the past few years. It's not like playing a team like Ohio State that we've never seen before. The first time we watched video of them was on this trip. We're pretty comfortable and the guys are pretty relaxed. There's less pressure.

Question: Talk about USC's serves?

Player: They served really well the last time we played them. A bunch of players had aces that don't usually have aces. They played really good volleyball and it's great that it happened. We learned from that loss and a lot of the times you don't learn from wins. It's good - I think that loss was a key point in the season for us, kind of an eye-opener.

Question: You guys were pretty dominant throughout the regular season with blocking but it's kind of slowed as of late. Is that just unlucky touches or are you going to make adjustments?

Player: We have pretty good blocking here. We've definitely noticed that our numbers aren't as high as they've been earlier in the season. That might be getting to us a little bit lately, but I know that we've just been focusing on that and thinking about what we've been doing with our hands above the net and making sure we're passing over the net and I think our blocks will come to us if we stay positive and stay focused.

Question: Do you think there is a little rivalry brewing between UCI volleyball and USC volleyball?

Player: Definitely, yeah. Absolutely - there's no doubt about it. We know that they're a rising program and they haven't had a lot of success in years past but we know that their team this is year is only graduating one senior who is on the court right now and they have some good recruits coming in and our programs are very similar. They put a lot of effort into their game and it looks like for the next few years we'll probably be the top two programs, at least we'd like to think so. There's going to be a lot of battles coming.

Question: It seems like at the beginning of the season USC was a like a one-pony show with Murphy Troy. As of late, Tony Ciarelli has really kicked his game in gear. How has that changed your approach to playing the Trojans?

Player: Well it definitely gives the front row a little bit more to worry about. In the beginning of the season you could focus your block a little bit more on Murphy but Tony - it's his first year on the court. As the season has progressed he's been seeing a lot more time and more swings and getting a lot more acclimated to this level of volleyball. He's an excellent player so we definitely need to hone in on him and give him more respect and not let him get a lot of swings.

Question: Can you talk about the dynamic on the bench? Do you guys have rituals you go through or anything like that?

Player: As far a rituals, it seems like the "two-hand slap" - we do that as much as we can. We just try to keep the energy up as much as we can. We are there for support. If there's something we need to do we're looking to do it. We just pretty much want to support the guys on the court as much as we can and show that we're for them and do whatever we need to do the keep the energy up.

Question: Can you tell us as a senior, the core of seniors on the team, you've been together for a while both off and on the court - tomorrow is the ending of that in one way. Is that on your mind?

Player: It's quite a shock knowing that tomorrow will be my last collegiate match ever - as well as the other seniors. It's been such a long great journey. Five years ago, coming into the dorms at Irvine with these guys and going through everything that we've gone through together - the hours and hours of training and video, and we've all lived together every year, so yeah, there's definitely been some bonds formed that will carry on way beyond the season. It's been an honor to play with them.

Question: This is the second NCAA championship in the last three years for most of you guys. How do you compare the first experience to this year's so far?

Player: I think in 2007 we had a great group of seniors that we relied so heavily on to score for us, and put numbers on the board for us and I think there's a good group of younger guys that really contribute to our team and are great. Contributions from everybody really helps out the team and keeps your opponent guessing on what is going to happen, so there's a more collective effort this year.

Question: In terms of game planning and refining things, how differently do you approach things. Do you tweak things or do things differently based on a week ago?

Coach: I hope we pass better. I think you're just trying to refine things at this point. I don't think teams are going to significantly change what they are doing at this point in the year. I've seen coaches that have tried it, but I haven't seen it work. I think the one thing I learned from Coach Scates at UCLA is his ability to determine what works and how to use that to his advantage and I see a lot of coaches that don't do that and they're trying to do something different. Sometimes it works, I just think that over the course of time, I've been able to see it work more when you figure out what your strengths are and work with those. From what I've seen with SC, they do that. They've definitely been going to their two guys. We know that they're going to go to those guys when it matters, and they know that we know that, and it probably won't change. It's just about how the guys go out and execute those plays.

Question: Is it different going against USC with your background as a UCLA guy. Now they are another opponent you have to beat - do you find you're different emotionally with them?

Coach: Actually I have a high degree of respect for them. In general, SC and Fergie and I go way back. I was at his wedding last year. I don't think it's one of those things where there's some sort of hatred here. We respect what SC is doing. I have a ton of respect for what they've done in a short period of time. They've gone out and recruited very well, as you can see. They work very hard. I'm always the first guy to call a recruit every year, but that first year, when Fergie took over, I was the second guy. I knew that we had a lot to deal with. I knew that was going to be an issue. They've upped the ante on the recruiting side, and they're seeing the results. We compete for recruits, and that's probably not going to change. I think what we're seeing here is a battle we may see down the road. I think two years down the road we could be in this exact same situation. I have a ton of respect for them and what we're doing, and I think we're going to have future battles.