This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
It's a classy upgrade for a classic venue, said Utah volleyball coach Beth Launiere.
Launiere's team will christen the new court at the renovated Huntsman Center tonight by hosting Cal (5 p.m.) in what doubles as a formal unveiling and a must-win match for the struggling Utes ahead of No. 1 Stanford on Sunday (2 p.m.).
The cloud is gone, the sound and lighting systems are new, and giant black curtains can be drawn to close off the upper bowl and create a more intimate feel.
For volleyball players, the biggest benefit is the brightness and the location of the lights — toward the perimeter, instead of under the scoreboard, where you look when you're winding up to strike the ball.
And psychologically, too, it's matters that tons of concrete are no longer suspended above the players.
"It feels good to not have the cloud hanging over you," said head coach Beth Launiere. "In volleyball, you're always looking up."
The Utes hope their prospects begin to look up, after losing to No. 17 UCLA and No. 20 USC last weekend to fall to 1-5 in conference. Three of their losses have come in five sets.
Cal, at 0-6, should be more of a match for them.
"I think everybody knows that this is a match that we've got to go win," Launiere said.
Stanford is a different matter. The Cardinal have won 25 straight regular season matches and feature five players with more than 100 kills. A dynamite freshman class from 2012 is now a dynamite group of upper classmen, Launiere said, and they've added more size to the mix.
"I'd say their athleticism is their defining thing," Launiere said. "They run a fast offense, they're dynamic, and now they've gotten that experience that they haven't had the past couple years with all those younger kids."
The Cardinal have only ever fell to the Utes once before — but that time, in September 2000, they were also ranked.
Utah hopes this year's freshmen will one day rival the 2012 Stanford bunch, and part of that youth movement is freshman outside hitter Adora Anae, who has emerged as a starter and responded by tallying a team-high 54 kills in four starts.
Asked about playing the nation's No. 1 team, Anae said she's "so stoked."
"We're playing Cal first, so we're trying not to step over Cal, but we're just so excited to play Stanford and to prove ourselves."
— Matthew Piper
Twitter: @matthew_piper