Ncaa Championship Notebook:

PROVO, Utah — Just by making the four-team NCAA Championship, UC Irvine, Penn State, USC and Ohio State have reached great heights this season. But it’s the 4,551-foot elevation that occupied the minds of coaches before things got going Thursday at Smith Fieldhouse at BYU. UCI Coach John Speraw said the Anteaters may be most prepared to play with the altered flight of the ball, particularly on serves.

“This team has played there more than any other team except BYU,” Speraw said of the old building in which BYU plays its home matches. “That’s an advantage. But, I’m telling you, [the altitude] is still a challenge. It is hard to play volleyball there. You can’t underestimate it. And it’s interesting to see the strategies other coaches apply to try to make it happen.”

UCI not only played two Mountain Pacific Sports Federation matches against BYU this season, the Anteaters also played a handful of matches during a trip to BYU during the fall. Additionally, UCI was eliminated in the MPSF Tournament last season at BYU.

“It’s serving more than anything, but it’s also serve reception,” Speraw said of the effects of the thinner air. “It’s a little bit different as a passer, because the ball floats up onto you a little bit.”

In terms of a specific serving strategy, Speraw said there are basically two camps.

“Some teams think, ‘OK, we’re going to try to keep our serves in, so we’re going to ease off the throttle a little bit,’ ” Speraw said. “Then, BYU starts to beat you and you say ‘Forget it; we’re going to hit it hard. And you hit it hard and maybe you get a win. We still didn’t serve well the second night [of back-to-back matches this season]. It just forces teams that play there to change the way they play the game.”

DRESSED FOR SUCCESS

USC Coach Bill Ferguson stands out among his peers by wearing a coat and tie, sometimes even a suit, on the sideline during matches.

Most coaches prefer Hawaiian shirts or polo/golf shirts.

The topic of Ferguson’s attire was broached to Speraw before Thursday’s matches, and the question arose as to when the last coach worked the sideline in a suit.

Speraw said lengendary UCLA Coach Al Scates, for whom Speraw played and coached with as an assistant, before taking over the UCI program seven seasons ago, used to break out a suit at the NCAA Championship.