Weekend warmup: women’s volleyball a contender or pretender?

With the start of classes today, UCLA’s sports teams enter a new phase of the season in which they actually become students and athletes. The women’s volleyball team and both soccer teams have stiff tests this week to see if they are truly national contenders or just good squads.

Cross Country:

>> Both the men’s and women’s teams will be in Eugene, Ore., for the second annual Bill Dellinger Invitational. The men are ranked 22nd nationally, but will face tough sledding against top-ranked Wisconsin and third-ranked Oregon, among others. The women’s squad is still without No. 1 runner Allie Bohannon and will be running against a strong field that includes No. 4 Arkansas.

Football:

>> The 3-1 Bruins are on the road at 2-2 Oregon State in a 3:30 p.m. game that will be shown on Fox Sports West in Los Angeles. Ben Olson will be back to quarterback the Bruins, who are also getting healthier on defense as end Nikola Dragovic and linebacker Aaron Whittington return. The game started as pick-it, but Oregon State is now favored by 1 1/2-2 points.

Men’s Soccer:

>> UCLA is 4-2-1 and ranked between 10th and 18th in the nation depending on the poll. The Bruins have played five of their first seven matches on the road and continue the trend with a match at Cal State Northridge (3-2-1) at 4 p.m. Saturday. A live audiocast of the match can be heard on CSUN’s athletics site, www.gomatadors.com.

>> UCLA will benefit from the return of its leading scorer from last season, David Estrada (pictured), who has been recovering from foot surgery on August 20. He scored 11 goals in 2006 and was named a preseason All-American.

>> The Bruin soccer program is mourning the loss of Jonathan Moore, 60, who played for outstanding UCLA teams in 1968 and 1969 that had a combined record of 26-3-1. A fixture at Bruin soccer matches to the end, he was a teacher in the Santa Monica school system for 35 years and actively involved in community work.

Men’s Water Polo:

>> The 8-1 Bruins are ranked third in the nation and have a serious challenge this week against No. 4 Stanford at 4:30 p.m. Saturday in Palo Alto. The Bruins beat Stanford, 13-9, in the third-place match at the NorCal Invitational two week ago, after losing to No. 2 California in the semifinals. UCLA will play a doubleheader Sunday against lesser-regarded Santa Clara and UC Santa Cruz.

Women’s Golf:

>> The No. 1-ranked UCLA golf squad finished third at the Fall Preview event in Albuquerque this week behind Duke and USC with Arizona State fourth. Those four teams have been identified as the best in the nation and probably will trade places in tournaments right through the long season that will end on the same Albuquerque course in late May.

>> The Bruins had two top-10 finishers in Albuquerque: All-American Tiffany Joh tied for sixth (-6) and freshman Maria Jose Uribe tied for eighth (-4), the latter with a four-under 69 on the final round that included seven birdies.

Women’s Soccer:

>> UCLA (4-2-1) was ranked No. 1 in the nation in some polls to start the season, but is currently eighth or ninth and faces No. 2 Portland (7-1) at Drake Stadium on Friday, starting at 7 p.m. Tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for students with identification and children. UCLA students with a valid Bruin Card can attend for free. Live audio of the game can be heard on uclabruins.com.

>> The Bruins got more help this week with the return of Kara Lang, who had been in China as a member of the Canadian national team playing in the Women’s World Cup. She redshirted last season, but led the Bruins in scoring with 40 points in the 2005 season, including 17 goals.

>> Sophomore Lauren Cheney, who scored five goals last week in UCLA’s draw with Pepperdine and win over Hawaii, was named Soccer America’s National Player of the Week. She also won weekly honors from the Pac-10 and was named to the Soccer Buzz Team of the Week.

Women’s Volleyball:

>> The 10-1 Bruins are ranked fifth in the nation and are on the road for crucial tests at No. 10 California (10-2) tonight at 7 and tomorrow night at No. 2 Stanford (12-0). UCLA’s only loss was on the road at No. 1 Nebraska, so a test of how ready UCLA is to be a contender for national honors comes with this weekend’s matches. The match with Stanford will be shown on a tape-delayed basis by CSTV at 5 p.m. Sunday.

David Estrada photo courtesy of UCLA