OGDEN, UT—The UC Riverside Women's Basketball team sure has been racking up the travel miles lately. This time a week ago the team was preparing for two games at the Maui Classic in Hawaii. The Highlanders will now face Weber State on Thursday and Utah Valley in Orem, UT on Saturday.

UCR (3-7) is coming off a 57-45 win against Eastern Washington in the Maui Classic, breaking a four-game losing streak.

"This is part of the challenge," head coach John Margaritis said. "We are reaching a crucial point in our season where we will find out how good we are."

These two games mark the end of a seven-game road trip, which began on Nov. 23 vs. Oregon.

The team begins Big West Conference play on Jan. 5 vs. UC Davis.

SCOUTING THE WILDCATS
Weber State (3-6) took a 65-59 loss to Utah Valley on Tuesday. WSU was led by Jaiamoni Welch-Coleman, who had 17 points, nine rebounds and nine assists. Kayla Watkins put up double figures with 14 points and Kori Pentzer put up a new career-high with 10 points.

"Weber State is very athletic and is a threat at every position," said Margaritis.

The Highlanders are 0-3 all-time vs. Weber State. All of the loses have been on the road. The universities last played each other on Feb. 19, 2002, with UCR taking a 69-60 loss.

SCOUTING THE WOLVERINES
Utah Valley (5-6) snapped a five-game skid with its first home win vs. Weber State since Nov. 29. Josie Williams scored 10 of her 12 points in the fourth quarter and Jordan Holland, the reigning WAC Player of the Week, finished with 11 points.

The Highlanders are 2-0 all-time vs. Utah Valley, getting one win on the road and the other at home. The last win came on Dec. 18, 2006 in a tight 70-69 win.

"Utah Valley will be a challenge for us because they play a lot of zone," said Margaritis.

UTAH STATE OF MIND
This marks the second time this season that UCR will take a road trip to Utah. The team played BYU on Nov. 9 in Provo. It also played Southern Utah at home on Nov. 15.

BLOCK PARTY
UCR currently has 52 blocked shots on the season, averaging 5.2 per game, which leads the Big West. Marina Ewodo has 24 of those and is averaging 2.4 blocks per game, which is second in the Big West and tied for 15th in the NCAA. The team has out-blocked opponents 52-17.