Andrew Huse Contributing Photographer

The San Diego State volleyball team was tabbed to finish fifth in the Mountain West Conference 2006 Preseason Poll.

SDSU finished sixth.

A small difference in result that doesn’t begin to describe the teams’ up-and-down season.

The Aztecs (12-18, 6-11 in MWC play) opened with a loss to Cal State Northridge – a team that was swept in its two matches against ranked opponents.

Down.

SDSU then went on to win the Big Orange Invitational in Syracuse, N.Y. by beating three teams in two days.

Up.

SDSU followed that by dropping its first four conference matches and then winning four of its next seven.

You get the picture.

“We definitely had a roller-coaster year,” sophomore setter Leah Lathrop said. “There’s no excuse for some of the games we lost because we proved over and over that we were capable of beating (good) teams.”

The Aztecs proved that in their second-to-last match of the year.

SDSU pulled off a stunning five-game upset against No. 20 BYU in the quarterfinals of the MWC Tournament.

The win proved that the squad’s problems haven’t been with talent but with focus.

It was their biggest win of the season, and one of the biggest upsets in MWC Tournament history.

“When you overcome an obstacle like (beating BYU), you realize the talent you have and what you’re capable of,” Lathrop said. “You have to keep in mind what you can do, but we’ve been kind of half-and-half this year.”

True to form, SDSU came out the next day and ended its season by getting swept by a Colorado State team that had lost to the Cougars both times it played them during the year.

Wins and losses weren’t all that contributed to the season’s inconsistencies, however.

Head coach Mark Warner missed multiple road trips and practices throughout the year because of personal reasons.

Associate head coach John Ross filled in temporarily, but Warner’s absence undoubtedly affected the attitude of the team.

“We definitely missed him,” Lathrop said. “We all knew he was an awesome coach, but we started to really appreciate what he did for us when he wasn’t there.”

Warner did return to the team to close the year, but there are other leaders on the squad who won’t be coming back.

Seniors Audra Dent and Melanie Greene – who both had terrific seasons – will graduate this year.

There will be a number of players vying for their roles.

There are seven juniors slated to return – four who contributed to the Aztecs’ rotation – and they’re expected to fill in nicely.

SDSU didn’t finished as high as it was supposed to, but next year’s team should have no problem improving on this team’s progress.

“We’ll be getting back at it soon enough,” Warner said. “And we’ll be pushing them real hard for next year.”