This weekend will be matches of firsts for the Stanford men’s volleyball team. It will be their first match of the year at home, their first Mountain Pacific Sports Federation regular season match and, hopefully, John Kosty’s first win as a head coach.

Stanford will play Cal State-Northridge tonight at 7 p.m. in Maples Pavilion. Tomorrow evening they will face UC-Santa Barbara at 5 p.m. in Burnham Pavilion.

The Cardinal’s first three matches at the Elephant Bar Tournament last weekend did not go as the team hoped. The squad lost in three consecutive matches to UC-Irvine, Long Beach State and USC. However, Stanford did show signs of improvement. After getting swept 3-0 by UC-Irvine in its first match, it lost 3-2 to the 49ers and the Trojans in hard-fought matches.

Kosty feels that the team needs to mature and develop rather than put wins on the scoreboard and says that his first wins will come with time.

“It’s much more important to grow as a team,” Kosty said. “This team has a very bright future, and wins are going to come.”

Several competitions for starting spots have started to emerge on the team. Freshman Garret Werner and sophomore Cameron Christoffers both played well this past weekend in the tournament. Both are battling to earn the starting middle blocker spot alongside sophomore Brandon Williams.

Probably the most interesting intersquad rivalry is between two freshmen battling it out for the starting opposite hitter spot. Evan Romero has extreme athletic ability to go along with his 6-foot-6 frame. However, his technique — both offensive and defensive — needs refinement. Meanwhile, 6-foot-7 freshman Ed Howell is more experienced and knowledgeable about the sport.

The Cardinal underclassmen’s first game to showcase their skills will be against Jeff Campbell’s Northridge team. Northridge went 1-2 in the UCSB tournament, their only victory coming in a narrow 3-2 win over Long Beach.

“Northridge is young like us,” Kosty explained. “They’re going through some growing pains like we are — I see that match as a dogfight.”

“They’re really scrappy,” junior outside hitter Matt Ceran continued. Ceran played middle blocker for the last two years, but with the graduation of Ben Reddy and William Clayton, his assets have proven valuable in both the passing and hitting aspects of the game.

Junior outside hitter Isaac Kneubuhl leads the attack for the Matadors. Their setter is junior Travis Bluemling.

Northridge also boasts, from all recorded accounts, the tallest college volleyball player in the country — 7-foot-2 freshman middle blocker Jacek Ratajczak. But when asked about Ratajczak, the Stanford coach shrugged him off.

“There are very few teams in our league that can beat you with one player,” Kosty explained. “I’m not worried about a player in particular. I’m worried about the other team as a whole.”

On Saturday, the Cardinal faces 29-year veteran coach Ken Preston’s UCSB squad. The Gauchos’ main weapon is Evan Patak, a fifth-year senior outside hitter, who, during his sophomore season, had 48 kills for a total 53 points against the Cardinal — a Division I and II rally scoring-era record.

“The key is to control Patak,” Kosty finished. “He’s going to get his kills. We can’t let him light it up and hit .500. But we’ve got to control him. The key part is to hold [Patak] under his season average. If we can do that, we’re going to have a successful season.”