The way the Oregon volleyball team began its match Friday, onlookers might have wondered if the rankings should have been switched.
Playing with poise and confidence, No. 24 Oregon won the first two games against visiting No. 8 Washington at McArthur Court. It was the first time the Huskies, undefeated entering the match, lost two games this season.
“We started off really good in the beginning,” Oregon outside hitter Heather Meyers said. “We had a lot of confidence. We had the energy.”
Washington returned for the third game and showed why it is a top-10 team by taking the final three games to win the match in five (28-30, 26-30, 30-16, 30-25, and 15-11).
The same confidence Oregon showed in the first two games disappeared in the last three.
“We just didn’t come out focused in that third game – plain and simple,” outside hitter Sonja Newcombe said. “You could see it from the start – just making errors that we hadn’t been making the rest of the night and in these types of games you just can’t make those errors. There’s no time to play catch-up.”
By losing, Oregon missed an opportunity for a win to open Pacific-10 Conference play, and turned to its Saturday night match against Washington State. Oregon extended its winless streak in five-game matches to 1998.
Last season, Oregon’s five-game loss to Washington set off an eight-match losing streak to end the season.
“This is way different than last year,” Newcombe said. “This loss will not devastate us in any way. It’ll motivate us beyond belief. It’s a completely different situation and we’re a completely different team.”
The Ducks, now 12-2 overall, are no longer satisfied with pushing the top teams, much the way they did last season when they finished short of wins.
“This isn’t a moral victory. This isn’t anything,” coach Jim Moore said. “Let’s hope we learn you got to play to win than come out and hope the other team gives it to us ’cause obviously a team like that’s not going to do it.”
Oregon acted as the aggressor in taking a 7-1 lead to start game one off the play of Gorana Maricic and Meyers, who had 15 kills in her first Pac-10 match. The Ducks maintained the lead through six ties until Maricic’s kill clinched the game.
Game two had Oregon again taking the lead and creating a four point advantage, 23-19, off Newcombe and Maricic kills. Washington narrowed it to 27-26, but Maricic, who had a career high 33 kills, 20 digs and 38 points, had a kill and ace to close the game.
“Everyone was really excited and ready to go and to just get up here and nerves get the best of you, I guess,” said Newcombe, trying to explain what happened in the final three games.
Oregon, within a game of a sweep, instead looked unsettled and Washington took advantage with a 9-3 run to start game three that went to 18-6 before Washington’s Jessica Swarbick used a kill for the win.
Washington built a 15-7 lead in game four, before Oregon rallied to within one, 21-20, then saw the Huskies take control and win, 30-25.
The Huskies led all of game five and although Oregon pulled to within one at 11-10, Meyer’s service error – one of her team-high four – gave Washington a 12-10 lead and eventual match-clinching 15-11 win.
Washington’s Stevie Mussie had 27 kills and Jenna Hagglund had 61 assists.
“Oregon has a great team,” said Husky Christal Morrison, who had 17 kills and 10 digs. “They got some great players on their team and we knew it was going to be a dogfight and that’s what it ended up being.”
Washington State
Oregon regrouped on Saturday and although the Ducks lacked energy, the focus was there in a three-game sweep of visiting Washington State (30-24, 30-24, 30-22).
Newcombe led Oregon with a match-high 15 kills and Maricic, following up her career night the day before, had 10 kills Saturday.
Oregon maintained a lead most of game one and won, 30-24. They recovered from a 6-1 deficit in game two and earned a 30-24 win. In game three, they led the entire way to a 30-22 match deciding win.
“We were sort of lifeless out there and I finally said in the middle of game two, ‘OK, we can have some life out here and start having some fun. It’s all over. We’re over it now’ and so they did a little bit better job of that,” Moore said.
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Ducks take No. 8 Huskies to brink
Daily Emerald
September 23, 2007
Dave Martinez
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