For the second straight year, the No. 18 Ducks (14-6, 7-5 Pac-12) pulled a home upset against a higher ranked Washington (16-4, 8-4) volleyball team. Last season, the then No. 15 Ducks topped then No. 7 Washingon 3-1.
This year, Oregon only needed three sets to disptach their seventh-ranked rivals. The Ducks stunned Washington 27-25, 30-28, 25-18 before 1,340 at Matthew Knight Arena Saturday night.
After winning a back-and-forth first set that saw 15 lead changes, Oregon needed a late comeback to win the second. The Ducks were down 22-16 before going on an 8-2 run to tie the set at 24. The teams traded points before a service ace by Alaina Bergsma gave Oregon a 2-0 lead.
The third set was the match’s least competitive. Oregon used a 10-2 run midway through the set to take control.
Oregon had four players with double digit kills. Bergsma led the Ducks with a match-high 20 kills and a .298 hitting percentage. Liz Brenner (12 kills, .269), Ariana Williams (11, .529), and Katherine Fischer (10, .036) also had stellar offensive performances. Per usual, setter Lauren Plum was Oregon’s offensive catalyst. She tallied a remarkable 52 assists to go along with three kills. The Ducks hit .283 as a team.
Conversely, Washington, which hit .221 for the evening had trouble finding its offensive rhythm. Krista Vansant and Kylin Munoz led the Huskies with only 11 kills apiece, and no other Husky had more than six.
Oregon returns to action at 7:00 p.m. next Friday when they host Utah.