The Oregon volleyball team defeated the Arizona Wildcats 3-0 Sunday morning at Matthew Knight Arena.
The performance marks the second consecutive sweep of Arizona, and Oregon’s third sweep during their five-match winning streak.
The first set was a feeling out process with both teams trading leads back and forth. The Ducks struggled with their accuracy, unable to score consistently off of sets from libero Georgia Murphy and Brooke Nuneviller.
Arizona setter Emily Herman notched 14 assists early on but it wasn’t enough to take the first, with the Ducks scraping by to win 25-23.
Oregon had six players with at least two kills in the first, with Elise Ferreira contributing six assists.
To begin the second set, Gloria Mutiri came out firing with three straight kills and Arizona was forced to call a timeout after falling behind 6-2 early on. Oregon had finally found their offensive rhythm and held onto it for the rest of the match.
Oregon then went on a run behind Nuneviller’s service, scoring eight consecutive points to push their lead to 17-6.
Mutiri shined bright in the second, where she recorded seven of her nine kills, leading Oregon to a 25-13 set victory.
The third set began much like the first, with each team trading attacks. But, before long, the Ducks took control.
Sophomore Morgan Lewis made her presence felt when she executed a block and a kill in consecutive plays, giving the Ducks a 12-8 lead and forcing the Wildcats to call a timeout. She finished withnine kills and four blocks on the game.
It was clearly Oregon’s day. The timeout brought a palpable surge of energy as towels waved and cheers rang out from the Ducks’ sideline. They knew it was time to finish.
It was business as usual with the Ducks playing loose for the rest of the third, cruising to a 25-15 victory, punctuated by a final kill by Nuneviller, who finished with 11 kills, 12 digs and an ace.
Oregon dominated the match, converting on 37% of their attempts to Arizona’s 12%.
The Ducks’ record now sits at 6-2.
The Ducks will play again on Thursday in Salt Lake City for the first of two weekend matches against Utah.
