The Ducks struggled to finish off sets once again on Friday, as they fell 3-1 (25-22, 19-25, 28-26, 29-27) to No. 10 UCLA.
“Just real disappointed that we couldn’t finish,” head coach Jim Moore said, running a hand over his face in disbelief. “We didn’t put the ball on the floor at crunch time.”
Oregon faced similar struggles in their losses against Nebraska, Colorado and Washington earlier in the season, but it still hasn’t learned to push the final points. As a result of the loss, Oregon’s record fell to 10-8 overall, 4-5 in the Pac-12.
“We start to play timid,” outside hitter Lindsey Vander Weide said. “Instead of pounding the ball, we try to take some off and it goes into the block.”
Tonight’s match was a high profile one for the Ducks. Oregon hosted the Women in Flight Match, as well as its annual pink game, and filled Matthew Knight Arena with fans clad in pink to support breast cancer awareness.
Using the energy of the packed gym, Oregon took a commanding 7-1 lead before UCLA called a timeout. Oregon held on to its early lead with big kills by Kacey Nady and Martenne Bettendorf until three-quarters through the set, when the Bruins went on a scoring run. The first time Oregon lost its lead in set one was when UCLA took the 23-22 advantage, and by that point Oregon couldn’t keep up. UCLA won the first set 25-22 after a nine-point scoring run.
“At the end, we start playing different,” Vander Weide said. “That has to stop.”
In set two, Oregon and UCLA remained neck and neck until Oregon pulled ahead after a kill by Chelsey Keoho to take the 11-7 lead. But just two plays after, the action stopped as Vander Weide sat on the floor in pain. The Ducks’ second-leading scorer exited the court with a twisted ankle and Frankie Shebby entered in her place. Vander Weide’s replacement proved her worth early on, scoring eight kills by the midpoint of set three. After Vander Weide left the court, the Ducks banded together to win the set 25-19 and tie the match 1-1.
“She just tweaked her ankle,” Moore said. “It scared her more than anything.”
It wasn’t long before Vander Weide rejoined the game, but in her absence Shebby continued to score for Oregon. Moore said his more-scarred-than-injured outside was ready to get back in fairly quickly, but because Shebby was having such a good set, he decided to keep her in.
“Frankie played well,” Moore said, adding that she has “had good energy in practice.”
In set three, Shebby and Bettendorf continued to demonstrate their offensive prowess, before Vander Weide came back to play the end of the set. Bettendorf led the team in kills with 16 by the end of set three, while Maggie Scott added 39 assists. But Vander Weide’s return wasn’t enough for Oregon, as it was defeated 26-28 after an illegal back row attack, giving the Bruins a 2-1 advantage.
 
The Bruins took an early 5-3 lead in the fourth set, but the Ducks soon tied at eight with a kill from Shebby, who remained in the game even after Vander Weide’s return. Also in the fourth set, freshman Lauren Page made her home-court debut. The California-native took the bench with an injury earlier in the season, allowing Sumeet Gill to take her place at middle. A big set for Bettendorf brought Oregon the 22-16 lead before the Bruins pushed back and took the set 29-27, and the match 3-1.
Despite the loss, senior scoring leader Bettendorf made 24 kills for the Ducks in just four sets, followed by Shebby who added 11.
“Mar had her best match of the year,” Moore said. “And that’s a real good thing.”
Next up, Oregon takes on undefeated No. 1 USC on Sunday at Matthew Knight Arena. Trying to learn from tonight’s mistakes and prepare for the Trojans, Moore had only one goal for his team:
“Gotta show up first point Sunday,” Moore said.
Follow Madison Layton on Twitter @MadisonLayton01