“Why not this week?”
Those were the words uttered by Oregon head coach Carl Ferreira in reference to his team’s tough, two-game home stand, which begins tonight against Southern California.
Why can’t the Ducks compete with No. 4 USC and No. 8 UCLA in the sweet confines of McArthur Court?
While it may seem improbable for the Ducks (9-10 overall, 1-9 Pac-10) to defeat two of the country’s finest, Ferreira said he has been emphasizing to his team that nothing is impossible.
“It’s my job to make this team believe that they can beat them,” Oregon’s first-year coach said. “If we can understand that, and continue to work hard and execute, we can be successful.”
The new and improved Ducks — who are re-energized after sweeping Oregon State and California-Riverside last weekend — can’t wait to show the Los Angeles kids their fresh attitude.
“Most teams don’t expect much from Oregon volleyball,” junior outside hitter Monique Tobbagi said. “Most people think they can just roll over us. But they’re in for a big surprise this week.”
In the first road trip of the season, the Ducks showed little competition against the Pac-10’s top teams, getting swept in both matches. The loss at UCLA (14-5, 9-2) was Oregon’s most disappointing performance of the season, Ferreira said.
“When we went down there, we were still stinging a bit from the first three conference losses,” Ferreira said. “Against UCLA we had our worst day of the year, there’s no doubt about that.”
As a team, the Ducks hit just .041 from the floor against UCLA — their worst hitting percentage of the season.
“We’re anxious to face UCLA again,” Tobbagi said.
UCLA showcases one of the nation’s best talents in junior hitter Kristee Porter. She leads the Pac-10 in kills and is a National Player of the Year candidate.
Additionally, the Bruins’ Elisabeth Bachman’s 1.41 blocks per game is the best in the conference.
“UCLA is really playing well right now,” Ferreira said of the Bruins’ four-match winning streak. “They’ve elevated their level of play tremendously.”
USC (17-1, 10-1) hit a school record .556 against Oregon Sept. 30. Junior blocker Jennifer Pahl led the Women of Troy with a .769 clip (including 10 kills) in the sweep. USC led Oregon in aces (6-1), digs (37-19) and blocks (5-0), and held the Ducks to a .193 hitting percentage.
In that meeting, though, the Trojans were forced to make a key defensive adjustment to stop the Ducks’ 4-2 Flex offense.
“We’re are going to continue to focus on all of the problems that that system causes,” Tobbagi said.
With the momentum of last weekend’s victories and home court advantage, Ferreira believes the Ducks should have a legitimate shot at pulling off a huge upset.
Energized Ducks may have a surprise for Pac-10 foes
Daily Emerald
October 26, 2000
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