The No. 13 Oregon women’s volleyball team narrowly missed a sweep of Arizona and Arizona State this weekend.
And though a split in the tough Pacific-10 Conference would normally be an acceptable result, the Ducks couldn’t help but think they let an opportunity slip away.
After taking out Arizona State on Friday in four sets, the Ducks were up 2-1 against Arizona on Saturday. Yet the Wildcats, without the services of Whitney Dosty, one of their top players, managed to pull off a valiant comeback, taking the fourth and fifth sets.
“They lost one of their best players and we didn’t take advantage,” Oregon coach Jim Moore said. “We’re up 2-1 and we didn’t take advantage of it.”
The weekend could have been even worse for the Ducks, if it weren’t for what Moore termed a “gutsy win” over Arizona State on Friday.
The Ducks started out flat, dropping the first set 25-19 to the Sun Devils, while hitting a woeful .036.
Oregon rebounded in an easy 25-15 second set victory. While the Ducks only hit .229, outside hitter Heather Meyers was fantastic, contributing three service aces and six kills.
Oregon took a grueling third set 28-26, before coasting to a 25-21 win in the decisive fourth set.
And while the Ducks had no qualms about the final result, the 3-1 victory wasn’t exactly pretty.
Oregon hit only .192 for the match and was outblocked 17-3. Loyola Marymount transfer Alaina Bergsma led the Ducks in hitting with 19 kills and a .342 hitting percentage and Heather Meyers chipped in six service aces, but it was a rough night for Oregon.
“We were outplayed in every facet of the game, yet we won,” Moore said.
Regardless of the Ducks’ sluggish performance, it was generally acknowledged that a better showing would be needed to top the Wildcats on Saturday.
“We’re going to have to play a lot better to beat Arizona, that’s for sure,” Moore said.
And the Ducks did play better Saturday — just not well enough to top a determined Wildcat squad.
Despite the absence of Dosty to an injury, Arizona pulled out a five-set thriller, 3-2.
For most of the night, it looked like the contest would follow the same script as the Oregon and Arizona State match from the previous night.
After dropping the opening set to Arizona 25-22, the Ducks came back to win the second and third sets, 28-26 and 25-21, respectively.
But unlike Friday, the Ducks couldn’t close out a win. The Wildcats took the fourth set 25-19 then edged Oregon 15-11 in the decisive fifth.
“They outplayed us,” Moore said. “They were down one of their best players in Whitney Dosty and their backs were against the wall.”
There were bright spots for Oregon, of course.
Bergsma continued her strong play, notching a team-high 20 kills and .395 hitting percentage. That marked the fourth time this year Bergsma has led Oregon in both categories.
Meyers led the Ducks in points (23) and posted four aces, while setter Lauren Plum had a season-high assists total with 56.
In the latter stages of the fifth set, the Ducks weren’t able to come up with clutch points. Given Oregon’s youth, it’s understandable the Ducks would struggle down the stretch.
But in the future, Moore hopes his team will handle those tense situations with more confidence.
“We have to look forward,” Moore said. “We have to play with confidence and quit playing carefully and playing behind us.”
Oregon will try to bring that into next weekend’s home match against rival Oregon State. The annual Civil War will start at 7 p.m. Friday at McArthur Court.
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No. 13 Oregon splits weekend series with Arizona and Arizona State
Daily Emerald
October 9, 2010
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