Like it does every fall, football fever has overtaken the University of Oregon campus.
The Ducks are ranked No. 4 in the nation and are set to take on No. 9 Stanford in prime time tomorrow. The ESPN GameDay crew is here, and the University again finds itself in the national spotlight. A win over Stanford would likely catapult the Ducks into the national title discussion — and might even allow Oregon to move past the blue turf-lovin’ Boise State Broncos in national polls.
But you already knew that.
So, fellow Oregon students, a piece of unsolicited advice:
If you’re struggling to find something to do during your lengthy pre-game tailgate Saturday, I’d recommend paying attention to another highly touted Oregon team you might not know so much about.
The No. 11 women’s volleyball team finds itself 14-0 after a historic upset of then-No. 7 University of Washington on Saturday. In that game, the Ducks topped the Huskies in Eugene for the first time in a decade.
On the surface, that’s impressive, but not all that remarkable. After all, the Pac-10 is the strongest volleyball league in the country with six schools ranked in the top 12 nationally.
But many expected the volleyball team to encounter its fair share of struggles this season. The Ducks lost seniors Neticia Enesi, Nevena Djordjevic and Sonja Newcombe to graduation from a team that finished 20-10 and earned an NCAA tournament berth.
To put those losses in perspective, that trio essentially made Oregon volleyball during the past few years.
Newcombe finished her Oregon career as the career leader in points (1,852) third in attacks (4,318) and digs (1,233), and fourth in kills (1,580). She was named a second-team All-American her senior year.
Enesi is No.1 in Oregon history with 389 block assists, third in points (1,315.5), and fifth in total blocks (436). She was a third-team All American her senior year.
Djordjevic is Oregon’s career leader in assists with 4,400. She earned All-Pac-10 honorable mention honors her senior year.
So, yeah. That’s a lot of talent to replace. To make matters worse, there’s only one upperclassman (Heather Meyers) in the Ducks’ regular playing rotation to replace the massive void.
Because of that, logic would dictate Oregon would regress this season.
Instead, the Ducks have taken a step forward. Sophomore Katherine Fischer has continued to improve from her All Pac-10 freshman campaign, checking in at No. 4 in the conference in aces per set (.42 per) and No. 8 in points per set (4.57).
Redshirt sophomore Alaina Bergsma has been a revelation since arriving on campus as a transfer from Loyola Marymount. She recently earned both Pac-10 Player of the Week and National Player of the Week honors for her play last weekend against the Washington schools.
Sophomore libero Haley Jacob ranks sixth in the Pac-10 in digs, freshman middle blocker Ariana Williams is No. 6 in hitting percentage, and sophomore outside hitter Jocelyn Levig and sophomore Kellie Kawasaki have made strong contributions.
Heck, a few months ago freshman setter Lauren Plum was navigating the halls of Poway High School in Southern California. Now, Plum leads the Pac-10 in assists per set with 12.23.
The team’s lone upperclassman, Meyers, has also been excellent, leading the Pac-10 in service aces with .78 per set and checking in at No. 7 in points, but is only a part of the Ducks’ success this season.
You get the point. With the exception of Meyers, the players on this Ducks squad will be around for a while. If the team matures like you could reasonably expect, look out. Some of the Pac-10’s premier players will be lost to graduation after this year. I’m looking at you, Stanford outside hitter Alix Klineman. That means the conference should be up for grabs for the next several seasons.
And if the early returns are any indication, the Ducks will be right there in contention. So why not jump on the bandwagon now, while there’s still space and front row seats to be had.
[email protected]