Just a day after upsetting the No. 2 seed Minnesota Gophers in the Sweet Sixteen, No. 15 Oregon volleyball fell to No. 7 Nebraska 3-0. In the Elite Eight sweep, the Cornhuskers outscored the Ducks in the three sets 25-22, 25-23 and 25-17.
Oregon found itself in a familiar situation to Friday’s matchup against the Gophers: down two in the second set. This time, the Ducks would not recover, falling 3-0 to the Cornhuskers.
Junior Ronika Stone, who secured the Ducks’ final match point against the Gophers to advance to the Elite Eight, finished with nine kills, all in the first two sets. Juniors Willow Johnson and Taylor Borup finished with eight kills apiece.
Oregon opened the match with back-to-back points and held the lead until the first of nine ties in the first set. After a final tie at 20, Nebraska went on a 3-0 run to give the Cornhuskers the momentum to eventually take the set victory 25-22.
Behind a 4-0 run late in the second set, the Cornhuskers tied the match for the first time in the second set at 18 and took its first lead at 20-19. Despite a kill by Lauren Page and another two by Taylor Borup, the Ducks were unable to complete the comeback, falling to Nebraska, 25-23, to trail 2-0.
The Ducks managed an early 7-6 lead in the third, but following a 4-0 run by the Cornhuskers, stumbled and never recovered. The Ducks handed Nebraska eight points in errors, exactly how much the Cornhuskers won by at 25-17.
Nebraska’s win sends the Cornhuskers to their fourth-consecutive Final Four and effectively ended Oregon’s season.
Follow Sierra Webster on Twitter @WebsterSierraE.