With outside hitter Jaclyn Jones, sitting courtside, her injured left leg wrapped, the Oregon volleyball team had a legitimate excuse facing an undefeated San Francisco team. Suffice to say, Oregon wasn’t deterred Friday afternoon.
Standout performances by Kelly Russell and Allyson Leavitt coupled with team-wide contributions helped Oregon blemish San Francisco’s record in four games (25-30, 30-28, 30-27 and 30-25) at Portland State’s Crowne Plaza Showcase.
One night after Oregon (8-1) lost in four games to Portland State and starting “tight” as coach Jim Moore termed it, the Ducks were led by Russell with 18 kills, including three in a 9-2 run to erase a 23-21 game-four deficit and to end the match.
After losing the first game, Moore said Kelly stepped up in the huddle and told her teammates, “We’re going. We are not taking this laying down.”
The veteran leadership, important plays and demoralizing hits were vintage Russell, said Moore.
“Kelly was Kelly as she was in those first three matches (this season),” Moore said. “Everything she touched went on the floor.”
Leavitt had nine kills and Erin Little had 14.
Oregon’s Mira Djuric had 15 kills, including a team-high five service aces. Twice, Djuric ended games with kills – her powerful hits giving a talented San Francisco squad trouble. She had three of four Oregon points to end game two and two of four points to close game 3 – her game ending kill followed by a tongue extension reminiscent of a former Chicago Bulls guard.
Oregon completed the three-day tournament with wins against Evansville 3-2 (30-32, 26-30, 30-24, 30-27 and 15-5) and Cal State Fullerton 3-1 (30-18, 30-26, 27-30, 30-18).
The injury to Jones – a fractured fibula – was caught early, said Moore. It kept Jones from playing the three-day tournament, but Moore said he’s confident she’ll return soon. Trying to maintain the team’s strong start in Jones absence, the 5-foot-9 Leavitt filled in aptly, matching key kills with a vocal presence and matched her nine kill total of Thursday night.
“I’m trying so hard to be a difference and bring energy so it’s not that noticeable that (Jones) not there,” Leavitt said.
It’s not as if her teammates haven’t seen it.
“She does this in practice all the time so it’s not really like a big deal to us,” Russell said. “That’s how she plays. She’s a great competitor.”
San Francisco (8-1) entered play as winners of the 2005 USF Powerade/Asics Classic with a 3-2 win against North Carolina. After winning the first game – running off five straight points one time – and leading the second game 15-12, Oregon chipped away as San Francisco relied on the play of Kristin Hasselberg, KeLicia Shorts and Linzy Kearney. The trio had 15, 13 and 11 kills, respectively.
When Oregon trailed 23-21 in game four, they ran off a five-one run, taking a 26-23 lead and forcing a San Francisco timeout. Two Oregon points later, another San Francisco timeout, but it was too late. Oregon added the final two points to complete the 9-2 run and moved closer to Pacific-10 Conference play with two matches against Fresno State on Sept. 16 and 17, before visiting Arizona State and Arizona on Sept. 23 and 24th, respectively.
“This is a big step because how you handle adversity is how it works,” Moore said. And the senior Russell knows that, having gone through Pac-10 play three times before. She compared Friday’s competition to facing the likes of Arizona State, Washington State and Oregon State. Leavitt summed up the importance of Friday’s performance. “We played like we can play,” she said.