The Oregon volleyball team dropped a match against Arizona on Thursday, 3-0 (30-21, 30-28, 30-19) in front of 438 at the McKale Center.
Led by sophomore Bre Ladd, the Wildcats outhit the Ducks percentage-wise .347 to .245. Ladd finished at .643, including nine kills in 14 attempts. Arizona also got another big performance from sophomore Kim Glass, who finished with 17 points and 11 kills. Glass has registered double-digit kills in 25 consecutive matches.
Despite being outhit for the match, Oregon head coach Carl Ferreira said the Ducks featured an efficient attack in games one (.440) and two (.294).
“One of the things we have been working on is our efficiency,” Ferreira said. “Games one and two tonight were the most efficient we have played all year. That is a big positive for us.”
Arizona (8-10 overall, 2-6 Pacific-10 Conference) was able to take advantage of Oregon’s problems with the service game. The Wildcats finished with 13 service aces, including five from Glass. The Ducks (3-14, 0-8) committed nine service errors.
Freshman Sarah Mason and sophomore Kelly Russell led Oregon with 14 points apiece, each finishing with 11 kills.
Sophomore Jodi Bell added a team high 28 assists.
“Games one and two (were the best) Jodi Bell has ever set,” Ferreira said, “which was reflective of our hitting percentage.”
Sophomore Jennifer Abernathy led Arizona with 13 kills. Junior Jolene Killough finished with 17.5 points and 12 kills. Senior Kelly Griffin-Halfaker contributed a match-high 38 assists.
Oregon wraps up its two-match road trip with tonight’s contest against Arizona State. Unlike the Wildcats, the Sun Devils run a 4-2 offense, which includes two setters on the floor at the same time.
Arizona “has this mega-superstar that can kind of bail them out of situations,” Ferreira said, referring to Glass. “Arizona State kind of comes at you in a wave. They have three hitters for all six rotations and they set them all.”
As of Thursday, Junior Natalie Harris led the Sun Devils with 4.25 kills per game. Senior Juliana Escobar is second with 3.30. Arizona State’s attack is set by the duo of senior Cheryl Anglin and junior Giovana Melo. Anglin leads the team with 435 assists, while Melo has 302.
Harris, Anglin and seniors Kim Mehlhorn and Courtney Blocher have been playing together since they attended Valley Christian High School in Tempe. Escobar and Melo are natives of Brazil.