Five players from the Oregon volleyball team have transferred or left the team for personal reasons, the Emerald learned Friday.
Heather Gilmore, Lindsay Murphy, Diana Blank and Erika Widmark — all currently juniors — as well as sophomore Alisa Nelson, have all left the team. According to senior Amanda Porter, Gilmore has decided to transfer to Idaho State, where her sister, Kylie, is currently a sophomore.
Gilmore declined to discuss the specifics of her decision, but did release a prepared statement through Idaho State regarding the move.
“I’m happy to be in Pocatello,” she said. “I’m looking forward to competing with my sister at Idaho State. I think this will be a great move for me. I enjoyed my time at Oregon and will cherish the memories I have from there.”
Derek Smolik, assistant director of sports information for the Bengals, said Gilmore has already enrolled in classes at Idaho State.
Murphy has also decided to transfer, and will attend Eastern Washington next season.
“She’ll start for us, for sure,” Eastern Washington head coach Wade Benson said. “In my opinion, she’s one of the best ball-control players in the nation.
“We’re really excited that she’s coming. We think she’s going to be a big factor for us. Lindsay fits into our system extremely well.”
Benson added that Murphy will attend Eastern Washington in the spring because she “wanted a chance to say goodbye to everybody.”
Blank has decided not to transfer, but left the team for her own “happiness.”
“It was a very personal decision,” she said. “I needed to do what was best for me. I needed to make sure I was doing this for my own happiness. It wouldn’t be fair to go out there and not give 100 percent each day.”
Nelson’s and Widmark’s reasons for leaving the team are still unknown. Neither could be reached for comment.
“I think it was all for the best,” Porter said. “Everybody made personal choices. Everybody is happy.”
Gilmore was sixth on the team last season with 93 kills, while Murphy, who primarily played the libero position, easily led the team with 321 digs. Blank played in a career-high 82 games and posted 12 service aces.
Nelson was felled by a leg injury for most of the season and was able to play in just 10 games while Widmark was credited with 40 digs in 34 games.
While the Ducks will lose five players to a squad that finished last in the Pacific-10 Conference, Oregon will be returning six players, including Jodi Bell, who was named the Newcomer of the Year, and Lauren Westendorf, named the Most Improved.
Head coach Carl Ferreira will also have three freshmen joining the program next season.