The Oregon volleyball team has mixed viewpoints as it heads to Corvallis tonight to take on Oregon State.
For the nine freshmen on the Oregon roster, the Beavers simply present another opponent and another chance for the Ducks to pick up their first Pacific-10 Conference win of the season.
“I know there’s kind of a rivalry there,” said freshman Sarah Mason, a native of Hilo, Hawaii. “But I’m not really worried about it.”
For the five returning athletes on the Duck roster, tonight’s 88th installment of the Civil War is about pride and the chance to win on the Beavers’ home court for the second year in a row.
“We’re so pumped,” sophomore Jaclyn Jones said. “I can’t wait to get there and beat them. That was our one win last year, so I’m going to be there with good memories.”
Oregon head coach Carl Ferreira said regardless of how each athlete views the Civil War, tonight’s match presents an excellent chance for a win. The Ducks (3-10 overall, 0-4 Pac-10) have stayed competitive against some of the nation’s elite and will enter Corvallis as a confident team.
“We’ve started Pac-10 play with the No, 1, 4, 8 and (12th) ranked teams in the country,” Ferreira said. “Now we play our in-state rival and there’s a lot of significance to playing an in-state rivalry match.”
Ferreira also had former Oregon quarterback Chris Miller address the team on Wednesday about the importance of the Civil War.
“I think it’s awesome,” said Ferreira about having the former NFL quarterback share his thoughts. “If you can (listen to) experienced alumni that have been there and done that and understand the process, that’s always great.”
Like the Ducks, Oregon State is looking for its first Pac-10 win. The Beavers (10-6, 0-4) come into tonight’s game after beating Portland 3-0 on Tuesday. The Pilots handled the Ducks, 3-1, Sept. 23 in Portland.
Leading Oregon’s attack tonight will be Jones, who has led the team in points for three consecutive matches. She started her streak against Portland with 19.5 points and continued it against UCLA (16) and USC (10.5).
“For (Jones), it’s all about confidence,” Ferreira said. “When she’s confident, she’s a physical finisher. She’s got a terminating arm, and she can end plays for us.”
Sophomore Kelly Russell led the Ducks with 14 kills the last time they ventured to Corvallis. Junior Lauren Westendorf added 13 kills and two blocks.
The Beavers are led by junior Allison Lawrence, who is averaging 3.65 kills per game. Junior Anne Watts-Roberts is second in kills with 3.25 and leads the team in digs with 3.39 per game.
The Ducks are hoping to maintain the high energy level with which they’ve competed lately. This confident energy is evident in the play of Mason. The 6-foot-3-inch outside hitter is routinely seen exciting her teammates and letting her opponents know she won’t be intimidated.
“Picking yourself up, picking the team up, putting the other team down, getting in their face, throwing them off — (my excitement) brings a lot of energy to the team,” Mason said. “It’s always good to play with energy.”