Stone, Johnson Making Names For Themselves As Freshmen

EUGENE, Ore. – Owing to their famous fathers, Willow Johnson and Ronika Stone already enjoyed some notoriety before joining the Oregon volleyball program. They're earning more with their play as Ducks.

Both Stone, the daughter of two-time Super Bowl champion offensive lineman Ron, and Johnson, whose father is baseball Hall-of-Fame pitcher Randy, are key cogs in the Ducks' rotation as they enter the final weekend of nonconference play this fall. The UO volleyball team hosts No. 21 Illinois on Friday in Matthew Knight Arena (7 p.m., Pac-12 Networks), part of the three-day Nike Invitational that also includes Belmont and Saint Mary's.

Stone is Oregon's leading hitter among players with 30 or more kills, at .385, and her 1.28 blocks per set lead the team. She and Johnson are two of the four UO regulars averaging at least two kills per set, helping the nationally regarded freshman class begin to fulfill its exceptional promise.

"They are as willing to learn as anybody we have on the team, and probably as much as any freshmen we've ever had," said UO coach Jim Moore, whose squad won Tuesday at Seattle for its fourth straight victory. "Considering their backgrounds, where they could have said, 'I know what's going on, just kind of leave me alone,' they have been awesome and incredibly willing to learn, and wanting to get better."

Moore was cautiously optimistic Stone would have an instant impact at Oregon. A 6-foot-2 middle blocker, Stone was a top-10 recruit nationally, the highest rated ever to sign with the Ducks. Last weekend, Stone was named MVP of the Oregon Classic.

"She hasn't disappointed in any way," Moore said. "Right now she's our biggest offensive weapon."

Moore, a big baseball fan, knew that Johnson's father had taken some time to develop early in his career. Thus, the UO coach figured Johnson herself might experience a more methodical developmental process.

But Johnson has played in 14 of 21 sets already this season, and is hitting .302 with 2.07 kills per set.

"I thought it would take a little longer," Moore said. "But boy, she's stepped right in and done an awesome job."

Stone and Johnson take slightly different perspectives on having a famous father, as expressed in the video below. Johnson is determined to make a name for herself, while Stone doesn't shy away at all from the connection to her dad:

(Video by Zach Blaine, UO athletics)

On Tuesday at Seattle, Stone played in all four sets and had 10 kills while contributing two blocks. Johnson played in three of four sets, and had five kills on 13 attacks.

Oregon lost the first set Tuesday, the only set the Ducks have dropped in their four straight match wins. As the start of conference play approaches later this month, the Ducks' play in that first-set loss is among the issues Moore wants to see cleaned up this weekend.

"I'm a little disappointed we didn't attack right from the beginning," Moore said. "We've got to get better at that, which is just part of progressing."