University of Oregon
4-1
Northern Illinois
0-7
Ducks Cruise Past NIU, Sweep Oregon Classic
09/02/17 | Women's Volleyball
No. 14 Oregon swept Northern Illinois in impressive fashion on Saturday, 25-12, 25-15, 25-15, to complete an undefeated weekend in the Oregon Classic
EUGENE, Ore. - The 14th-ranked Oregon volleyball team swept Northern Illinois in impressive fashion on Saturday afternoon, 25-12, 25-15, 25-15, to complete an undefeated weekend in the Oregon Classic at Matthew Knight Arena.
The Ducks (4-1) were dominant against the Huskies (0-7), pulling away in each of the three sets and hitting a terrific .442 as a team. Oregon finishes 3-0 on the weekend to win the Oregon Classic, and opens its 2017 home schedule with three wins in three days, including a pair of sweeps.
"Northern Illinois is a good team and I liked the way we fought and kept our energy up today," said head coach Matt Ulmer. "I thought we executed much better today than last night. Everybody stepped up."
How it Happened: The Ducks used a strong effort in the service game to run away from NIU in the opening set, putting down five aces with two from Ronika Stone. Oregon took command early with a 9-2 lead, and finished the set on a 7-2 run capped by a Lindsey Vander Weide ace. UO hit .429 in the opening set while holding NIU to a .071 clip.
NIU took a 6-4 lead early in the second, but the Ducks ripped off five straight points to take back the lead and the momentum. Oregon would continue to separate, finishing the set on a 21-9 run to take a 2-0 lead into intermission. Vander Weide and Stone combined for nine of UO's 17 kills in the set.
Tied, 6-6, in the third, the Ducks once again used a big run to gain separation, this time a 10-2 stretch to take control, 16-8. The Huskies were unable to trim the deficit to less than six the rest of the way as Oregon cruised the rest of the way to the sweep.
Who Stood Out: Vander Weide enjoyed her best match of the season, hitting .440 with a team-best 14 kills to go with 12 digs for her third double-double. Stone put down seven kills on 10 swings without an error to establish a new career-best for hitting percentage (.700), as did Willow Johnson with eight kills on 14 swings (.571). Sumeet Gill led the Ducks with five blocks, and Maggie Scott paced the Oregon offense with 23 assists to go with five digs.Check out some of the top highlights from today's sweep of Northern Illinois #GoDucks https://t.co/im7VgrbWrW
— Oregon Volleyball (@OregonVB) September 2, 2017
Oregon was very strong in the service game throughout the night, recording a season-best eight aces after opening with five in the first set. Vander Weide, Scott and Stone each had two, and Jolie Rasmussen and Alex Hojnar each added one.
All-Tournament Team: Stone was named the MVP of the Oregon Classic, with Vander Weide and Scott joining her on the all-tournament team. Stone was stellar with a .462 hitting percentage while averaging 2.09 kills per set, and led the Ducks with seven aces to go with 13 blocks. Vander Weide averaged a team-best 3.73 kills per set with 3.36 digs per set and four aces, and Scott dished out 69 assists (6.27 a/s) with 18 digs and three aces.
Notable: Rasmussen saw action for the second time this season as she continues to work her way back from injury … The Ducks held the Huskies to less than 40 percent on side-out opportunities in all three sets … The Huskies hit .100 or worse in each of the three sets … The Ducks are now 6-0 in the last two years in the Oregon Classic.
Up Next: The Ducks will remain at home to host another four-team tournament, the Nike Classic, with Cal Poly, Wichita State and Duquesne coming to MKA. Oregon will open the three-day tournament on Thursday at 6 p.m. against Cal Poly on Pac-12 Networks.
Matt Ulmer Post-Match Interview
