Friday, November 16
Eugene, OR
7:00 PM
University of Oregon
18-10, 12-7Pac-12
2
vs
3
Colorado
16-12, 8-9Pac-12
1
2
3
4
5
F
Colorado
19
25
25
20
16
3
Oregon
25
22
21
25
14
2
Photo by: Samuel Marshall
Ducks Drop Home Finale To Buffs
11/16/18 | Women's Volleyball
Oregon volleyball is still holding out hopes of hosting NCAA Tournament play, but Friday's loss to visiting Colorado didn't help the Ducks' case.
EUGENE, Ore. — The Oregon volleyball team's hopes of hosting postseason play took a significant hit Friday night, when the Ducks dropped a five-set match with visiting Colorado, 19-25, 25-22, 25-21, 20-25, 16-14, before 3,028 fans in Matthew Knight Arena.
The Ducks fell to 18-10 overall and 11-7 in Pac-12 play entering the final weekend of conference play. Oregon plays Wednesday at Washington and Saturday at Oregon State to close out the regular season.
"I thought we had to go 4-0 to make our case as strong as possible," UO coach Matt Ulmer said. "I thought if we went 3-1 we would be right on the bubble — on the bubble, out. Unless the people just ahead of us mess up more. But we wanted to keep it in our control as much as possible; now I think we need a lot of help."
How It Happened: The Ducks roared out to an impressive start in front of an energetic home crowd. Oregon led 10-7 in the opening set and then broke it open with five straight points, a run that included a kill and two blocks by Willow Johnson — who finished with a match-high 18 kills. Taylor Borup spiked home another kill that capped a four-point run to a 19-8 lead, and the Ducks held off a late Colorado surge to win 25-19.
The second and third sets played out in similar fashion. In each case the teams were going back-and-forth midway through the match; both were tied 15-15. Two kills by Johnson gave the Ducks three straight points and an 18-16 lead in the second, but the Buffaloes stormed back to win 25-22. In the third set, a kill by Lindsey Vander Weide kept things tied at 18-18, but again Colorado finished well and won 25-21.
Their backs against the wall, the Ducks scored the first six points of the fourth set. Three points from Vander Weide and two by Ronika Stone contributed to a five-point run that put Oregon up 12-4 — but by that point, Borup was on the bench icing the ankle injury that has dogged her for the past several weeks. The Ducks again fended off a late Colorado surge to win a set, with Johnson recording two kills and a block for Oregon's final three points. But they entered the decisive fifth set without one of their most well-rounded players in Borup, who aggravated her ankle injury late in Wednesday's win over Utah.
"She just can't catch a break right now," Ulmer said. "I didn't think she was going to play today, and then she told me she was gonna do it. Her two roommates are Lauren Page and Lindsey Vander Weide — two seniors — and I think she just wanted to play for them."
Colorado broke open the fifth set with a four-point run to lead 7-4. The Ducks put together four straight themselves to tie it 12-12, thanks to some tough balls dug out by Brooke Nuneviller. Stone tied it again at 14-14, but Colorado scored two straight after that to win the set and the match.
Who Stood Out: Johnson's career-high 18 kills were accompanied by just three errors, as she hit .441. Stone added 17 kills and Vander Weide had 16, but she hit .132 as the Buffaloes spoiled her Senior Night. Among her classmates, August Raskie had 58 assists and 13 digs, Page had nine kills with six blocks, and Sumeet Gill had one kill off the bench. Nuneviller led all players with 30 digs.
What It Means: Oregon entered this week at No. 23 in the NCAA's RPI rankings, hoping to parlay a strong finish into a top-16 seed in the NCAA Tournament — and thus the opportunity to host the opening rounds of postseason play. The Ducks helped their cause with Wednesday's win over Utah, but Colorado was at No. 50 in the RPI entering this week.
Quotable:
Head coach Matt Ulmer
On playing in front of an energetic crowd
"I thought it was a neat send-off for the seniors. I would have liked to have won it, but it was a nice environment to play in. A playoff atmosphere.
On anticipating playing without Borup next week, to get her healthy for the postseason
"We're a really good team with her on the floor. We're a good team without her on the floor, but with her we can be special."
Notable: Nuneviller recorded 30 or more digs for the second time this season and extended her streak of having double-digit digs to 20 straight matches ... Raskie notched her seventh match with 50 or more assists ... Raskie recorded her team-leading 12 double-doubles while Vander Weide earned her 11th ... Oregon lost for just the second time when winning the first set and leading attack percentage ... The Ducks are now 2-2 in five-set matches this season.
Up Next: The Ducks go on the road against the Huskies on Wednesday (6 p.m., Pac-12).
The Ducks fell to 18-10 overall and 11-7 in Pac-12 play entering the final weekend of conference play. Oregon plays Wednesday at Washington and Saturday at Oregon State to close out the regular season.
"I thought we had to go 4-0 to make our case as strong as possible," UO coach Matt Ulmer said. "I thought if we went 3-1 we would be right on the bubble — on the bubble, out. Unless the people just ahead of us mess up more. But we wanted to keep it in our control as much as possible; now I think we need a lot of help."
How It Happened: The Ducks roared out to an impressive start in front of an energetic home crowd. Oregon led 10-7 in the opening set and then broke it open with five straight points, a run that included a kill and two blocks by Willow Johnson — who finished with a match-high 18 kills. Taylor Borup spiked home another kill that capped a four-point run to a 19-8 lead, and the Ducks held off a late Colorado surge to win 25-19.
The second and third sets played out in similar fashion. In each case the teams were going back-and-forth midway through the match; both were tied 15-15. Two kills by Johnson gave the Ducks three straight points and an 18-16 lead in the second, but the Buffaloes stormed back to win 25-22. In the third set, a kill by Lindsey Vander Weide kept things tied at 18-18, but again Colorado finished well and won 25-21.
Their backs against the wall, the Ducks scored the first six points of the fourth set. Three points from Vander Weide and two by Ronika Stone contributed to a five-point run that put Oregon up 12-4 — but by that point, Borup was on the bench icing the ankle injury that has dogged her for the past several weeks. The Ducks again fended off a late Colorado surge to win a set, with Johnson recording two kills and a block for Oregon's final three points. But they entered the decisive fifth set without one of their most well-rounded players in Borup, who aggravated her ankle injury late in Wednesday's win over Utah.
"She just can't catch a break right now," Ulmer said. "I didn't think she was going to play today, and then she told me she was gonna do it. Her two roommates are Lauren Page and Lindsey Vander Weide — two seniors — and I think she just wanted to play for them."
Colorado broke open the fifth set with a four-point run to lead 7-4. The Ducks put together four straight themselves to tie it 12-12, thanks to some tough balls dug out by Brooke Nuneviller. Stone tied it again at 14-14, but Colorado scored two straight after that to win the set and the match.
Who Stood Out: Johnson's career-high 18 kills were accompanied by just three errors, as she hit .441. Stone added 17 kills and Vander Weide had 16, but she hit .132 as the Buffaloes spoiled her Senior Night. Among her classmates, August Raskie had 58 assists and 13 digs, Page had nine kills with six blocks, and Sumeet Gill had one kill off the bench. Nuneviller led all players with 30 digs.
What It Means: Oregon entered this week at No. 23 in the NCAA's RPI rankings, hoping to parlay a strong finish into a top-16 seed in the NCAA Tournament — and thus the opportunity to host the opening rounds of postseason play. The Ducks helped their cause with Wednesday's win over Utah, but Colorado was at No. 50 in the RPI entering this week.
Quotable:
Head coach Matt Ulmer
On playing in front of an energetic crowd
"I thought it was a neat send-off for the seniors. I would have liked to have won it, but it was a nice environment to play in. A playoff atmosphere.
On anticipating playing without Borup next week, to get her healthy for the postseason
"We're a really good team with her on the floor. We're a good team without her on the floor, but with her we can be special."
Notable: Nuneviller recorded 30 or more digs for the second time this season and extended her streak of having double-digit digs to 20 straight matches ... Raskie notched her seventh match with 50 or more assists ... Raskie recorded her team-leading 12 double-doubles while Vander Weide earned her 11th ... Oregon lost for just the second time when winning the first set and leading attack percentage ... The Ducks are now 2-2 in five-set matches this season.
Up Next: The Ducks go on the road against the Huskies on Wednesday (6 p.m., Pac-12).
Team Stats
COLO
ORE
Kills
59
76
Errors
23
25
Attempts
186
190
Hitting %
.194
.268
Points
71.5
87.0
Assists
58
70
Aces
4
3
Blocks
8.5
8.0
Game Leaders
Kills
18
Aces
0
Blocks
4
Kills
17
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
16
Aces
2
Blocks
0
Kills
9
Aces
0
Blocks
6
Players Mentioned
OH/RS
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's VolleyballRS
/ Women's Volleyball
L/OH
/ Women's VolleyballMB/OH
/ Women's Volleyball
S/RS
/ Women's VolleyballMB
/ Women's VolleyballOH
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