Heartbreaker in Seattle

Sunday, October 13

Seattle, WA

2:00 PM

University of Oregon

5-10, 1-5Pac-12

Washington

13-3, 4-2Pac-12

Oregon

Washington

Photo by: Samuel Marshall

10/13/19 | Women's Volleyball

Box Score #11 UW 3, Oregon 2

By: Nate Krueger

SEATTLE – The Oregon volleyball team opened up a 2-0 lead over No. 11 Washington after a terrific start on Sunday afternoon, but the Huskies came roaring back to hand the Ducks a heartbreaking 23-25, 21-25, 25-20, 25-18, 15-11 loss at Alaska Airlines Arena.

How it Happened: The Ducks (5-10, 1-5) started strong in front of 3,558 rowdy Husky fans, jumping out to an 11-5 lead thanks to a 9-1 run that included back-to-back aces by Elise Ferreira and a pair of Karson Bacon kills. Oregon stretched its lead to 17-10 following a solo block by Abby Hansen before Washington (13-3, 4-2) reeled off six points in seven rallies to get within 18-16, but Willow Johnson answered with a kill to get UO's lead back to three. The Ducks led 22-19 when the Huskies went on a 4-1 run to pull even, 23-23, but Taylor Williams responded with a block and Washington followed with an attack error as Oregon pulled out the opening set, 25-23.

The second set was tied, 11-11, when UW scored three out of four to take a two-point lead, but Oregon answered with a 7-0 run that featured a pair of Ronika Stone kills to take control, 19-14. Kills by Johnson and Brooke Nuneviller pushed Oregon's lead to 21-16, and the Ducks took advantage of three straight UW errors to earn set point. Oregon took a timeout after a pair of Washington points, and Stone and Bacon combined on a block to send the Ducks into intermission with a 2-0 lead.

A kill and two aces by Nuneviller fueled a 6-1 run in the third that gave Oregon a 12-9 advantage, but Washington responded with its own 6-1 stretch to take a 15-13 lead at the media timeout. UW broke a 15-15 tie with three consecutive points, and later forced an Oregon timeout after back-to-back kills by Claire Hoffman made it 22-18. Johnson put down a kill out of the timeout, but that's as close as Oregon would get as Washington pushed the match to a fourth frame.

The two teams traded multiple 3-0 runs early in the fourth set before Washington broke a 13-13 tie with a stretch of six points in seven plays to take a 19-14 lead. The Ducks scored four out of six to get within 21-18, but a service error gave the momentum back to the Huskies as Washington scored the final four points of the frame to send the match to a fifth and final game.

A kill by Nuneviller made it 2-2 early in the fifth, but the Huskies ripped off four straight to take command of the shortened final set. Trailing 11-5, Oregon answered with a 4-0 run of its own on three UW errors and an ace by Ferreira. Stone got UO back within 12-10 with a kill, but Washington standout Kara Bajema put down kills on back-to-back swings to give UW match point. The Huskies followed with a service error, but then finished off the comeback on a kill by Avie Niece.

Who Stood Out: Nuneviller led the Ducks with 16 kills while adding 15 digs and four aces. Johnson finished with 11 kills, and Stone put down 10. Ferreira matched Nuneviller with four aces while pacing Oregon with 25 assists, and Kylie Robinson added 18 assists and a season-high 12 digs as the Ducks moved to a 6-2 system. Georgia Murphy shined defensively with a match-high 22 digs, the most this season for Oregon's talented freshman libero.

Notable: Hansen finished with four blocks, including two solo, and two kills in her Oregon and collegiate debut … Nuneviller notched her team-leading 10th double-double of the season while Robinson recorded the first of her career … Ferreira finished with eight digs, just missing her first double-double … The Ducks and Huskies have now gone to five sets in three of their last four meetings.

Up Next: Oregon will return to Eugene to host UCLA and USC next Friday and Sunday, respectively, in Matthew Knight Arena.