Second Half of Pac-12 Play Begins at Cal

EUGENE, Ore. – The University of Oregon volleyball team begins the second half of Pac-12 play on the road with a trip to the Bay Area. Looking to stop a three-match slide, the Ducks open the weekend at No. 20 Cal on Friday. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m. (PT) at Haas Pavilion in Berkeley, Calif. In the weekend finale, Oregon travels to fifth-ranked Stanford.

How to Follow
Both matches this weekend will air on the Pac-12 Networks. Links to live stats can be found on the volleyball schedule page on GoDucks.com. Additional in-match updates will be available through @OregonVB on Twitter.

About Cal (17-3, 7-3 Pac-12)
The Bears opened their 2019 campaign with a 10-0 record, and had won seven straight before losing to USC (Oct. 25) last weekend. In the first meeting (Oct. 6) in Eugene, Bailee Huizenga led the team with 13 kills and a .440 hitting percentage. Cal enters the weekend as the top hitting team (.293) in the Pac -12 while holding opponents to a .174 efficiency, the second-best defensive mark in the conference.

About Stanford (14-4, 8-2 Pac-12)
The Cardinal are 5-2 on their home floor this season with setbacks against No. 12 BYU (Sept. 21) and No. 8 Washington (Sept. 29). In the first meeting in Eugene (Oct. 4), Kendall Kipp and Audriana Fitzmorris each had 16 kills in the four-set win. Stanford ranks second in the Pac-12 in hitting percentage (.279). Defensively, the Cardinal is first in blocks (2.80 b/s) and second in digs (15.22 d/s).

Moving on Up
SR MB Ronika Stone enters the weekend four shy of the program's career block assists mark of 389 currently held by Neticia Enesi (2006-10). Overall, Stone has 436.0 total blocks in her standout career which is tied for No. 5 on the UO all-time list. With three points, she will move to seventh on that career list. Stone enters the Cal match with 1,437.5 points and is on track to become the seventh Oregon player to reach 1,500 career points during the rally-scoring era.

Thriving on the Outside
SO OH Brooke Nuneviller was one of the nation's top liberos as a freshman in 2018, but the Chandler, Ariz., native has moved to outside hitter this season and is thriving in the new role. She leads Oregon with 11 doubles-doubles and is ranked among the Pac-12 top 10 in digs per set (3.42), kills per set (3.11) and services aces per set (0.28). Nuneviller is tied with SR MB Ronika Stone for the team lead in kills per set.

Happy Homecoming
Playing in just her second full weekend of the year, RFR MB and Phoenix, Ariz., native Abby Hansen put down a season-high eight kills to go along with a .308 hitting percentage at Arizona State. She followed up with another eight-kill effort coupled with a season-high six total blocks and three aces against Arizona.

Trending Up
RFR MB Karson Bacon is making her defensive presence felt at the net. She has at least five total blocks in four of the last five matches including six blocks at Arizona. She now has five or more blocks in eight matchs this season with a high of eight at No. 6 Pitt (Sept. 11). Meanwhile, FR S Elise Ferreira enters the weekend with a double-double in two of Oregon's last three matches. She has two other matches this season with double-digit assists and eight digs.

Last Time Out
SR MB Ronika Stone registered a season-high 19 kills in a four-set loss at Arizona. The figure was one off her career best and a new high against a Pac-12 team. After dropping the first two sets, the Ducks took the third set and led 22-16 in the fourth before the home team rattled off 10 of the last 12 points of the set to secure the 3-1 win. SR OPP Willow Johnson added 13 kills in the match while SO OH Brooke Nuneviller had nine kills and 11 digs.

Up Next
Oregon returns to Matthew Knight Arena on Thurs., Nov. 7 to host Washington at 8 p.m. (PT). It will mark the beginning of a four-match home stand for the Ducks. The team hosts the Washington and Arizona schools during the stretch.