Ducks Close Regular Season Vs. UC Davis and Pacific

EUGENE, Ore. - The Oregon beach volleyball team will wrap up its regular season schedule this weekend with two matches in Davis, Calif. The Ducks will take on UC Davis on its home courts on Friday (10 a.m.) before facing Pacific on Saturday (10 a.m.) in their regular season finale.

The Ducks (3-8) are coming off a 4-1 win over Portland last weekend in Eugene, the first official home match in program history.

DUCKS TAKE MOMENTUM INTO DAVIS
Oregon has won two of its last three matches entering its two-match weekend in Davis. The Ducks swept Concordia (Irvine) on March 27 before beating Portland, 4-1, on Saturday in Eugene. FR Brooke Nuneviller and SR Lindsey Vander Weide have won three straight at the No. 1 court.

NEXT WIN WOULD BE PROGRAM MILESTONE
The Ducks have been building up their beach program since its inception in 2014, but have not exceeded three wins yet in a season. Oregon (3-8) has two regular season matches and the Pac-12 Championship remaining to try and get win No. 4 and more. The Ducks currently have three wins for the second time in program history (2014).

DUCKS BEAT PORTLAND IN FIRST EVER HOME MATCH
Playing a home match in Eugene for the first time in program history, the Ducks pulled out a 4-1 win over Portland on Saturday in front of their home fans at Amazon Park. SO Josie Cole and FR Ally Haden posted the Ducks to a quick 1-0 lead with a 21-9, 21-13 defeat at No. 4, and FR Carly Wallace and FR Elise Ferreria gave Oregon a 2-0 lead with a 24-22, 21-16 sweep at No. 5. After Portland got a point on court two, Oregon's top duo of SR Lindsey Vander Weide and FR Brooke Nuneviller clinched the win with a 21-16, 21-14 victory on the No. 1 court. SR Lauren Page and SR August Raske closed out the day with a 23-21, 21-17 win at No. 3.

NUNEVILLER, VANDER WEIDE BREAK UO SINGLE-SEASON WINS RECORD
The Ducks' No. 1 duo of FR Brooke Nuneviller and SR Lindsey Vander Weide are enjoying the most successful season by a pair in the young history of Oregon beach volleyball. The pair is 7-4 on the year, breaking the UO single-season wins record for a pair with their win vs. Portland on Saturday. Nuneviller and Vander Weide are also only one win away from tying the UO career wins record for a pair, set by Ronika Stone and Maggie Scott (2017-18). Vander Weide owns the most individual wins in program history with 16 in her career.

HARRER PROMOTED TO FULL-TIME ASSISTANT
After serving as the volunteer assistant coach in 2018, HC Matt Ulmer promoted Janice Harrer to the role of full-time assistant as he continues to build up Oregon's beach program. A 2012 inductee into the Beach Volleyball Hall of Fame, Harrer brings more than 15 years of professional beach volleyball experience to the Ducks. Said Ulmer: "The addition of Janice to our program has been truly impactful. She teaches and works with unbelievable passion and it's contagious to our student-athletes. Janice is one of the most successful beach volleyball players of all time and our players have benefited from her experiences both intellectually and tactically. Bringing Janice on board full time is a very important step to the future of our program."

DUCKS ADD BEACH-ONLY RECRUITS TO ROSTER
The Ducks recruited multiple beach-only players to join the student-athletes who cross over from the indoor squad as the UO beach program continues to evolve. The Ducks added freshmen Ally Haden, Emily Mattoon, Nicole Villamil and Carly Wallace to join returners Josie Cole (sophomore) and Maddy Silberger-Franek, and those six have been working with Harrer since the fall in preparation for the 2019 season. "I have been impressed with the amount of growth they have shown as well as their work ethic.," said Ulmer. "They are putting in the time and energy to become successful student-athletes."

ELITE DUCKS LOOK TO CARRY SUCCESS TO THE SAND
Coming off one of the best indoor seasons in program history, seven student-athletes from the Ducks' Elite Eight squad are on the 2019 roster. Crossing over from the hardwood are AVCA indoor all-Americans Ronika Stone (2nd), August Raskie (3rd), Lindsey Vander Weide (3rd), Brooke Nuneviller (HM) and Willow Johnson (HM), as well as SR Lauren Page and RSO Brooke Van Sickle. Nuneviller was a tremendous beach player in high school and will likely team with Vander Weide as the team's top pair, and Stone is five wins away from being Oregon's all-time beach leader. Johnson will miss the beach season after sustaining an injury, and Van Sickle likely won't see action either as she recovers from surgery. Also joining the 2019 squad is FR Elise Ferreira, the daughter of former UO coach Carl Ferreira who will be a true freshman setter for the Ducks in the fall.

PROGRAM HISTORY
2019 marks the sixth season of Oregon beach volleyball. The Ducks are 14-51 all-time and are coming off a 2-10 season in 2018.

UP NEXT
Oregon will compete at the Pac-12 Championship on April 25 in Tucson, Ariz.