First Ranked Win of the Season

Friday, October 17

Eugene, OR

6:00 PM

University of Oregon

12-5,3-4Big Ten

Minnesota

14-4,4-3Big Ten

Minnesota

Oregon

10/17/25 | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

Oregon knocked off No. 18 Minnesota in four sets Friday at Matthew Knight Arena.

EUGENE, Ore. — The Oregon volleyball team upset No. 18 Minnesota in four sets (25-20, 23-25, 25-14, 25-19) Friday evening for its first ranked win of the year. The Ducks benefited from a match-high 23 kills from freshman Alanah Clemente and had 10 service aces—six from Clemente—in the victory. Oregon is now 12-5 this season with a 3-4 mark in Big Ten play.

Friday's performance doubled as the program's 150^th win inside Matthew Knight Arena. The Ducks are now 150-55 (.756) on the home floor they began to play on in 2011.

Up Next: Oregon and Penn State will meet Saturday (7:30 p.m., BTN) for the ninth time overall but for just the second time in Eugene. The Ducks won that previous meeting at MKA, a straight-set victory in 2021. The 17^th-ranked Nittany Lions enter the match at 10-7 overall and 4-3 in Big Ten play.

Clemente topped the 20-kill mark for the first time during her still young career, and did so efficiently with a .340 hitting percentage. She was one of three Ducks in double figures, joined by Sophia Meyers and Valentina Vaulet with 12 kills apiece. Senior setter Cora Taylor posted 45 assists and directed the offense to a .270 hitting figure.

Defensively, the Ducks picked up a season-high 60 digs including 14 from Taylor to complete her third double-double of the season and 11 digs from freshman libero Reese Sheppard. Seven Oregon players had at least five digs in the win. In the middle, Iva Sucurovic tallied five kills, five digs, three blocks and an ace.

How It Happened: Holding on to an early 7-6 lead, Oregon reeled off five of the next six points to take control of the opening set. The home team built a lead as high as seven points, lastly at 23-16 on a kill from Vaulet. Minnesota (14-4, 4-3 B1G) won four of the next five including saving two set points but a kill by Meyers put an end to the would-be rally and the first set.

The Gophers jumped out to a 10-4 lead in the second. However, the Ducks began to chip away at their deficit and eventually, after kills from Clemente and Vaulet, pulled ahead 17-16. Minnesota answered with a 7-1 run to regain the lead for good. The Ducks fought off a pair of set points but the visitors got on the match scoreboard with a kill from Jordan Taylor.

Similar to the first, Oregon turned a 7-6 lead into a big advantage—19-10—after rattling off 12 of the next 16 points. During that stretch, Clemente fired off three-consecutive kills to give the Ducks a 15-9 lead going into the media break. The lead grew to 10 four times including 24-14 after a Meyers kill put Oregon on the brink of a 2-1 lead. An attack error by Minnesota on the next rally ended the set.

In the only set not to feature a lead change, the Ducks took an early 5-2 advantage in the fourth with help from two kills each from Clemente and Meyers. With Oregon leading 17-10, the Gophers scored three in a row to force an Oregon timeout. Out of the huddle, the Ducks won the next three points to regain their hold on the fourth.

After the team exchanged service errors, UO had match points at 24-16. Minnesota's Lourdes Myers knocked down three-consecutive kills to extend the match but on another Gopher service error, the Ducks clinched the upset.

Kelly Kinney led Minnesota with 11 kills followed by Myers and Julia Hanson with seven each.

Notable: Friday was the 13^th overall meeting in the all-time series but just the second in Eugene … tied season high with 10 aces (Aug. 30 vs Prairie View A&M) … eight matches this season with at least eight aces including five of seven in Big Ten play … Vaulet has at least one ace in 15 of 17 matches this year.

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