By Knight Jarecki

The first match of 2021 rivalry series between the Oregon Ducks and the Oregon State Beavers volleyball teams was one for the ages as the Oregon Ducks prevailed victorious in a 5 set thriller.

The Oregon Ducks were on the court for the first time in 12 days after last weekend's series against Stanford was cancelled due to COVID-19 protocols within the Cardinal program. The match marked the Ducks 7th straight home match.

The first set was a competitive one as the Ducks edged out the Beavers in a seesaw of a set 26-24. Although the Ducks won the first set, Oregon State came out on fire in the second set dominating Oregon for a 25-19 victory. After gaining some momentum at the end of the 2nd set, Oregon was able to continue to keep the momentum in their favor as the Ducks were able to take command of the 3rd set with a 25-15 win. Oregon State was like a gnat and would not go away as the Beavs ousted the Ducks 25-21 in dominant fashion. This meant that the match would head to a fifth set where the Ducks have been stellar all season. After Oregon State got ahead 7-3, Oregon finished the set on a 12-5 run capped off by a Karson Bacon kill solidifying the victory for the Ducks with a 3rd set victory 15-12.

Brooke Nuneviller was electric once again as she finished with 19 kills and 18 digs in the victory. Taylor Borup added a double-double with 11 kills and 12 digs in her first match back since week 4 against Arizona. Setters Kylie Robinson and Elise Ferreira also combined for 54 assists.

The win on Saturday is the Ducks 11th victory against the Beavers in their last 12 tries. Oregon improves to 10-3 on the year as they continue their push towards the top of the Pac 12 standings. Oregon will play Oregon State in Corvallis on Thursday as the Ducks look to continue their hot streak as they have won 9 of their last 10 matches.