By Agustin Tapia

Oregon: 

The Ducks volleyball team had a great season behind them. Overall, they are 25-5, and their performance in the Pac-12 totaled 15-4, with only one more game left this year against Oregon State. Their losses were against Minnesota, Washington State, Arizona State and two losses against Stanford. The Ducks’ previous match was against Southern California, where they won 3-1 in sets. Morgan Lewis led the team’s kills with an overwhelming 19, adding her total to 300 kills this season, but trailing only Mimi Colyer’s 383 kills. 

Morgan Lewis started the season with a consistent kill pattern in the first six matches. In the following five matches, she would reach double digits, dropping below that threshold until late October, when she would once again stay in the double digits. Lewis has matched 19 kills an additional two times. The first was against Pittsburgh and the second was their second match against Stanford, beating Gabby Gonzales’ highest kills. Gonzales has only reached 19 kills once. With how well she performed in the last half of the season, Lewis is more than likely to end her kills in the double digits for the year’s final game.

Oregon State: 

Compared to their Duck counterparts, the Beavers have had a different season. Overall, they are 11-18 and are 6-13 in the conference. The Beavers went against UCLA in their last match but lost. They had a solid first set, winning 25-14, but UCLA shifted gears and contested the Beavers until the end, winning in the fifth set with 15-12.

Mychael Vernon led her team with 24 kills. Vernon started the season strong with 16 kills in the Beaver’s first match. She has consistently delivered a high kill count throughout the season, with the highest being 26 kills against California Baptist in early September. With Vernon’s attacking power, splitting through any defense is only a matter of getting her into a ball-hitting position.

Conclusion: 

It may not be the hundred-year-old football rivalry, but the Ducks will face off against the Beavers on Saturday for this year’s final volleyball match. The Beavers start their games to a running start, whereas the Ducks take their time to get into motion. Along with Mychael Vernon’s attack power, this can turn the odds in the Beaver’s favor. But the strong defense the Ducks have displayed all season will make a more than formidable wall against such attacks. 

Fun fact: the Ducks have won one at-home Sunday match – which was against Colorado on Nov. 5.