Cascade Clash volleyball returned to Matthew Knight Arena on Sunday as the Washington Huskies (8-8, 3-3 Big Ten) made the five-hour drive down south to play the bitter rival Oregon Ducks (11-5, 2-4 Big Ten).
Down to their last chance in the third set, the Ducks were trailing 28-27 and 2-0 in the match. Washington sailed the serve over the net and Oregon bumped and set for freshman outside hitter Maria Tabacuks. She leapt for the spike, but was met at the apex and blocked by Husky junior middle blocker Katy Wessels and senior outside hitter Alexa Markley. Washington stormed the court in celebration after upsetting its Pacific Northwest foe.
“So much about this match was we’re being tested by some good teams that can play a little bit and that can expose you,” Oregon head coach Trent Kerston said. “We’re not where we need to be volleyball-wise. Credit Washington for exposing us on our tip defense and a couple other phases of the game that are just not good enough to win against a quality team right now.”
Leading the way for the Ducks’ attack was freshman opposite Alanah Clemente, who had 12 kills.
Oregon was coming off a momentum-halting 3-0 loss on the road on Thursday to the No. 22-ranked USC Trojans. This came after two straight conference wins, which appeared to be the turning of the tide on the Ducks’ season, but they were brought back down to earth with the sweep.
Washington looked to bounce back after getting swept itself as it fell to the Nebraska Cornhuskers on the road on Friday.
Set one was looking golden for Oregon when they ripped off seven straight points, highlighted by an error from Husky freshman outside hitter Simona Mateska that put the Ducks up 8-2.
The pesky Washington bunch punched right back by scoring nine of the next 11 points. This put Washington up one, and after some back and forth, the pendulum swung back towards the Ducks with five straight points that notched Oregon a 20-15 lead. Clemente led this charge by scoring two of those points, one by a kill and one by a block.
This seemingly safe Oregon lead was diminished as the Huskies inched back into it, then delivered a heavy blow with an ace from senior libero Zoria Heard that pushed the Ducks against the wall at set point. Oregon would knot it at 25, but two straight Washington points stunned the Ducks and gave the Huskies set one.
Contrary to set one, set two was a dead heat at the beginning. Oregon’s issue came when it established a one-step-forward, two-steps-back mentality when it fell behind 17-12 midway through. The Ducks would score five of the next six points to put them back in it, but Washington stayed resilient and held the lead. Three straight points, two coming from Clemente and one from sophomore middle blocker Iva Sucurovic, would put the Ducks down one at 22-21, but the Huskies scored three of the next four to secure the 2-0 set lead. To add salt to the wound, the set-winning point came off a block error from Sucurovic.
“When we choose to execute, when we choose to do the right things, we can play,” Kerston said. “We just aren’t choosing it enough right now. We’re just not consistent enough. There’s one skill, one person on the court that just doesn’t quite execute fully, and the game has eyes and it finds that person right now.”
The red-hot Huskies carried their momentum into the third set with five of the first six points going their way. Despite the large deficit, the Ducks stayed fighting as they crept back in, then seized the lead with a kill from Tabacuks.
Matthew Knight Arena got some energy pumped in as their star Clemente ripped an ace over the net that gave Oregon a three-point lead.
The next highlight would come from who else but Clemente. After Washington climbed back in to tie the set at 15, Clemente soared through the sky and hammered a spike right in the perfect gap between Husky defenders.
The theme of the match, though: Washington wouldn’t go away. The Huskies would take the lead back at 18-17, but Oregon found it again with four of the next five points, highlighted by a kill from junior opposite Valentina Vaulet.
The end of set three would be the tightest moment of the match up to that point when a kill from senior outside hitter Sophia Meyers put Oregon at set point, up 25-24. Washington then took a timeout, which dialed in the groove that pushed the Huskies to the finish. Oregon fended off a set point by Washington that tied it at 26, but three straight Husky points, capped off by a costly Ducks error from Tabacuks, ended things. Washington took the set and sealed the upset sweep over the rival Oregon.
Despite the loss, Vaulet racked up 10 kills and filled the statsheet alongside her teammate Clemente.
Oregon showed flashes in this match, leading the first set 8-2 and reaching a set point in that same set. The Ducks also had a set point opportunity in the third set, but the inability to stay consistent and close sets ended up costing the squad.
“I think we need to learn why we were in those positions,” Kerston said. “The first set was so much about Reese Sheppard from the service lane. She went on two huge service runs for us and forced them out of system a lot, then we were able to execute from there. It’s just learning what are the things we were doing right and what are the things we need to continue to address and move forward with.”
The next Oregon opponent flips from a W to an M as they will stay at home to face the Minnesota Golden Gophers on Friday, Oct. 17, at 6:00 p.m.
The Huskies will continue to search for their rhythm with a home matchup against the Penn State Nittany Lions on Friday, Oct. 17, at 7:00 p.m.