Notes: No. 14 Ducks Set to Host Oregon Classic

Friday, September 1

Eugene, OR

8:00 PM

University of Oregon

Loyola Marymount

Photo by: Eric Evans/GoDucks.com

08/29/17 | Women's Volleyball

Notes: Oregon Classic Tickets

The No. 14 Oregon volleyball team will welcome the University of Texas Rio-Grande Valley (Thur., 7 p.m.), Loyola Marymount (Fri., 8 p.m.) and Northern Illinois (Sat., 12 p.m.) to Matthew Knight Arena this weekend for the Oregon Classic

By: Nate Krueger

EUGENE, Ore. - Coming off an exciting opening weekend in which they defeated then-No. 5 Nebraska in their season opener, the No. 14 Ducks return to Eugene this weekend to welcome the University of Texas Rio-Grande Valley, Loyola Marymount and Northern Illinois to Matthew Knight Arena for the Oregon Classic.

OREGON CLASSIC SCHEDULE (all times PT)
Thursday, Aug. 31, 7 p.m. - No. 14 Oregon vs. UTRGV
Friday, Sept. 1, 11 a.m. - Northern Illinois vs. Loyola Marymount
Fri., Sept. 1, 6 p.m. - UTRGV vs. Northern Illinois
Fri., Sept. 1, 8 p.m. - No. 14 Oregon vs. Loyola Marymount
Sat., Sept. 2, 12 p.m. - No. 14 Oregon vs. Northern Illinois
Sat., Setp. 2, 2 p.m. - UTRGV vs. Loyola Marymount

Instant "Classics" coming to MKA. Be the atmosphere. #GoDucks

Buy tickets now: https://t.co/enpEpBhmwj pic.twitter.com/o8YDUOoqJW
— Oregon Volleyball (@OregonVB) August 29, 2017

HOW TO FOLLOW
All three of the Ducks' matches during the Oregon Classic will be streamed live at GoDucks.com/live, with KWVA Radio on the call. Live stats for all six matches can be found at oregon.statbroadcast.com, and live updates will be provided during matches on Twitter via @OregonVB.

DUCKS UPSET NO.5 NEBRASKA TO OPEN ULMER ERA
It was an exciting start to the season for the Ducks and new head coach Matt Ulmer, as Oregon came away with a split against a pair of top-five teams in Gainesville, Fla., including a four-set win over No. 5 Nebraska.

#18 Oregon 3, #5 Nebraska 1 (25-20, 25-21, 24-26, 25-23)
Looking for the program's first-ever win in the elite VERT Challenge, the Ducks rebounded from a slow start against the fifth-ranked Cornhuskers. After Nebraska opened up a 10-2 lead early on, the Ducks responded and stormed back to win the first two sets. Nebraska bounced back to win the third, but a balanced Oregon attack powered the Ducks to a 25-23 fourth-set win and their first victory over a top-five team since beating No. 1 Penn State in December 2012. The win also gave UO its first win in the VERT Challenge, and second all-time against Nebraska. SO OH Brooke Van Sickle was outstanding for Oregon, recording career-highs in digs (22) and aces (3) while adding 11 kills for her first career double-double. JR OH Lindsey Vander Weide (14 kills, 11 digs) and JR S August Raskie (22 assists, 14 digs) also added double-doubles for Oregon, SO RS Willow Johnson had a great night with 13 kills on .387 hitting and JR MB Sumeet Gill led the team with seven blocks.

#1 Texas 3, #18 Oregon 1 (23-25, 25-17, 25-22, 25-23)
The Ducks carried their momentum from Friday's win over Nebraska into their match against the top-ranked Longhorns, taking a back-and-forth first set to open up a 1-0 lead. The Longhorns responded to even the match, and then pulled out two tight sets to come away with the win, but the Ducks showed that they can hang with a team considered to be one of the nation's elite. SO OH Brooke Van Sickle was a force once again, recording her second double-double in as many nights with 10 kills and 15 digs. JR S August Raskie joined Van Sickle with her second double-double with 20 assists and 15 digs, and JR OH Lindsey Vander Weide led the Ducks once again with 16 kills to earn VERT Challenge all-tournament honors. The Ducks are now 1-5 all-time in the VERT Challenge.

DUCKS CRACK TOP 15
Following their exciting opening weekend at the VERT Challenge, the Ducks rose four spots in the AVCA coaches poll to No. 14. It is the first top-15 ranking for the Ducks since September 2015, and higher than any ranking the team earned at any point last season.

UP NEXT
Following the Oregon Classic, the Ducks will stay home to welcome Cal Poly, Wichita State and Duquesne to MKA for the Nike Classic (Sept. 7-9).

ULMER TAKES OVER OREGON VOLLEYBALL
After serving the last three years as an assistant for the Ducks, including a year as associate head coach in 2016, Matt Ulmer is in his first year as Oregon's head coach. The seventh head coach in program history, Ulmer has been instrumental in the construction of the Ducks' current roster, including the recruitment of the No. 2-ranked class in the nation in 2016. With familiar faces all around him and a program that has reached the NCAA Tournament in each of the last six seasons, Ulmer appears poised for success in his first year at the helm of UO volleyball.

FLOCK OF DUCKS RETURN FROM 2016
Oregon fans will not need long to learn the 2017 roster, as 13 players return from last season's second-round NCAA Tournament team, including 12 letter-winners. Oregon brings back 10 players who appeared in at least 50 sets last season, and return tremendous depth at nearly every position. The Ducks, who led the Pac-12 last serason with 14.35 kills per set and a .275 team hitting percentage, also bring back six players who averaged better than 1.00 kill per set and four who averaged more than 2.00 kills per set, as well as setters Maggie Scott and August Raskie to run the 6-2 offense.

DUCKS PICKED TO FINISH THIRD IN PAC-12
Following a 21-10 season in which the Ducks went 13-7 in Pac-12 play to place fourth in the conference, Matt Ulmer's squad has been picked to to finish third in the Pac-12 this season. In a vote of the conference's coaches, the Ducks received 93 points to slot in behind Washington (118) and defending national champion Stanford (113).

THREE NAMED PRESEASON ALL-PAC-12
A trio of Ducks were named to the preseason all-Pac-12 squad, taking up three of the 14 slots. SR RS Taylor Agost, JR OH Lindsey Vander Weide and SO MB Ronika Stone all earned the preseason honor from in a vote of the Pac-12 coaches. Vander Weide has been an all-Pac-12 selection in each of her first two seasons, while Agost and Stone eached earned all-Pac-12 honorable mention honors last year.

DUCKS 18TH IN AVCA PRESEASON COACHES POLL
After ending the 2016 season at No. 21 in the final AVCA poll, the Ducks rose three spots to open 2017 at No. 18 in the country. Oregon opens the season with the fourth-highest national ranking among Pac-12 teams, with defending national champion Stanford leading the way at No. 2. Washington is right behind the Cardinal at No. 3, and UCLA landed inside the top 15 at No. 13. Utah (23) and Arizona (24) round out the Pac-12 teams in the top 25. With No. 5 Nebraska and No. 1 Texas at the top of the schedule, the Ducks' 2017 slate is loaded with elite competition.

ALL-AMERICAN VANDER WEIDE RETURNS
JR OH Lindsey Vander Weide will once again be a focal point for the Ducks this season, coming off a tremendous 2016 campaign in which she was an AVCA third-team all-American and all-Pac-12 selection. Vander Weide led the Ducks in 2016 with 3.85 points per set, 3.24 kills per set and 37 service aces, and she was second with 2.71 digs per set while serving as a six-rotation player.

DUCKS TASKED WITH REPLACING BENSON
The Ducks' defense will be without one of the most accomplished players in Oregon volleyball history this season, as Oregon enters its first season in four years without libero Amanda Benson. Benson, second all-time at Oregon in both digs and digs per set, was able to cover nearly three-quarters of the backcourt for the Ducks, who will go with a replacement-by-committee stratagy this season to make up for the loss of Benson. SR L Alex Hojnar will get the first crack at that spot, and SO OH Brooke Van Sickle could see time there as well in addtion to on the outside. FR DS Kyra Hanawahine and SR DS Marine Hall-Poirier provide depth, and JR OH Lindsey Vander Weide will once again be asked to provide consistent passing and defense as a six-rotation player.

STELLAR SOPHOMORES
The sophomore class of RS Willow Johnson, OH Jolie Rasmussen, MB Ronika Stone and OH Brooke Van Sickle will play a big role for the Ducks this season after entering in 2016 as the No. 2 class in the nation. Stone was stellar as a sophomore last season in the middle, hitting .374 to place second in UO single-season history. Rasmussen showed flashes of brilliance when healthy with 2.56 kills per set and 1.07 digs per set, and Johnson is a dynamic lefty on the right side. Van Sickle is the most verstatile player the Ducks have, with the ability to play both on the outside and in the back row.