MATCH STATS
- No. 13 USC def. No. 24 Oregon 3-1 (25-19, 25-16, 19-25, 25-17)
- USC 22-8, 14-5 Pac-12; Oregon 16-11, 9-10 Pac-12
- Eugene, Oregon
- Attendance:
- Box Score
EUGENE, Ore. – No. 13 USC used 11 blocks and a .312 hitting effort to keep its stranglehold on second place in the Pac-12 standings with a four-set road win over No. 24 Oregon on Wednesday.
The loss is the fourth straight for the Ducks, marking the program’s longest losing streak since 2011 (lost four Oct. 7-15, 2011).
The Trojans bested the Ducks .312 to .197 in hitting percentage, 59-51 in kills, 11-5 in blocks and 5-4 in aces.
Senior opposite Brittany Abercrombie led a trio of USC hitters with double-digit kills, notching 17 putaways on a .469 hitting effort. Sophomore outside hitter Khalia Lanier (13) and senior opposite Niki Withers (12) also reached double figures, while Lanier rounded out a double-double with 11 digs and a team-high three aces. Junior middle blocker Brittany Welsh and senior middle Jordan Dunn put up five blocks apiece, while junior libero Victoria Garrick pulled up a team-high 19 digs.
Senior right side Taylor Agost did her part to try to lift the Ducks to a win, turning in 19 kills, six digs and an ace. Sophomore right side Willow Johnson (9), junior middle Lauren Page (7) and junior outside Lindsey Vander Weide (7) followed offensively. Vander Weide also was one of three players to notch double-digit digit totals, with 13. Senior libero Alex Hojnar (14) and senior setter Maggie Scott (12) rounded out the group. Scott finished off a double-double with 24 assists.
USC went up 6-2 to start the match and led by as many as six in the 25-19 victory. Up just two at 16-15, the Trojans turned it on down the stretch, beginning with a 3-0 run, including two Dunn blocks, which made it 19-14. Oregon scored four of the next five, including two USC errors, but the Trojans closed out the set on a 5-1 run. Abercrombie notched two kills in the final rally, including the set winner at 25-19.
Oregon boasted a 9-8 lead in Set 2, before USC turned the tables with a 10-2 run. Two aces and a kill by Lanier and a stuff by Brooke Botkin and Welsh capped the rally, giving the Trojans an 18-11 edge. The Ducks would get no closer than five the rest of the set, last at 19-14. USC finished the win with six of the final eight points. Abercrombie capped the set with back to back kills.
The teams split the first 22 points of Set 3. Oregon then pushed ahead by three at 17-14 with back to back kills by Johnson. USC leveled the score at 17 with help from two Lanier putaways. After another tie at 18, the Ducks managed a seven of the next eight to pull away for the 25-19 win. Jolie Rasmussen downed four kills, in the run, including the set winner, while Agost added two.
USC led 5-1 in Set 4 only to see Oregon catch up at 7-all. The teams stayed close, until the Trojans used a 6-1 run to turn a 12-11 lead into a six-point advantage at 18-12. Abercrombie, Lanier and Welsh posted kills, while Lanier also served up an ace in the rally. An ace by August Raskie pulled Oregon within four at 18-14, but the Trojans outscored the Ducks 7-3 after that to wrap up the victory. Putways by Lanier and Abercrombie claimed the 25-17 win.
?? But who else? @brittany_fitch pounds it off the Duck block for her 17th kill and a 3-1 USC win in Eugene! #FightOn ✌?? pic.twitter.com/iOwmxEh2LQ
— USC Volleyball (@uscwomensvolley) November 23, 2017
PRESS RELEASES
Courtesy: USC Athletics
The 13th-ranked USC women’s volleyball team (22-8, 14-5 Pac-12) earned a four-set win (25-19, 25-16, 19-25, 25-17) over No. 24 Oregon (16-11, 9-10) at Matthew Knight Arena on Wednesday, Nov. 22. The win allowed the Women of Troy to lock up at least a share of second place in the final Pac-12 standings. One more victory will give the Trojans sole possession of second place.
Senior opposite hitter Brittany Abercrombie led the Trojans with her 17-kill outing (2e, 32att) as she hit .469 to go with two blocks and four digs. Sophomore outside hitter Khalia Lanier secured her seventh double-double of the season (23rd career) and scored 18.5 points on 13 kills (4e, 44att, .205) with 11 digs, three service aces, and four blocks (one solo).
Senior opposite hitter Niki Withers added 12 kills (4e, 25att, .320) and freshman outside hitter Brooke Botkin contributed seven kills (2e, 26att, .192) with four blocks. Junior middle blocker Brittany Welsh scored nine points and reached a new season high of six kills (0e, 8att) for a .750 hitting percentage. Welsh also had five blocks (one solo). Senior middle blocker Jordan Dunnproduced four kills on nine swings and also had five blocks.
The Trojans hit .312 in the match and earned 59 kills (14e) on 144 attempts. Senior setter Reni Meyer-Whalley dished out 31 assists to go with digs while sophomore setter Cindy Marina had 16 assists and seven digs. Junior libero Victoria Garrick led all players with 19 digs and added three assists and a service ace. Sophomore defender Jenna Adams had 10 digs, two assists, and an ace.
For the Ducks, Taylor Agost had 19 kills to lead all players. Agost also added six digs. Willow Johnson had nine kills and was instrumental in Oregon’s third-set win to push the match to the fourth. Lauren Page and Lindsey Vander Weide each added seven kills apiece. Alex Hojnar led the Ducks with 14 digs while Vander Weide had 13.
The Women of Troy collected 15 kills and led by as many as five points to complete a 25-19 win in the first set. USC hit .289 (4e, 38att) and held Oregon to a .162 showing with 13 kills (7e, 37att). The Trojans rolled out to an early 8-4 lead when Botkin caught fingertips for a kill, but the Ducks went point for point with USC to stay within four at 15-11 when Withers scored a kill. Despite runs to close within two points at 16-14 and 20-18, the Ducks couldn’t push past the Trojans as consecutive kills by Lanier, Welsh, and Abercrombie helped close out the first set for the Women of Troy.
The Trojans fought through a back-and-forth battle to open the second set and forced the Ducks into a timeout at 8-6 following kills by Lanier and Abercrombie. Oregon went ahead by a point at 9-8, but USC used a 5-0 run to seize the lead and was never threatened again. The first of back-to-back service aces by Lanier put the Trojans on top, 16-11, and prompted the Ducks to burn a second timeout. Lanier’s next ace got USC ahead, 17-11, but it was Adams’ ace and a pair of back-to-back kills by Abercrombie that sewed up a 25-16 win and a 2-0 lead for the Trojans. USC hit .293 in the second frame with 17 kills (5e) on 41 attacks.
Oregon hit at a .390 clip and used a big 7-1 run to break an 18-all tie for a 25-19 win in the third set. The Trojans led twice, but the Ducks stepped ahead for a 15-13 lead mid-set. USC used a 3-0 run to pull even at 17-all and then was knotted with Oregon at 18-all before the Ducks rolled away with a 5-0 run that included three kills by Jolie Rasmussen.
USC rolled early for a 7-4 lead in the fourth, but Oregon knotted the score at seven-all. The teams traded points until a 3-0 run put the Trojans on top by four, 15-11. Another 3-0 run produced an 18-12 lead for the Women of Troy. Lanier’s block put the Trojans on top, 23-18, and her kill netted match point for USC before Abercrombie came through to tool the block for her 17th kill and a 25-17 Trojan win.
The Trojans close out the regular season on Saturday (Nov. 25) at Galen Center when they host crosstown rival No. 19 UCLA (18-10, 11-8 Pac-12) for Senior Night. The program will honor the careers of middle blocker Dani Geiger, setter Reni Meyer-Whalley, defensive specialist Nikki Leonard, outside hitter Niki Withers, opposite hitter Brittany Abercrombie, and middle blocker Jordan Dunn in pre-match ceremonies set for approximately 6:45 p.m. PT. The match will be shown live on Pac-12 Los Angeles at 7 p.m. PT.
MATCH NOTES
- USC improved to 53-12 in all-time meetings with Oregon and has won four of the last five meetings.
- The Trojans’ win secures at least a share of second place in the final Pac-12 standings.
- The Women of Troy improved to 55-13 in all-time matches played in the state of Oregon.
- No. 24 Oregon represents USC’s eighth win over a ranked opponent this season: No. 6 Washington, at No. 7 Creighton, at No. 11 UCLA, at No. 12 Utah, No. 15 Utah, No. 16 Michigan, and No. 25 Colorado.
- So. OH Khalia Lanier registered her seventh double-double of the season with 13 kills and 11 digs. It is her 23rd-career double-double match.
- Jr. MB Brittany Welsh reached a new season-high (her highest total as a USC player) with six kills.
Courtesy: Oregon Athletics
The Oregon volleyball team was unable to get back on the winning track on Wednesday afternoon as the No. 24 Ducks fell to No. 13 USC in four sets, 25-19, 25-16, 19-25, 25-17, in front of 1,602 on senior day in Matthew Knight Arena.
How it Happened: USC (22-8, 14-5 Pac-12) led the entire first set aside from a pair of early ties, jumping out to a 14-8 lead. The Ducks (16-11, 9-10 Pac-12) used a pair of scoring runs to get within two, 20-18, but the Trojans scored four straight and five of the final six points of the frame to win, 25-19. The Oregon offense flowed through Taylor Agost, who put down seven kills in the first set to kick off her senior day.
The Ducks held a 9-8 lead in the second when USC ripped off five straight to ignite a 10-2 run and take a seven-point advantage, 18-11. Oregon was unable to get closer than five points from there as USC hit .293 in the frame to UO’s .152 to take a 2-0 lead into intermission.
Trailing 11-10 in the third, Oregon scored three points in a row to move ahead. After USC rallied back to 18-18, the Ducks put down five straight kills and seven kills in eight points, with three by Jolie Rasmussen and two by Agost, to run away with the set, 25-19, and force a fourth frame. Oregon enjoyed its best offensive set of the night, hitting .390 as a team.
USC opened up a 5-1 lead to start the fourth, and then broke a 7-7 tie with a pair of 3-0 scoring runs to take an 18-12 lead. Oregon got within five, 20-15, but the Trojans scored four of the final five points and hit .462 in the final set to win the match.
Who Stood Out: Agost finished with a team-high 19 kills in her final home match, but was the only Duck in double figures. Willow Johnson put down nine and played well late in the match, and Lauren Page and Lindsey Vander Weideeach had seven. Maggie Scott also played well on her senior day with 24 assists and 12 digs for her seventh double-double, as did Alex Hojnar with a team-best 14 digs. USC finished the match hitting .312 to Oregon’s .197.
What it Means: Now 9-10 in Pac-12 play, the Ducks will go to Corvallis on Friday looking for a win to finish the season at .500 in conference action and establish some momentum entering the NCAA Tournament.
Quotable: Matt Ulmer, Head Coach
On winning set three after being down 2-0…
“I challenged them pretty hard in the locker room and I liked our response. I thought Lindsey did a really good job in serve receive in the third and fourth sets and Alex did a really good job. If we do that, we have great athletes that we can get the ball to, we can move it around and that’s really where we’re good.”
On where the team is at right now…
“We’re constantly playing from behind and just really making it difficult on ourselves to be successful. But I really liked our effort in the third set and that should be how we play all the time and until we find that, we’re just going to keep struggling.”
Taylor Agost, Senior
On her experience at Oregon…
“It’s been awesome. Coming to Oregon was outside my comfort zone and that’s why I chose to do it. So coming here and finishing the way I finished and not just being a different player but a different person is the best part. So I’m just very thankful.”
Notable: Agost, Scott, Hojnar and Marine Hall-Poirier were honored before the match for senior day … The Ducks finish 11-5 at home in the regular season … Oregon has now lost four straight matches, its longest losing streak of the season … Oregon hit under .200 for just the sixth time this season.
Up Next: The Ducks will close out the regular season at Oregon State on Friday (7 p.m., Pac-12 Network).
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