EUGENE, Ore. — The sixth-ranked and No. 2-seeded Oregon volleyball team swept Hawai’i Friday night at Matthew Knight Arena to advance to the Sweet 16 for the ninth time in program history. The Ducks erased a seven-point deficit late in set one and pulled away for the 25-23, 25-12, 25-17 victory. Senior opposite Morgan Lewis led all players with 14 kills including the match winner.
With the win, Oregon improves to 28-5 this season and advances to the Madison (Wis.) Regional to face No. 3 seed Purdue in the next round. Match details will be announced later this weekend.
Lewis finished the night hitting .667 with 14 kills on 21 errorless swings, her third outing of the season with double-digit kills coupled with no attack errors. Collectively, the Ducks hit .266 against Hawai’i in the win including a .371 figure in the close-out third frame.
Libero Georgia Murphy and outside hitter Mimi Colyer tied for the team high with 13 digs each. Kara McGhee had a match-high four blocks to go along with seven kills (.357) in the sweep. Oregon limited the Rainbow Wahine to a .061 hitting percentage
How It Happened: The visitors jumped out to a 10-4 advantage in the first set and eventually built a seven-point lead at 18-11, prompting a second timeout from head coach Matt Ulmer. The Rainbow Wahine was ahead 19-12 when Oregon began its comeback. The Ducks reeled off seven of the next eight points to pull to within one after back-to-back kills from Gabby Gonzales.
Oregon pulled even at 22-all, and again at 23-23 with a kill by Lewis. An attack error by Hawai’i to end the next rally gave the Ducks their first lead since 1-0. With set point in hand, Karson Bacon erased an overpassed ball to complete the set comeback and give UO the 1-0 match lead.
Riding the momentum of the end to the previous set, Oregon sprinted out to a 9-3 lead in the second. Gonzales and Lewis each had two kills during the early surge. Hawai’i (24-9) answered with a four-point run to pull to within two and force an Oregon timeout.
Off the bench, the Ducks put together a 9-0 run and with a kill by Gonzales, led 16-7. The home team continued to extend the lead into double figures and sealed the set with a tandem block by Bacon and Hannah Pukis.
Oregon won six of the first seven points in the third including a 4-0 start. The Ducks never trailed in the set but Hawai’i pulled to within one on two occasions—UO leading 12-11 on the last instance. Oregon regained full control after consecutive kills from Colyer pushed the Ducks’ lead to 17-13. Lewis tallied four kills in the final six points of the night, part of her eight-kill third.
Notable: The Ducks are into the regional semifinals—Sweet 16—in back-to-back seasons for just the second time in program history (2007, ’08)…this marks the team’s fourth trip under Ulmer (2018, ’20, ’22 and ’23)…Lewis’ .667 hitting percentage is third on Oregon’s NCAA Tournament top-10 list…Friday was the second match of the season between Oregon and Hawai’i; the Ducks swept UH in late August. For more news and information about Oregon Volleyball, follow @OregonVB on Instagram and Twitter, and @OregonVolleyball on Facebook
