EUGENE, Ore. — The fifth-ranked Oregon volleyball team swept its way past Arizona Friday evening at Matthew Knight Arena, improving to 16-2 overall with a 6-1 mark in Pac-12 play. The Ducks hit .333 in victory behind double-digit efforts from Mimi Colyer and Gabby Gonzales. Defensively, Oregon limited Arizona to .074 efficiency.
Senior libero Georgia Murphy led all players with 17 digs in the three-set outing, just one away from a season high. Fellow seniors Karson Bacon and Elise Ferreira posted match highs with four total blocks and three service aces, respectively.
Friday’s win is the Ducks’ sixth consecutive over Arizona, extending their longest winning streak in the series. Oregon has won 18 of 19 sets played during that six-match span.
How It Happened: Arizona (6-12, 1-6) jumped out to the early advantage and led 5-1 after an Oregon service error. The home team answered immediately to tie the opening frame at 6-all but the Wildcats held on to the lead and were up 15-10 at the media timeout.
Facing a three-point deficit, the Ducks put together a 5-0 surge for its first lead of the day at 21-19 after an ace and kill by Colyer. In the back-and-forth set, Arizona pushed back and had a set point at 24-23 on the heels of an ace. However, Gonzales saved the set point with a kill and after back-to-back UA errors, the Ducks had taken the set, 26-24, and the 1-0 match lead.
Colyer and Gonzales finished the night with 14 and 12 kills, respectively, and committed just four attack errors between them. Colyer posted a .367 figure while Gonzales hit .478 against the Wildcats.
The Ducks tied their most lop-sided set win of the season with a 25-8 result in the second, matching the familiar score line in the fourth set of its comeback win over James Madison (Sept. 25). Oregon hit .542 in the set and never trailed after sprinting out to a 6-1 lead.
In the third set, the Ducks used an 8-0 run behind Ferreira’s serve. Oregon led 13-8 at the end of the run and Ferreira served up two of her three aces during the decisive move. The home team kept a lead of at least four points for the remainder of the match. The advantage was up to 20-14 after consecutive kills from Colyer and Gonzales.
The Ducks won the final four points of the match including an ace by Colyer and back-to-back blocks by Colby Neal and Hannah Pukis to clinch the win.
Pukis recorded 36 assists, five digs and three blocks in the victory.
Up Next: The Ducks’ home stand continues with a top-20 matchup Sunday against No. 19 Arizona State. First serve is scheduled for 12 p.m. on the Pac-12 Networks. It will be the first ranked vs ranked meeting in the series since 2014.
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