PULLMAN, Wash. – Washington State Volleyball began the 2021 spring season against the Ducks of Oregon inside Bohler Gym with a four-set victory.
Set scores from the match were: 25-20, 19
-25,
25-22 and 25-22 in favor of WSU (1-0, 1-0 Pac-12).
The opening set of the 2021 spring schedule was closely contested as expected between these two Pac-12 adversaries. The Oregon Ducks (0-1, 0-1 Pac-12) managed slim one point leads early on, but back-to-back service aces from
Kalyah Williams gave the Cougs the boost needed to jump out ahead of Oregon at 9-6. The Ducks would put together a quick 3-1 run to tie up the set at 15-15 midway through the action. WSU showed off some dominance right after with a 7-0 run, fueled by
Julianna Dalton,
Pia Timmer, and Williams for the 22-15 advantage. The Cougars went on to cap off the opening set victory with a solo block from
Alexcis Lusby for the 25-20 win.
Set number two began much like the first, each squad trading points, keeping the scoring within a point or two of their opponent. The Ducks produced a 3-0 run to tie up the set at 11-11 overall, as this set would feature more ties and lead changes down the stretch. Late in the set Dalton tried to get some offense going for the Cougars, posting a kill to see WSU down just 18-16 late. However Oregon would go on a 4-1 run to finish off the set victory and see this match tied at at 1-1 overall.
These two programs continued to battle out this Pac-12 contest in set three, until the Cougars were able to find some breathing room after a 5-1 scoring run.
Magda Jehlářová, Timmer and Dalton all helped ignite the offensive attack, along with a
Hannah Pukis service ace. Despite a comeback attempt from the Ducks, Washington State was able to shut down their opponent with another run of 4-0 late in the set, as a Dalton kill and multiple errors from Oregon saw the score at 21-16. The visiting Ducks did manage to close the gap to just one point with a run of their own, however the Cougars finished off Oregon after a Jehlářová kill for the 25-22 win.
The Cougars shot out of the gate ahead of Oregon in set four, as Lusby and multiple Duck errors saw WSU up 5-3. These two squads continued to trade lead changes midway through the set, as Oregon found a bit of separation after a 3-1 run. Washington State ultimately surged ahead of Oregon with multiple kills from Timmer, and a block from Williams and Pia to win the set 25-22, and take the match 3-1 overall.
STAT OF THE MATCH
Sophomore
Pia Timmer picked up where she left off back in 2019, leading the Cougar offensive attack with 16 kills, and an attack percentage of .324 as well. Timmer also posted a double-double on the day with 12 total digs, and added one block assist to her stat-line.
INTO THE TWITTER-VERSE
MATCH NOTES
- The Cougars have now beaten the Oregon Ducks in four consecutive matches, dating back to 2018.
- Julianna Dalton had herself a solid debut today with 13 kills and five blocks, along with posting an attack percentage of .237.
- Hannah Pukis anchored both the WSU offense and defense with a match-high 36 assists, and a team-high 15 digs for the double-double. She also added two aces to her stat sheet.
- Kalyah Williams was a force serving today, totaling a career-high four service aces against Oregon. Williams added five kills, and four blocks to her game as well.
