Beavers Open Season in Norman
CORVALLIS, Ore. - The Oregon State volleyball team will open the 2021 season this weekend at the Oklahoma Invitational in Norman, Okla. The Beavers are set to take on host, Oklahoma, on Friday at 3 p.m. PT and Houston on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. PT.
OSU Opens at Oklahoma Invitational
• Oregon State opens the 2021 season this week when the Beavers travel to Norman, Oklahoma to participate in the Oklahoma Invitational.
• The Beavers square off with host, Oklahoma, on Friday at 3 p.m. PT.
• OSU returns to the court Saturday afternoon for its second, and final, match of opening weekend against Houston at 12:30 p.m. PT.
• There is no mask mandate on OU's campus, but fans attending the matches are encouraged to wear one while in McCasland Field House. OU also has a clear bag policy in place.
• Oregon State will be on the road for the first six weeks of the season (12 matches). This includes four tournaments and the first two weeks of the Pac-12 schedule.
Follow the Action
• Friday's match will be broadcast on Bally Sports Oklahoma (BSOK) that is only available in the Oklahoma area.
• Live stats will be available for both matches.
• To access live stats via your computer, smartphone or tablet, visit osubeavers.com.
Social Media
• Fans are encouraged to follow the Oregon State volleyball program via social media. There are several platforms to follow the team including :
• Twitter: @BeaverVBall
• Instagram: @BeaverVBall
• Facebook: /BeaverVBall
Tickets
• Season and single game tickets are available by visiting BeaverTickets.com/volleyball or by calling 1-800-GO-BEAVS.
Against the Field
• Oregon State has a 3-3 all-time record against the weekend's opponents.
• Against the Sooners, OSU is 2-3 with the Beavers last win coming on Sept. 9, 1991 in Fullerton, Calif., when OSU swept OU in three sets.
• The last time the Beavers faced OU was on Sept. 5, 2019 in Bloomington, Ind. Oregon State won the first two sets but dropped the final three to eventually lose the match. For 2021 returners that played in that match, Maddie Goings led the field with 26 kills off 59 total attacks and had two block assists. Grace Massey had four assists, 28 digs and one serving ace. Lindsey Schell wraps-up returners with two kills off 10 total attacks and had three block assists.
• Against the Cougars, OSU is 1-0 with the Beavers winning the only meeting between the two programs on Sept. 20, 1985 in San Diego, Calif.
The Newcomers
• Oregon State welcomes seven newcomers to the 2021 squad, all are freshman. Newcomers include: Ashlyn Beaver (S - Murrieta, Calif.), Emily Bourne (OH - Corvallis, Ore.), Iris Coba (DS/L - Lodi, Italy), Madison Kelly (OH - Lake Forest, Calif.), Vivian Light (OH - Sloughhouse, Calif.), DiLara Unal (MB - Ankara, Turkey) and Ryan White (DS/L - Richland, Wash.).
Returners
• Oregon State returns 11 from the 2020-21 roster, highlighted by the return on Grace Massey and Maddie Goings for a fifth year.
• Massey (1,778 career digs) returns for her final season 251 digs behind the top spot on OSU's career dig list. Becky Defoe (2010-13) holds the top spot with 2,029 digs.
• Massey is the lone returner who earned All-Conference accolades following the 2020-21 season.
• Goings returns for the 2021 season sitting 11th on OSU's career attack list with 3,352. She also has 1,080 career kills to be 14th all-time.
• Other upperclassmen returners include: Lindsey Schell, Nya Buckner and Mary Kate Lopez.
• Schell led the Beavers last season with 62 blocks which ranked 11th in the Pac-12.
• Buckner made her OSU debut in 2020-21 appearing in four matches.
• Lopez finished last season with 25 assists, two service aces, five digs and two blocks.
• The freshmen from the 2020-21 season will remain listed as freshmen for the 2021 fall season and include: Aliyah McDonald, Izzi Szulczewski, Kateryna Tkachenko, Ellie Turner, Mychael Vernon and redshirt freshman Emma Villaluz.
• Vernon returns for her second season after being named a Pac-12 Freshman of the Week last season. She posted four double-doubles and had 12 matches with double-digit kills.
• Tkachenko played in all-69 sets in 2020-21 and tallied 177 kills to be the second-highest kill mark for OSU.
• Szulczewski played in 67 sets and posted 589 assists to lead OSU and rank fourth in the Pac-12.
• Turner was one-of-three players to play in every set in 2020-21 and finished the season with 10 aces.
• McDonald appeared in every match last season and finished with 129 kills on 318 attacks (third on the team). Currently out of the 2021 season due to injury.
• Villaluz redshirted last season due to injury.
OUR MISSION
Oregon State Athletics strives to Build Excellent Authentic Visionary Student-Athletes (Go BEAVS).