Beavers Travel to Eugene for Rivalry Series

CORVALLIS, Ore. – The Oregon State volleyball program opens Pac-12 play at Oregon on Wednesday at 7 p.m. This match marks the first Rivalry Series meeting between Oregon State and Oregon during the 2021 season.
 
ON TAP
• Oregon State (2-8) begins Pac-12 play on the road at No. 13 Oregon (9-1) for the first Rivalry Series matchup of the 2021 season.
• Action gets underway on Wednesday, September 22 at 7 p.m. The Beavers continue action this week on Sunday at Arizona.
• This is the fifth week of a six-week stretch that the Beavers will be on the road. OSU is on the road for the first 12 matches of the 2021 season that includes four tournaments and the first two weeks of the Pac-12 schedule.
 
FOLLOW THE ACTION
• Wednesday's match will be broadcast on the Pac-12 Networks with Rich Burk on the call. Live stats will also be available.
• To access live stats and the link to watch the match 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 43-68 overall record against Oregon.
• The Beavers and the Ducks most recently met during the 2020-21 Covid-19 season, where the Beavers dropped both matches in the Rivalry Series to OU. OSU traveled to Eugene on March 19, 2021, before hosting OU on March 21, 2021.
• In the first matchup last season, Oregon State took Oregon to five sets after winning the second and fourth sets. OSU finished the match with three aces (Tkachenko - 2, Vernon - 1) and 11 blocks (Schell - 8, Szulczewski - 6, Vernon - 2). OSU had more digs than Oregon (86-75) led by a 30-dig performance by Grace Massey. Mychael Vernon also had a career-high 17 digs and led OSU with 16 kills. Vernon was joined by Kateryna Tkachenko (15) and Lindsey Schell (14), also having double-digit kills.
• Oregon State dropped the second match last season, 3-0, to the Ducks. Vernon led the charge with 12 kills, while Tkachenko added 10 and Aliyah McDonald had seven. Izzi Szulczewski posted 14 digs to lead the Beavers.
• Oregon State last defeated Oregon on Oct. 26, 2019 in five sets in Corvallis. Returners from this match include Maddie Goings who had 14 kils, two blocks and seven digs. Schell finished with four kills and four blocks. Massey had one kill, seven assists and 32 digs.
 
MASSEY'S MILESTONES
• Oregon State 2020-21 roster is highlight by the return of senior Grace Massey for a fifth season.
• With this, Massey has the ability to claim the top spot on Oregon State's career digs list. The top spot is currently held by Becky Defoe (2010-13) with 2,029. After the Boise State Classic, Massey (1,927) is 102 digs away from tying the record and 103 from claiming the top spot outright.
• So far in 2021, Massey has 149 digs. In her first three season in the Orange and Black, Massey finished in the top-10 for each grade (Freshman: 2nd with 433; Sophomore: 1st with 560; Junior: 3rd with 524). As a sophomore and junior, Massey's numbers rank her third and fifth, respectively, on OSU's single-season digs record list. Massey also holds a top-10 spot on digs per set each year she has been a Beaver.
• Against Southern Illinois Edwardsville, Massey set the three-set match record for digs in a set with 33 - tying a career-high that was previously set against Arizona on Nov. 17, 2019.
 
RETURNERS
• Maddie Goings made her 2021 debut vs LSU and recorded a team-high 19 kills. After the Boise State Classic, she has 1,122 career kills to sit 12th all-time at OSU and has 3,467 career attacks to sit 10th.
• Junior Lindsey Schell returns for another season in the Orange and Black after leading the Beavers last season with 62 blocks, which ranked 11th in the Pac-12. This season, the Temecila, Calif. native has 114 kills off 236 attacks. She also has 32 blocks to average 0.89 per set.
• Nya Buckner makes her return to the squad and has started in three matches. She has 15 kills, four digs and 11 blocks.
• The freshmen from the 2020-21 season will remain listed as freshmen for the 2021 fall season and includes: Aliyah McDonald, Izzi Szulczewski, Kateryna Tkachenko, Ellie Turner, Mychael Vernon and Emma Villaluz.
• Szulczewski has been a crucial part of OSU's team with 302 assists on the season to lead OSU. She has posted five double-doubles this season to sit with 15 on her career. On the year, she has 31 kills, six service aces, 27.0 blocks and 96 digs.
• Tkachenko made her debut vs LSU. She has recorded double-digit kills in four of the eight matches she has seen time in this season, including a career-high 17 at Colorado State. On the year, she has 83 kills, 31 digs, four aces and five blocks.
• Vernon made her 2021 debut at the Colorado State Tournament starting against UAB. During her debut, she recorded 14 kills to lead OSU. She posted 17 kills at Colorado State to finish the weekend with 40 kills, nine digs and five blocks. At the Boise State Classic, she finished with 17 kills and 12 digs.
• Villaluz has appeared in every match, making four starts. She has 50 digs, three aces, three assists and two kills.
• Turner has played in five matches this season. She leads OSU with seven service aces, including four at Oklahoma. The Austin, Texas native also has 46 digs, two assists and one kill.
• Mary Kate Lopez and McDonald are returners that have not seen time during the 2021 season.
 
NEWCOMER POWER
• The freshman class has hit the ground running since joining the squad.
• All-seven true freshman have seen time in at least five sets this season, and six have made appearances in the starting lineup (Emily Bourne, Iris Coba, Madison Kelly, Vivian Light, DiLara Unal and Ryan White).
• Light attacked opening weekend starting her career in the Orange and Black by leading the Beavers with 16 kills against Oklahoma. She has 38 kills, eight blocks and seven digs on the year.
• Bourne and Kelly made an impact in their roles this season, including starting in both games at the Oklahoma Classic. On the year, Kelly has 22 kills, 16 blocks, 11 digs and six aces. Bourne has 27 kills, 10 digs and 15 blocks through the first 10 matches of the season.
• Unal and Beaver made their first appearances in 2021 against Penn State. Unal has started five matches and has 17.0 blocks to lead OSU with 1.00 blocks per set. She also has one ace, five assists, four kills and four digs on the season. Beaver has seen time in three matches. She led OSU with 32 assists against SIUE.
• White has appeared in 10 matches and started three, including one as libero at Boise State. The Richland, Wash. native has 58 digs and four aces on the season.
• Coba was the final newcomer to see time this season. The Lodi, Italy native has appeared in five matches making one start with eight digs and three aces.
 
LAST TIME OUT
• The Beavers traveled to Boise, Idaho for the Boise State Classic for the final-two nonconference matches.
• Against Santa Clara, OSU was led by Schell (11 kills). Szulczewski finished with 30 assists, and White led OSU with 12 digs as the Beavers dropped the match in three sets.
• OSU took on host, Boise State, in the final match of the weekend. Vernon led OSU (8 kills), while Coba was the only Beaver with an ace as the Beavers dropped the match in three sets. Szulczewski posted 19 assists, and Tkachenko led OSU with seven digs.
 
For more information on the Oregon State volleyball team, follow the club's official Twitter account at Twitter.com/BeaverVBall, by Facebook at Facebook.com/BeaverVBall or on Instagram at Instagram.com/BeaverVBall.
 
OUR MISSION
Oregon State Athletics strives to Build Excellent Authentic Visionary Student-Athletes (Go BEAVS).