Ducks Struggle Early in Loss at Washington

SEATTLE, Wash. – The No. 16 Oregon volleyball team suffered a straight-set road loss Sunday afternoon at 12th-ranked Washington. With the setback, the Ducks are now 20-8 overall with an 11-7 record in Pac-12 play.
 
Brooke Nuneviller registered a match-high 15 kills coupled with a .306 hitting percentage. The Chandler, Ariz., native has put down double-digit kills in nine straight with at least 15 kills in seven of those efforts. Nuneviller also had a team-high eight digs in Sunday's match.
 
Up Next: In a quick turnaround, the Ducks are back home Tuesday for Senior Day against Arizona. First serve is scheduled for 6 p.m. (PT) at Matthew Knight Arena.
 
Washington (22-4, 15-3) dominated the first two sets but the Ducks shook off the sluggish start in time for a back-and-forth third. The set featured 13 ties and seven lead changes; the first two sets combined to have just six ties and two lead changes.
 
The Huskies led 15-13 at the media timeout in the third set but out of the huddle, Oregon pulled even with a kill by Abby Hansen followed by a UW miscue. Neither team led by more than two points until Washington took a 21-18 late in the third to force a UO timeout.
 
Oregon went on to save two match points with a final kill from Nuneviller followed by a tandem block by Hansen and Morgan Lewis. But the Huskies closed out the sweep (25-12, 25-14, 25-21) with a Samantha Drechsel kill; she tied Nuneviller for the match lead.
 
In the middle, Hansen and Karson Bacon combined for 10 kills. Hansen was second on the team Sunday with six kills while hitting .364 and adding a pair of blocks. Gloria Mutiri finished the afternoon with five kills of her own.
 
For more news and information about UO Volleyball, follow @OregonVB on Instagram and Twitter, and @OregonVolleyball on Facebook.