Janet Beckerman (Bellevue, Wash.) led the way with a career-high 16 kills and a .343 hitting percentage, plus she collected four block assists. Sarah Jaeckel (Littleton, Colo.) contributed 14 kills, five digs, and three block assists, and Cristin Richards (Olympia, Wash.) also finished with 14 kills along with 13 digs for her sixth double-double of the season.
After Oregon cruised to the victory in the first set, Seattle U jumped on top in the second set, scoring the first five points. After the Ducks tied the set at 11-11, a kill by Jaeckel and two straight Oregon attack errors gave the Redhawks the lead for good, and back-to-back blocks at the net closed out the set in Seattle U's favor, tying the match at 1-1 heading into the intermission.
The third set went back-and-forth with 10 ties and two lead changes before Seattle U grabbed control thanks to two kills and a block assist by Richards as the Redhawks scored four straight points to take a 17-13 lead. Consecutive blocks for Oregon's Jocelyn Levig and Katherine Fischer brought the Ducks within three at 20-17, but a kill by Beckerman stopped the Oregon momentum, and the visitors made four attack errors to allow Seattle U to take a 2-1 advantage.
Oregon (5-0) cleaned up its game, making only two attack errors total in the fourth and fifth sets, hitting .560 in the fourth set as the Ducks earned 15 kills on 25 attempts. Levig also collected three service aces in the final two sets while Heather Meyers earned two straight service aces late in the fourth set. In the fifth set, Oregon fell behind early, 4-1, but went on a 9-2 run to take control and eventually pull out the set and the match.
"This was a big night for us, but we need to find a way to stay focused just a little bit longer so matches like this end in wins for us," head coach Shannon Ellis said. "I am very excited about our growth and the direction the team is going in."
Emily Deleissegues (Aromas, Calif.) led the Redhawks with 17 defensive digs, including the 1,000th dig of her career, the fifth player in Seattle U volleyball history to reach that mark. Jamie Mellies (Henderson, Nev.) dished out 43 assists plus earned five digs and two block assists. Jordan Keller (Mukilteo, Wash.) contributed five kills and a team-high seven block assists, and Megan Augustavo (Shoreline, Wash.) added eight defensive digs to the effort.
Meyers led the Ducks with 17 kills and three aces, plus she earned four assists, nine digs, and five block assists. Fischer notched a double-double with 13 kills and 11 digs, Alaina Bergsma also finished the match with 13 kills, and setter Lauren Plum had a solid all-around match with 53 assists, six kills, eight digs, and two block assists. Defensively, Levig led the team at the net with nine total blocks to go along with eight kills, three aces, and three digs, and libero Haley Jacob led all players with 24 defensive digs.
Although Oregon has now won three meetings in as many seasons against Seattle U, this was by far the closest of the three contests, as previously the Redhawks had managed only an average of 11.3 points per set in the previous two meetings, both in Eugene, Ore. This was also the second straight match against a Pac-10 school that Seattle U won at least one set, having previously pushed Arizona State to four sets last Friday in Tempe, Ariz.
Seattle University (2-5) will prepare for the San Jose State Tournament, where it will face Cal State Northridge, Cal State Bakersfield, and the host Spartans this Friday and Saturday, Sept. 10-11. The Redhawks return to the Connolly Center next Wednesday, Sept. 15, for another Pac-10 foe, as Oregon State comes to visit for a 6 p.m. match.