The University of Oregon Volleyball team has achieved yet again, this time in preseason ranking via the AVCA Coaches’ Poll. The Ducks were projected to finish No. 8 in the country, the highest preseason ranking in the history of the program. This is becoming somewhat of a trend for the Ducks as they have been ranked in the top 20 in five of the last six seasons. Texas, the reigning national champion, topped the poll after receiving 55 of the 60 first place votes. You can check out the Ducks at the Green and Yellow Exhibition match Saturday, Aug. 17 at Mathew Knight Arena at 7 p.m.

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A former University of Oregon Football player had a scary moment in the weight room over the weekend. Darrion Weems, a Dallas Cowboys backup left tackle, dropped a 325-pound bench press bar directly on his chest. Cowboys’ head coach Jason Garrett believes the bar slipped out of Weems’ grasp due to a thumb injury. The accident forced Weems to miss practice on Sunday, but all reports indicate that he should be able to return to the field soon.

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It was a sad day in Major League Baseball Monday night as a fan fell to his death during a game between the Atlanta Braves and the Philadelphia Phillies. Ronald Lee Homer Jr., a lifelong Braves fan, plummeted about 65 feet from an upper-deck platform at Turner Field in Atlanta. No word has come from the authorities as to what may have caused the accident, but the fall appears to simply have been an accident and no foul play is expected. In an interview Connie Homer, mother of the victim, told The Associated Press her son was “big hearted, just a great guy.”