Having a 14-3 record and being ranked No. 10 in the country is quite an accomplishment for an Oregon volleyball team that entered the season unranked.
Now that most of the questions are answered, the Ducks must focus on the little things if they’re going to take the next step from an NCAA playoff team to a national championship contender.
“We’ve got to do what we’re supposed to do and that’s execute the play in front of us,” Oregon head coach Jim Moore said. “That’s our key – put it behind you and make the play in front of you.”
Combining the losses of All-American setter Lauren Plum and middle blocker Ariana Williams with the transfer of outside hitter Canace Finley, the Ducks were left with just half of their returning starters and an unproven roster.
Forced into playing time, Serena Warner and Kacey Nady have played well thus far. There is even an argument to be made that they have surpassed Williams as an offensive threat.
Likewise, the emergence of freshman Maggie Scott and improvement of Shellsy Ashen has allowed Oregon to run a 6-2 rotation that has consistently baffled opposing defenses all year long.
“Maggie has done a great job — Shells has played well all year long,” Moore said. “Attacking the ball on the right side, they’re (Scott and Ashen) picking great times and figuring that — that’s the difference right now with where we are and everybody else.”
Only three defenses weren’t baffled by Oregon’s up-tempo offense and as a result, the Ducks suffered 3-1 losses to both Stanford, Washington and UCLA within the past two weeks.
While Oregon may take the losses as moral victories against No. 1 (Stanford) and No. 3 (Washington), the losses showed just how much farther they have to go be in order to contend for a national title.
If the Ducks are going to make that leap from good to great, it’s going to start with Scott and Ashen and how they run the offense. In order for the Ducks to be one of the best teams in the nation, their offensive and attacking balance has got to be even.
“What makes us good – if we’re good – is balance,” Moore said after the Washington loss. “Balance is what makes us scary and we had no balance.”
As shown in the loss to Washington, Scott and Ashen forgot to set the ball for Nady and Warner, thus allowing Washington’s blockers to establish themselves on the outside against hitters Liz Brenner, Martenne Bettendorf, Frankie Shebby and Naya Crittenden. The result of that unbalance was the Huskies totaling 20 team blocks and controlling the game at the net, leading to Oregon’s loss.
“They were (Washington) better than us tonight and that’s without question,” Moore said.
When the Ducks defeated then No. 23 Michigan State earlier in the year, Oregon’s balanced attack led the Spartans to being unable to decipher where the ball was being set. This confusion allowed the Ducks to take advantage of the one-on-one attacks they received and led to a 3-1 victory.
It’s clear that Oregon has come a long way from the depths of the unknown, but to return to the success they experienced in 2012 as national runner-ups, the Ducks still have a ways to go.
Follow Ryan Kostecka on Twitter @Ryan_Kostecka