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Junior outside hitter Bree Knitter finished Friday's match against Washington with seven kills. Knitter and the Beavers were swept by No. 5 UW before a five set loss to Washington State.

Rough weekend for OSU

Volleyball drops two straight matches to Washington schools over weekend

By: Casey Grogan

Posted: 11/18/08

The best word to describe the Oregon State volleyball team after this weekend would be "disappointed."

OSU (14-13, 3-11 Pac-10) welcomed the two Washington schools in hopes of earning their first victories in the pursuit of three wins to earn a NCAA Tournament berth. No. 5 Washington (21-4, 12-3) walked into Legendary Gill Coliseum and made quick work of the Beavers in three sets, with set two the only close set of the match.

"We came out knowing we could win," junior outside hitter Rachel Rourke said. "It is the same thing we know we can win we just have to do it."

Washington was in control early in set one extending its lead to 12-8 despite a service ace by OSU freshman defensive specialist Betsy Devich. The Beavers worked their way back into the match as Rourke began to raise her kill number bringing Oregon State within three. UW took three straight points as they continued to side out the Beavers on the way to a 25-19 set one victory.

"We do great things sometimes and we need to do those consistently," junior outside hitter Bree Knitter said.

Set two was a back-and-forth battle until the end as Rourke set down 10 kills in the set while combining on a block with junior middle blocker Lexie Rathgeber pushing the Beaver lead to 11-8. Washington fought back, bringing the set to a 15-15 tie. The Huskies fended off the Rourke attack late, winning the set 26-24.

In the third set the Huskies held Rourke at bay, taking a 12-8 lead early. Multiple three-point runs resulted in a 25-16 third set decision. Rourke finished the match with a game-high 25 kills, the only Beaver in double digits. Devich led OSU with 12 digs.

"This was the first time in a while that we distributed our sets well," head coach Taras Liskevych said. "Obviously Rachel with her 25 kills. We attacked well and sided out well."

The second match of the weekend was ripe for a win as Oregon State welcomed a then-winless Washington State (8-18, 1-14) team to Legendary Gill Coliseum. The Beavers had hoped to keep the past from repeating itself, as the Cougars earned their only Pac-10 win of the season last year in Pullman in the final game of the season against Oregon State.

Washington State started the first set on a mission, jumping out to a 7-1 lead after OSU sophomore outside hitter Jill Sawatzky set down the first point of the match with a kill. Oregon State was not able to come back from the quick lead in a 25-17 set one loss.

"We gave them a lot of points that we controlled," Rathgeber said. "We wanted to put pressure on them and let them decide who got the points."

Oregon State turned the tide in set two as sophomore middle blocker Kiersten Sambrailo tallied one block solo and a block assist and the Beavers ran off 17-8. She finished the set off with a kill earning OSU the 25-15 win.

Washington State was competitive in set three, taking stretches up to four points before relinquishing a point to Oregon State. The four-point run for WSU was shut down with a Rourke kill followed by back-to-back Sawatzky terminations. Oregon State was able to wrap up set three with a Rourke and Sambrailo block.

After a 25-21 victory in set three Oregon State hoped to keep the momentum going in set four. Tied 18-18, Oregon State rode on the shoulders of Rourke and Sambrailo, who tallied four straight points between them, putting the Beavers a point away from victory. The Cougars found the scoreboard tying the set at 24. Knotted 24-24, WSU took two straight points and the set.

The WSU team was poised to win its first conference match, taking a 6-4 lead early in the first-to-15 final set. Up 12-9, the Cougars surrendered back-to-back Beaver points, which they followed with two straight points of their own. After a Sawatzky kill, the Cougars earned their first conference victory in five sets, 15-12.

"We, if anything, did two things very poorly," Liskevych said. "One, our hitters made way too many errors and two, we didn't control the ball like we should have controlled the ball. Those are things that are very disheartening."

Oregon State junior setter Camilla Ah-Hoy finished with a match-high 63 assists, while senior libero Ashley Evans led OSU with 26 digs. Sambrailo finished the match with two block solos and five block assists. Rourke led the Beaver attack with 23 kills as Sawatzky found the floor for 21 kills.

The Beavers head to Arizona next for a Friday and Sunday series with Arizona State and Arizona.

Casey Grogan, sports editor

sports@dailybarometer.com