Oregon State
9-4, 0-2Pac-12
Washington State
14-1, 1-1Pac-12
Volleyball Edged By Washington State
September 28, 2013 | Women's Volleyball
Follow Oregon State Volleyball on: Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
CORVALLIS, Ore. – Lila Toner led the Oregon State volleyball team with 20 kills but the Beavers couldn't overcome an 0-2 deficit in a five-set loss to Washington State Friday night.
Set scores were 24-26, 20-25, 25-20, 28-26 and 9-15.
“That match was definitely decided in the first and second sets,” Oregon State head coach Taras Liskevych said. “We were in control of the first set and let it go in the end. We weren't able to get into group passing and blocking until the third set. In the fifth set, we did a poor side of siding out and hitting.
“We just need to get better in terminating the ball and passing and digging early. We had them on the ropes and we needed to finish the fourth set better, which we didn't do, and they had more momentum in the fifth set.”
The match saw 26 lead changes and 45 ties throughout the night, and Oregon State attempted to win its first Pac-12 Conference match since 2003 when falling in an 0-2 hole. OSU nearly managed the feat after winning sets three and four, 25-20 and 28-26, respectively, and was tied with Washington State at six midway through set five.
The Cougars, who hit .273 in the deciding set, compared to a minus -.200 for Oregon State, pulled away with two of the next three points. WSU won the match by taking seven of the set's final nine points.
Toner was the Beavers' leader offensively, claiming her 20 kills on 58 digs for a .207 hitting percentage. It was her second match of the year with at least 20 kills.
Toner was countered by Washington State's (14-1 overall, 1-1 Pac-12) Kyra Holt, who finished with 26 kills and a .308 hitting percentage.
Washington State had the slight edge offensively, hitting .207 to the Beavers' .149. Both teams finished with 28 attack errors but the Cougars, who had 188 attacks to 175 for OSU, finished with 13 more kills, 67 to 54. Both teams had five service aces as well, but the Cougars tallied 16 errors to the Beavers' eight.
Defensively, Oregon State (9-4, 0-2) was led by Becky Defoe, who had 17 digs, while Sydney Francis tallied 16 and Toner had 13 to give her her second double double of the season.
The Cougars took the first set, 26-24, hitting .289 to the Beavers' .300. The teams combined for just four errors in the first set and were tied as late as 24 all but the Cougars scored the final two points to go up 1-0.
The teams were tied at 19 in set two but the Cougars scored six of frame's final seven points to take it, 25-20. The second set was balanced, just like the first, with it seeing three lead changes and 10 ties. Set one had eight lead changes and 13 tie scores.
The Beavers extended the match with a 25-20 win in set three, winning it on the strength of a .231 hitting percentage while forcing WSU into a .163 mark. Six lead changes and 10 ties highlighted the frame.
Oregon State held off a late Washington State charge in the fourth set to push the match to its limit. Eight ties and seven lead changes highlighted the set. WSU led as late as 25-24 but the Beavers managed to hold the Cougars off for the win.
The Beavers return to the road next weekend for a pair of Pac-12 Conference matches. Oregon State plays at Arizona State Friday night starting at 6 p.m., and after that, will visit Arizona Sunday at 11 a.m. Both matches can be seen on the Pac-12 Networks.
For more information on the Oregon State volleyball team, follow the club's official Twitter account at Twitter.com/BeavsVolleyball or by Facebook at Facebook.com/OregonStateVolleyball.
