Oregon State
3-9,1-1WCC
Portland
8-4,1-1WCC
Hester's Career Day Leads Beavers Past Portland
September 28, 2024 | Women's Volleyball
PORTLAND, Ore. – The Oregon State volleyball team tallied their first league win of the season in a four-set battle against Portland on Saturday, taking the away match by a 3-1 line (25-14, 15-25, 25-13, 31-29) at the Chiles Center.
"This team is motivated and it starts with how we approach each practice and that is the reason for this win," said head coach Lindsey Behonick. "I'm grateful to be on this journey with the team and get our first WCC win."
The Beavers (3-9, 1-1 WCC) used dominant performances in the first and third frames before battling through eight match points to finish off the Pilots in four for the victory.
Offensively, Annika Hester turned in a career day with highs in kills (19) and hitting percentage (.405 on 37 swings) while Emma Lilo dished 28 assists to keep the Beavers running. Closely behind Hester, Lauren Rumel and Zaria Thornton both pitched into the effort with nine kills apiece. Combining for a dozen aces on the day, Vivian Light's five paced the Beavers.
Defensively, Yasemin Narlioglu turned in 10 of the team's 43 digs. Rumel and Hester kept more Pilots off the board with each tallying four blocks.
Setting the tone early, the Beavers used three runs of 3-0 or better (3-0, 3-0, 7-0) to claim the match's first frame. Despite the Pilots scoring the first point, it was all Beavers for the rest of the set. Oregon State held multiple 10-point cushions before closing it at the 11-point difference at 25-14. A dozen combined digs from Light and Narlioglu kept Portland to a .025 clip.
Portland flipped the script in the second on their way to taking the second set, holding the Beavers to a measly .185 hitting percentage. The Pilots strung together two early – and pivotal – runs to put the Beavers away at 4-0 and 6-0 for a 10-3 lead before running to the 25-15 final.
Seven Lilo kills, four Hester kills and two aces apiece from Light and Iris Coba helped push the Pilots on the brink with a second set win in the third frame, 25-13. Coupled with the offensive effort, the defense held the hosts to a -.130 clip behind six digs split evenly between Coba, Narlioglu and Alexis Rodriguez. Just like in the first set win of the day for the Beavs, Portland snagged the frame's first point before Oregon State nearly ran away with it. Consecutive Coba aces stretched an early lead at 13-5 which forced Portland to a time out. A final run at 6-0 for the Beavs gave way to the set's final at 25-13 behind a pair of Hester kills.
Despite holding a late five-point lead at 22-17, Portland forced Oregon State to eight match points before the Beavers prevailed at 31-29. Hester capped her career day with five kills to pace the offense and help secure the set – and match – win. The offense was aided in the frame with 11 kills by Lilo and a dozen kills split evenly from Alara Doganyuz, Rodriguez, Rumel and Zaria Thornton. Smarter play by the Beavers also helped in the stretch run – OSU committed fewer attack errors (3 to 7) and reception errors (3 to 4).
Oregon State will stay on the road in their next time out, when they visit San Diego. First set against the Toreros is slated for noon on October 5th and can be seen on ESPN+.
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