Oregon Beach Volleyball Splits Weekend, Defeats New Orleans 3-2 | UO Athletics

NEW ORLEANS, La. – The Oregon beach volleyball team concluded its season-opening weekend with a hard-fought 3-2 victory over the University of New Orleans at the Green Wave Invitational on Saturday. The Ducks experienced a split result on Saturday, falling to the 20^th-ranked Tulane Green Wave in their earlier match. Oregon returns home with an overall record of 3-2.

UO duo Gwen Fife and AJ Slojkowski proved to be a consistent force for the Ducks, securing wins in both of their matches on Saturday and compiling a 4-1 record at the No. 3 pairs position throughout the weekend.

Match 4: #20 Tulane 3, Oregon 2

Tulane established an early 2-0 advantage after the initial round of matches, ultimately clinching the dual with a victory in the top pairing. However, Oregon prevented a complete sweep, earning points at the No. 3 and No. 5 pairs. The Ducks’ first point of the morning came courtesy of Natasha George and Katrena Koellner, who rallied to a three-set win, marking their second victory of the weekend.

Fife and Slojkowski kicked off their Saturday with a 21-18, 21-14 win, securing Oregon’s second tally against the 20^th-ranked team in the nation.

Here are the results from the match against Tulane:

1. Hansen/Morris (TLN) def. Gamache/Rossi (ORE) – 21-16, 21-15
2. Ensign/Trodd (TLN) def. McClellan/Snipes (ORE) – 24-22, 21-11
3. Fife/Slojkowski (ORE) def. Ali/O’Connor (TLN) – 21-18, 21-14
4. Burks/Gallegos (TLN) def. Bjornson/Taylor (ORE) – 19-21, 21-16, 19-17
5. George/Koellner (ORE) def. Cutler/Walther (TLN) – 15-21, 21-11, 15-6
6. EXH: Furtwangler/O’Donnell (ORE) def. Kucinski/Mann (TLN) – 21-19, 21-17

Order of Finish: 2, 4, 1*, 5, 3

Match 5: Oregon 3, New Orleans 2

Facing a 2-1 deficit in the weekend finale, the Ducks mounted a comeback, securing wins at the No. 1 and No. 3 pairs to clinch the victory. Hanna Bjornson and Sofia Taylor, competing at the No. 4 pairing, registered the first point of the dual before New Orleans responded with wins at courts two and five.

Fife and Slojkowski leveled the score at 2-2 with a 21-14, 21-15 result at No. 3, their fourth point of the weekend. All eyes then turned to court one, where Bella Gamache and Liz Rossi were on their way to a straight-set win that sealed the Ducks’ third victory of the weekend.

Here are the results from the match against New Orleans:

1. Gamache/Rossi (ORE) def. Seiling/Seiling (UNO) – 21-18, 21-17
2. Dow/Salazar (UNO) def. McClellan/Snipes (ORE) – 21-18, 20-22, 15-12
3. Fife/Slojkowski (ORE) def. Alexander/Lyons (UNO) – 21-14, 21-15
4. Bjornson/Taylor (ORE) def. Dykstra/Madsen (UNO) – 17-21, 21-14, 15-10
5. Neal/Salgado (UNO) def. Coats/Griffiths (ORE) – 21-18, 21-18
6. EXH: Furtwangler/Kelly (ORE) def. Kampfe/Swartzendruber (UNO) – 21-14, 21-16

Order of Finish: 4, 2, 5, 3, 1*

Up Next: The Oregon beach volleyball team will travel to Tucson, Arizona, to participate in the Cactus Classic on February 27-28.

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