The Barometer Online

Issue date: 10/26/06 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Tzu-Ying Chen Brittany Cahoon (15) was 13-29 on attack attempts and tallied 18 points when Oregon State and Oregon met in Eugene earlier this season.

Kristin Murray says she and her teammates have had the same thing on their minds since Sept. 29: a rematch with the Ducks.

"I think we've been ready since the game ended last time," Murray said.

Murray and the Beavers (3-15 overall, 0-9 Pacific-10) will get their wish Friday as the Ducks (15-4, 5-4) come to Corvallis for another Civil War matchup in Gill Coliseum at 7 p.m. Oregon beat OSU 3-1 earlier this season.

"I think we're definitely the underdogs, but that's even more reason to want it," Murray said.

But getting their first Pac-10 win won't be easy for the Beavers, as OSU is gaining momentum heading into the second half of the Pac-10 season.

The Ducks will travel to Corvallis fresh off a successful trip to the Bay Area, where they knocked off then-No. 8 Cal 3-1.

"They're hot, playing well right now," said coach Taras Liskevych. "But we're probably one of the causes why they're hot: we went in to Duckville and gave them confidence. Now we want to take that away."

Oregon is led by Mira Djuric, Sonja Newcombe and Erin Little, who all average more than three kills per game. In the last meeting with OSU, Newcombe - a freshman - led the Ducks with 19 points and 22 kills. Djuric leads the conference in aces per game with .54.

"We need to block," Liskevych said. "We didn't have a very good blocking match last time except for in the third game, and we had six blocks. And we won that game."

As a team, the Ducks lead the Pac-10 in opponent hitting percentage (.123).

OSU hopes that with the help of freshmen Rachel Rourke - who ranks second in the Pac-10 with 4.21 kills per game - and Brittany Cahoon, the Beavers will be able to pull out a win. Last time against Oregon, Cahoon was 13-29 on attack attempts, notching 18 points for the Beavers. Fellow senior Abby Windell had one of her best performances against the Ducks a month ago, tallying nine points and a career-high 12 blocks in the loss.

"I think with so many new people we just weren't ready for the Civil War," said Murray. "We just weren't as fired up as we needed to be."

At the loss in Eugene, the Beavers hurt themselves, repeatedly committing unforced errors. OSU has struggled since then, particularly on offense. In their last four matches, the Beavers have been outscored 360-259. OSU has not forced more than three games since Oct. 6 at Washington State, when the Beavers took the Cougars to five games.

"We've struggled because of a combination of things," Liskevych said. "We don't have consistent passing, setting and therefore, consistent hitting. Volleyball is all about being able to control the ball in order to get a good swing."

"We have to eliminate errors," added freshman Ali Walker. "We have to play the game instead of letting other teams play us."

Oregon leads the all-timer series 45-40, but OSU has won nine of the last 11 contests. The Ducks have not won in Gill Coliseum since Oct. 20, 2000.

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