The first Best of the West, which ranks the top teams across the region, includes Boise State, Washington, Colorado and USC in the top half.

Originally Published: August 25, 2024 at 10:57 a.m.

Last spring, Brenna Legaard’s teenage son’s emotional outbursts at school escalated, fueled by the departure of a beloved teacher.

A vice principal at Portland’s Ida B. Wells High informed Legaard that if her son, who has autism, wanted to stay at school full-time, administrators could not guarantee his safety.

EUGENE- The Oregon Ducks volleyball program is continuing to prepare for the upcoming season with an exhibition match. Saturday at 4 p.m. PDT, the Ducks faced Oregon State in an exhibition game just an hour north of Eugene in Corvallis at Gill Coliseum. 

With just six days until the season opener against Pittsburgh, Oregon coach Matt Ulmer is looking to get his athletes as much experience and repetition as possible ahead of their 2024 season debut. 

“You learn a lot more from this than you do from practice,” Ulmer said following Oregon’s Green-Yellow Scrimmage. “We start with Pittsburgh, who’s going to be, I think, a top-five team coming out of the gate. So, I think we’re in a good spot, but we have a couple of weeks to get a little bit better.” 

The Oregon volleyball program will open the season as the No. 10 team in the AVCA preseason poll. This is the second consecutive season and third time in program history for the Ducks to start their year among the top 10 teams in the country. The Ducks will open the 2024 season against a top-five ranked opponent in Pittsburgh. 

One way Ulmer is challenging his Ducks ahead of the season opener against No. 4 ranked Pittsburgh is through competing in an exhibition match against former conference opponent Oregon State. Oregon and Oregon State have competed in the same conference for years, however, with conference realignment coming into play this season for the Ducks and many other programs around the nation, the Oregon volleyball program will not face the Beavers in the regular season. While Oregon will be a member of the Big Ten conference and playing a Big Ten schedule, Oregon State remains a member of the Pac-12 Conference alongside Washington State, the only other team left in the Pac-12. 

Oregon State will play a West Coast Conference (WCC) schedule starting Sep. 26 against Pepperdine. The Beavers rank third in the WCC preseason standings. 

One player to watch in Saturday’s scrimmage is junior outside hitter Mimi Colyer. Earlier this month, Colyer was named to the 2024 Big Ten Volleyball Preseason All-Conference Team. 

Colyer has been making a dramatic impact for Oregon since her arrival in Eugene. As a true freshman in 2022, Colyer had great success becoming the first player in program history to win AVCA National Freshman of the Year and seventh in conference history. Colyer was also the first freshman in Oregon volleyball history to be voted to one of the three All-America teams and the second in UO history to win conference Freshman of the Year. Colyer led all NCAA freshmen with 616.5 points and 544 kills, ranking 10th and 11th nationally. 

Colyer’s dominance extended into her sophomore season where she led the Ducks with 471 kills and 4.43 points per set, fourth in the Pac-12. She was second on the team with 13 double-doubles and had career highs in digs (302) and aces (44). 

This year, as one of the Ducks’ only returning starters, Colyer’s role is changing both on and off the court. Off the court, Colyer serves as a leader for Oregon’s newcomers, and on the court, Colyer, a player known for her offensive prowess, will take on a larger defensive responsibility. 

“She’s got a lot of help around her right now to score,” Ulmer explained. “We’re asking her now to pass more, play more defense, do some different things than what she’s done in the past. So, it’ll take some time for her to transition, but I know she can do it. I know she has the skill set to do it.” 

More players poised to be a force and key parts of Oregon’s rotation are Oregon’s four experienced seniors. This year’s senior class includes returners Daley McClellan and Onye Ofoegbu and transfers Mackenzie Morris and Michelle Ohwobete. 

As the Oregon Ducks prepare for their highly anticipated season opener against Pittsburgh the exhibition match against Oregon State offers a valuable opportunity for evaluation and preparation. With a talented roster and a determined coaching staff, Oregon is well-positioned to compete at a high level in the coming season.  

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