After Washington swept Indiana on Sept. 27, Indiana had a tougher matchup the following day when it faced faced No. 11 Oregon in Eugene. This was validated in the first two sets going in favor of the Ducks. But in the third set, Indiana junior outside hitter Avry Tatum showed her world class arm with 10 kills to keep the Hoosiers alive and play a fourth set.
Ultimately, Indiana’s self-induced errors cost it a shot at victory. Oregon won the final set, sending the Hoosiers back to Bloomington winless in their only scheduled west coast trip of the season.
In Indiana’s Big Ten opener against Washington, the Huskies cruised to a three-set victory. Washington held a slight lead over the Hoosiers the entire match with the closest margin of victory being five points in the second set. Indiana failed to keep the ball in play at the net, accumulating 21 attacking errors –– eight in the first set. Tatum and senior outside hitter Mady Saris accounted for more than half of the errors.
Indiana's defense struggled to deflect shots at the net against Washington, allowing 10 blocks while managing just one. Four Huskies recorded at least three blocks each: junior setter Molly Wilson, sophomore middle blocker Katy Wessels, freshman middle blocker Julia Hunt and junior outside hitter Emoni Bush.
Sophomore middle blocker Ava Vickers was a bright spot for Indiana’s offense against Washington. Promoted to the starting lineup after her strong performance against the University of Notre Dame on Sep. 22, she recorded 10 kills with no errors — the only Hoosier to do so.
In Indiana’s first ever match against Oregon on Sept. 28, the Ducks won the first two sets narrowly. The Hoosiers responded by winning the third set and nearly forced a fifth set, but Indiana fell short as Oregon sealed the victory in set four 25-21. Despite falling in the first two sets against Oregon, Indiana forced deuce in both sets.
Offensively, Tatum struggled Friday against Washington, tallying 10 kills and leading the Hoosiers with eight attacking errors. But Tatum saw big improvements offensively against Oregon on Saturday, as the Ducks struggled to contain Tatum’s powerful attacks, as she led with 24 kills — just shy of her career high. This marked her second game with 20 or more kills, following her performance at the Indiana Invitational against Ball State University on Sept. 14, where she recorded 25 kills.
Indiana showcased its best serving performance of the season with 10 aces, with senior setter Camryn Haworth and graduate student defensive specialist Delaynie Maple contributing five and three aces, respectively. This was overshadowed, however, by the alarming 11 service errors and a staggering 26 attacking errors the Hoosiers earned as a team, with three players tallying five or more attacking errors.
Oregon's defense proved to be a problem all night for Indiana, with junior outside hitter Mimi Colyer, senior outside hitter Michelle Ohwobete, senior defensive specialist Daley McClellan and senior libero Mackenzie Morris all recording double-digit digs, contributing to the Ducks’ 60 total digs. They also out-blocked Indiana 11-8, led by senior middle blocker Onye Ofoegbu with seven.
Indiana aims to get even in conference play next weekend, looking to bounce back in front of its home crowd at Wilkinson Hall in Bloomington for its Big Ten home opener. The Hoosiers will face Michigan State at 7 p.m. Friday, followed by Ohio State at 1 p.m. Sunday.
Follow reporter Parker Rodgers (@parrod153) for updates throughout the Indiana volleyball season.
