OSU wbxb
Marquee matchups with Tennessee and Notre Dame highlight the Oregon State women’s basketball 2015-16 non-conference schedule, which was announced by head coach Scott Rueck Friday. The Beavers will play the return leg of their home-and-home series with Tennessee on Dec. 19, after making the trip to Knoxville last season. The contest marks the Lady Vols first trip to Corvallis since 1987. Oregon State will play Notre Dame in South Bend on Dec. 28, as the Beavers look to knock off the team that finished 2014-15 ranked second in the nation. Oregon State’s only prior matchup with Notre Dame came two years ago, when the No. 2 Fighting Irish visited Gill Coliseum. The Beavers open the year at home for the 10th consecutive season, when Longwood visits Gill Coliseum on Nov. 13. That matchup will be followed by a trip north, as the Beavers will be hosted by Portland with Oregon State looking to top the Pilots for the third-straight year. OSU follows that up with another home contest on Nov. 22, when it plays host to UC Riverside for the first time ever. Thanksgiving weekend will see Oregon State head to Puerto Rico for a pair of matchups in San Juan. The weekend will start with a game against Hofstra on Nov. 27, before the Beavers take on SEC foe Arkansas on Nov. 28. The Pride made the Colonial Athletic Association Championship game last season, en route to an NIT appearance. The Razorbacks made it to the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2014-15, before being eliminated by Baylor. The Beavers’ trip to Puerto Rico will be followed by a voyage north to Milwaukee to take on Marquette. Oregon State last faced the Golden Eagles in 2000, taking a 64-50 road win. After a 20-day absence, Oregon State returns to Gill Coliseum on Dec. 12 for a game against Idaho. Last season the Beavers hosted the Vandals for Beavers Beyond the Classroom, earning a 75-53 win in front of over 7,500 local school children. The Beavers continue the homestand with a game against Cal State Bakersfield on Dec. 15. OSU did not face the Roadrunners in 2014-15, snapping a streak of six-straight seasons with a matchup. Following the Dec. 19 matchup with Tennessee, Oregon State will host Cal Poly in its final home game of 2015 before it hits the road to take on Notre Dame in the final non-conference game of the season. The Pac-12 schedule will be released at a later date.
Duck VB No. 13
Coming off a run to the third round of the NCAA Tournament a year ago, the Oregon volleyball team will pick up where it left off after being ranked No. 13 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association Poll. The Ducks received 722 total points and are the third-ranked Pac-12 team with Stanford at No. 2 and Washington at No. 10. The preseason poll also paints the picture of another challenging schedule for the Ducks in 2015, as 10 different opponents earned a preseason ranking. Most of the 10 come as conference opponents, with Oregon being one of nine Pac-12 schools to be ranked, but the Ducks will also face No. 4 Florida and No. 5 Nebraska as part of the preseason road trip. Pac-12 coaches predicted the Ducks to finish fourth in the conference while naming Amanda Benson and Martenne Bettendorf to the Preseason All-Pac-12 Team. Oregon returns five starters from a year ago, including the AVCA Third Team All-American Bettendorf. That group is paired with a freshman class which was ranked No. 4 in the nation.