SB Nation User Blog: AllSaintsDay

Volleyball in the Tournament

AllSaintsDay — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 20:30:29 -0000

So, first, since search tells me that this was never posted on the front page...volleyball went up to Pullman on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, and took down WSU 3-1. They then headed over to face the No. 4, Pac-10 leading Huskies. After falling behind 2-0, the Ducks rallied back behind Sonja Newcombe to beat the Huskies 3-2, breaking a 17-match losing streak to UW and preventing the Huskies from clinching a share of the Pac-10 championship.

Sonja Newcombe, in the midst of kicking Fusky ass. Mmm, 36 kills.

The Ducks are playing the first two rounds in Lexington, Kentucky. UK was on top of the SEC before losing to Tennessee, thus delivering the title to LSU, much like Washington was on top of the Pac-10 before we beat them for the first time in 17 matches, and did so at their place, thus delivering the title to Stanford.

Yesterday, the Ducks took care of Clemson in three games, though still in a manner that allowed Jim Moore plenty of opportunity for, ahem, coaching opportunities. Today, they face off against Kentucky for the right to head to Minneapolis, where they would most likely play Florida State, who is seeded third despite a No. 12 AVCA poll ranking, then get a rematch with No. 11 Minnesota (the Ducks beat the Golden Gophers in Denver earlier this year) with a Final Four berth on the line. We might have faced now-No. 6 UW, except that they got knocked off by Colorado State. Husky volleyball + tournament = choke.

Heather Meyers and Dana Stephenson blocking. We could use more of this today than we had yesterday. Heather's 4 aces and Dana's .600 hitting percentage, though, were quite nice.

So, why am I telling you this? Well, the match is available online at 4pm Pacific, which means that not only can you watch it, you can do so with the end of the SECCG or Southern Cal-Arizona, or the beginning of the B12CG on the TV.

Ducks 2009 Tournament Central

Gratutious Tiny Spandex Shorts Shot. Relevant because if Sonja Is Happy, then You Are Happy.

Did I mention the part where we hadn't beaten UW in 17 matches, despite our current several-year run in the Top 25, including a fairly long Top 10 stint, but then we kept the No. 4 Huskies from the Pac-10 championship by coming back from being down 0-2? Because it was a feeling not entirely unlike OMG ROSE BOWL, except a week earlier, and Bank of America Arena was full of sad Husky fans.

Couldn't get a really good shot, but the Duck was sporting a beaverskin cap pregame.

AllSaintsDay — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 07:16:35 -0000

Couldn't get a really good shot, but the Duck was sporting a beaverskin cap pregame.

My friend made this and told me I was free to share it, so, here ya go...

AllSaintsDay — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 07:08:06 -0000

My friend made this and told me I was free to share it, so, here ya go...

SI.com's 2009 Fan Survey Results from the Pac-10

AllSaintsDay — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:03:55 -0000

SI.com's 2009 Fan Survey Results from the Pac-10

We're the primary rival of 93.9% of Beaver fans and 51.8% of Husky fans, while we swing 56.9% anti-Beaver, 31.4% anti-Husky, and 10.1% anti-Trojan. (And 0.2% of Duck fans say our primary rival is Wazzou? Really?)

@jeffduncantp The MRI revealed Tracy Porter's injury to be an MCL sprain. He's expected to miss 4-6...

AllSaintsDay — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 18:00:20 -0000

@jeffduncantp The MRI revealed Tracy Porter's injury to be an MCL sprain. He's expected to miss 4-6 weeks.

Jeff Duncan's Twitter

Once at center of controversy, Gordon Riese feels officials' pain

AllSaintsDay — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 19:22:39 -0000

Once at center of controversy, Gordon Riese feels officials' pain

Thoughts on officiating controversies (in general) from the '06 OU-UO replay official.

Civil War's opening salvo? Beavers pay to light Morrison Bridge orange during rivalry week

AllSaintsDay — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:59:38 -0000

Civil War's opening salvo? Beavers pay to light Morrison Bridge orange during rivalry week

Fans of Oregon opponents Washington and Oregon State pay to light Morrison bridge in team colors during respective game weeks. Duck fans utterly fail to care.

Four Duck Sports in Three Days (And Five in Five)

AllSaintsDay — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 18:14:56 -0000

Just in case you feel like you weren't thinking about Duck sports enough this weekend with the football game, it seems that we have all the other fall and winter team sports at home this weekend as well, and there was also a post this Tuesday announcing a lacrosse alumni weekend "Friday at 2 in Autzen," which one would normally assume means "this Friday." But College GameDay outside and a game vs. USC the next day are not normal. So, you may, in fact, be able to catch up to five sports in three days, or six in five:

Friday

2:00 pm Lacrosse Alumnae Game (maybe) It's a sport we're pretty good at that you might not know much about. The last time the Ducks played in Autzen, they beat Johns Hopkins, which I'm told is impressive. Lacrosse is fast-paced, and a bit different from what you're used to. There's a Lacrosse 101 guide on goducks.com you might want, but don't try to understand how "shooting space" works. It hurts the brain.

7:00 pm No. 15 Volleyball vs OSU The Ducks took six straight Civil War matches before OSU won 3-2 in the Gil earlier this year. We don't like that. Also, you get to let off some of your can't-wait-for-Saturday by shouting OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO at the Beavers' entirely unbalanced offense, which consists of senior Rachel Rourke, and people who try to score so Rourke will get back to the front row. This is your first chance to get on TV this weekend, as FSN will carry the match. It's also the weekend's first "savor Mac Court" opportunity. And, of course, Tiny Spandex Shorts.

7:00 Soccer vs. Washington If going against the Beavs isn't your thing, perhaps you'd prefer "Huck the Fuskies." That's okay. I think we consider UW to also be our rivals. But as it's not part of my schedule, I'm not going to pump it up as much.

Saturday

7:00-9:00 College GameDay Because there will be Trojans picked, and we will need to boo. Loudly. And there will be Ducks picked, and we will need to cheer. I'm more certain of the second than the first, as Uncle Phil will be the celebrity guest picker. Second chance to get on TV, and best chance to do so with signs.

5:00 No. 10 Football vs. No. 4 USC Your third shot at a TV appearance. Otherwise, I don't know why you'd come.

Sunday

1:00 Soccer vs No. 21 Washington State It's the soccer team's final home match of the regular season, and Arizona is a long way to go for an away game. After reaching a ranking as high as No. 14 this season, the Ducks have fallen on hard times in league play, so let's try to cheer them on to a Pac-10 victory. It's only $2 if you wear "Go O or Go Home," or free with a USC ticket stub.

5:00 Men's Basketball vs. Concordia (Ex) It's the first time that you get to see the Ducks play against another team this year. I admit that I don't follow basketball in the preseason, unlike football, volleyball, and baseball, so I can't tell you much more. Except that you want to watch as many games at Mac this season as you can.

Tuesday

7:00 Women's Basketball vs. Southern Oregon (Ex)I don't follow women's basketball preseason either, but this is your first chance to see the team in a game under Coach Paul Westhead. And another Mac Court chance.

So there you have it. Myself, I'll be attending all of these except for lacrosse (apparently, going to UO means I have to go to class, not just sporting events), and Soccer vs. UW (because I can't be in Mac Court and at Papé Field simultaneously).

That might be a concern considering, you know, Oregon. USC has allowed an average over thirty...

AllSaintsDay — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 16:46:25 -0000

That might be a concern considering, you know, Oregon. USC has allowed an average over thirty points a game in their last two games against Notre Dame and Oregon State, and will face Oregon this coming weekend, an offense averaging 34 points a game. These are numbers that may be of some concern to USC fans, and of some consolation to those wishing to avoid the usual "USC reforms, hangs around, and is sitting there at the end of the season just waiting for everyone else to fold before stealing the pot" move they excel at following their one blown Pac-10 game a year.

Every Day Should Be Saturday

College GameDay will be in Eugene

AllSaintsDay — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 15:58:51 -0000

College GameDay will be in Eugene

Not really a surprise, but it's still nice to hear official word.