Vital weekend for volleyball team

For the Oregon State University volleyball team to have their postseason dreams realized, it's now or never.

The Beavers have had their eyes set on nine conference wins since the beginning of the season, in order to have a realistic chance at inclusion in the 64-team NCAA Tournament.

"Our goal from the onset of the season, we know that we have to win nine Pac-12 matches," said head coach Terry Liskevych.

Oregon State raised their conference record to 6-8 over the weekend with a five-set victory over the University of Colorado and a three-set sweep of the University of Utah.

This weekend, they'll travel south to take on the Arizona schools, who they split with at home earlier this year.

Important to the team's victories last weekend were focus and knowing they needed to win both games to reach their postseason goal.

"You have to go into every game thinking it's your last, and I think that's what we did before, we were like ‘We to have to get this win,' so we played with that type of intensity," said redshirt freshmen setter Tayla Woods.

Oregon State is in the unique position of having control of their destiny.  But for the team to reach their nine-win goal they'll more than likely need to win one or both matches this weekend.

"We know that this stretch of games is super important," said junior outside hitter Camille Saxton.

Following this weekend, the team finishes conference play facing six ranked opponents, four of which are ranked in the top seven in the nation.

"They're all mental, emotional and physical grinds against those teams, and for us, we play six of those in a row," Liskevych said.

Oregon State (14-10, 6-8 Pac-12) is currently in a tie with the University of Arizona for seventh place in Pac-12 standings.

The squad will be given an opportunity to break the tie with the Wildcats as they head to Tucson, Ariz., for their next match on Friday in what is sure to be a highly competitive, intense contest as the teams jockey for position.

"We have not been in that territory, of having three wins in a row in the middle of the season, so this is a big test for us," Liskevych said. "And, it's an opportunity to really solidify pushing for that spot for the NCAA (Tournament). This weekend is big for that."

The Beavers lost a home match in four sets to Arizona earlier in conference play.  The contest was even at 1-1 going into the third set before senior outside hitter Dre Shaw suffered an ankle injury that seemed to take some of the life out of the Beavers.

"In volleyball you're going to have obstacles, and we should've risen above it, but I think that our team is a lot stronger because of that injury, so now we're ready to take on whatever happens," Woods said.

For a young Beaver team that is 2-4 on the road in the Pac-12, this season may hinge on the weekend's results.

"We're hoping definitely for a 2-0 weekend," Liskevych said. "We need to be in a good frame of mind for each match and bring energy, enthusiasm and passion."

Scott Campbell, sports writer

sports@dailybarometer.com