Duck volleyball spikes South Dakota 3-1 in season opener
Oregon cruised to a 3-1 victory over South Dakota Friday night, 25-21, 22-25, 25-23, 25-17 to start the 2025 season 1-0.
In the third set freshman Alanah Clemente, a 6-2 opposite hitter from Bishop Alemany High in Mission Hills, California, put away seven kills on nine swings. New coach Trent Kersten notched his first win as Oregon head coach after coming oer from Loyola Marymount.
Valentina Vaulet led the Ducks with 17 kills, while Holly McFadden tallied eight blocks. Setter Cora Taylor posted 25 assists and 9 digs.
After the Ducks split the first two sets, they took control with a 9-4 run in the fourth. Sophia Meyers chipped in seven digs, a service ace and two blocks.
Tied up after two.
— Oregon Volleyball (@OregonVB) August 29, 2025
Saved four set points before South Dakota got a kill to even the match.
Hitting .283 as a team thru two sets, five players have at least three kills including four from Meyers👇#GoDucks pic.twitter.com/QBjMLLFFD7
Dan Lanning faces his most challenging season
Returning only four starters, Oregon head coach Dan Lanning tackles the challenge of defending the Big Ten Championship with a young and largely new team, trying to reload the way top programs like Ohio State, Georgia and Alabama do every year.
The Ducks begin 2025 ranked No. 7 in the country, bidding for a college football playoff spot. Pundits have picked them to finish anywhere from 9-3 to 11-1; the over/under at FanDuel has dropped to 9.5.
They host Montana State today at Autzen Stadium in the season opener, 1 p.m. PT on the Big Ten Network.
Oregon is 20-0 in home openers since a 30-24 loss to Indiana in 2004, a game in which they had seven turnovers and a gave up a 98-yard kickoff return.
Since the 2023 season, Oregon has only lost to teams that either reached or won the CFP championship 🤯 pic.twitter.com/CSNaF27l3x
— ESPN BET (@ESPNBET) August 29, 2025
Former Duck Robby Ashford leads Wake Forest to 10-9 win
Senior quarterback Robby Ashford ran for a 5-yard touchdown and completed 20-28 passes for 218 yards to lead the Demon Deacons to a 10-9 opening win over Kennesaw State Friday night.
A four-star quarterback from Hoover, Alabama, Ashford spent a season on the Oregon roster in 2020 before transferring to Auburn and South Carolina. He also played baseball with the Ducks, starting 10 games with a double, a triple and three stolen bases.
First TD of the @CoachDickert Era ✅@robby_ashford calls his own number and takes it in for his first touchdown as a Demon Deacon@WakeFB | @DemonDeacons | #GoDeacs
— ACC Digital Network (@theACCDN) August 29, 2025
pic.twitter.com/z4VPAh02eh
Longtime friend of the Ducks Lee Corso says good-bye
Known as the soul of college football for his humor and sharp observations about games, players and donning the predictive headgear, Lee Corso makes his final pick in Columbus, Ohio this morning on ESPN College GameDay ahead of No. 1 Texas at No. 3 Ohio State.
A true end of an era tomorrow. #LeeCorso pic.twitter.com/m77TbZGviJ
— Jimmy Traina (@JimmyTraina) August 29, 2025