SPORTS
Beavers fall to Stanford, look forward to NCAA tournament By ZACHARY HARRIS Sports Contributor
After a convincing victory over Washington State 24 hours earlier, Oregon State took on a rested No. 3 Stanford team who had beaten them in both matchups during the regular season in the second round of the PAC-12 tournament. Down by as much as 20 points, the Beavers could not find their groove until the fourth quarter and lost by a score of 57-68. Oregon State could not handle the height and post presence of Stanford. The Beavers allowed numerous offensive rebounds which created easy second chance opportunities. While OSU freshman forward Taylor Jones has become a better player every week, the defense and rebounding has not been the same since freshman forward Kennedy Brown tore her ACL almost a month ago. The loss raises the question of how far can the Beavers advance without much needed post defense and height. The loss to Stanford displayed how vulnerable Oregon State is down low if Jones gets into foul trouble, and other teams will try to take advantage of this. Despite these shortcomings, the Beavers believe they have the tools to make a deep NCAA run. When Oregon State is playing at their best, they are a dominating team that is able to play lock-down defense and score from anywhere on the court. “I feel like we’re in the best coach/player learning situation we have been in all year, the receptiveness in practice, the way that they’re evolving, the way that they’re communicating,” OSU head coach Scott Rueck said. “I think we’re as mobile as we have [ever] been.” Not everything is easy going, as Oregon State has now lost two straight quarterfinals games
in the PAC-12 tournament. OSU senior guard Mikayla Pivec was visibly upset after this heartbreaking loss. While she was put in the spotlight, she echoed the same emotions the rest of the team felt. “Just sad that we lost. The individual stuff doesn’t really mean as much to me, just sad that our team doesn’t get to play more in this tournament,” Pivec said. The ‘individual stuff’ she mentioned, was the fact that she has become Oregon State’s all-time leading rebounder. But this is not on Pivec’s mind as she is only focused on the team and how she can help lead them to a deep tournament run. Stanford’s stringent defense gave the Beavers a glimpse of what will come in The Big Dance. Even though Oregon State did not look prepared at the beginning, junior guard Destiny Slocum believes the Beavers have what it takes to handle the ball pressure down the stretch. “I don’t think they really did a ton to disrupt us, we have to come off a little bit more confident,” said Slocum. Confidence will be crucial for the NCAA tournament but this loss will not help their tournament seeding. The Beavers are still on the table to host the first two rounds but the odds have dropped. A grueling PAC-12 conference featuring six of the top 25 teams has prepared Oregon State for war. The regular season has battle-tested the Beavers and they are prepared to go toe-to-toe with anyone that draws their card. Rueck knows what this team is capable of, and is ready for the next game. “We’re playing our best,” Rueck said. “We’re more prepared than ever. And the conference has done that for us.”
JAD E WEBSTER | ORANGE MED I A NETWORK OSU senior guard Mikayla Pivec (#0) looks to find a teammate while running a play against Stanford sophomore guard Lexie Hull (#12) at Gill Coliseum on Jan. 19. The Beavers fell against Stanford during both regular season matchups and during their face off in the PAC-12 Tournament quarterfinals.
Two OSU wrestlers qualify for national tournament Beavers finish fourth place overall in this year’s PAC-12 championships By ANDRES DE LOS SANTOS Sports Contributor The Oregon State Wrestling team had three finalists in the 2020 PAC-12 wrestling championships in redshirt junior Devan Turner at 133 lbs., redshirt sophomore Grant Willits at 141 lbs. and redshirt junior Colt Doyle at 184 lbs. All three wrestlers knew that a win in the finals would qualify them for the national tournament. Turner had one thing on his mind entering the tournament: winning it. Last year, Turner finished third in the 133 lb. weight class, and despite still qualifying for the national tournament, he still left the Wells Fargo Arena with a sour taste in his mouth. In the finals match, Turner faced off against junior Paul Bianchi of University of Little Rock, Arkansas, who Turner defeated in their last meeting
JADE WE BSTE R | ORANGE ME DIA NE TWORK Devan Turner, in the 133 lb. weight class, competes against UALR on Saturday at Gill Coliseum on Feb. 15.
by a score of 8-6. Turner was now able to defeat Bianchi by a score of 5-3, and walked away with the PAC-12 title.
Turner was the sole champion for Oregon State who qualified for the national tournament for the second
year in a row. Willits won the PAC-12 championship last year at the 141 lb weight class, pinning Brandon Kier of Stanford in the second period. Like Turner, Willits qualified for the national tournament as well. Looking to defend his title at this year’s Pac-12 championships, Willits had to face off against Stanford redshirt freshman Real Woods, who Willits lost to in their last meeting by a score of 9-1. Despite a hard-fought effort from Willits, he was defeated by Woods by a score of 11-2, finishing second in conference. Willits still qualified for the national tournament as he is ranked in the top 25 in the country. Doyle placed third at last year’s PAC-12 wrestling championships at 174 lbs. This year, moving up to 184 lb. weight class, Doyle faced off against CSU Bakersfield redshirt
sophomore Josh Loomer, who defeated Doyle by a score of 12-4 during their last meeting. Loomer defeated Doyle once again in the finals by a score of 7-4. Doyle did not qualify for the national tournament, ending his junior season with a record of 20 wins and nine losses. Oregon State finished fourth overall in the PAC-12, scoring 92.5 points as a team, with one champion and two national qualifiers. Last year, Oregon State finished third in the conference, scoring 77.5 points as a team, with four champions and six national qualifiers. Turner and Willits now put their attention towards the NCAA wrestling championships in Minneapolis, Minn. from March 19-21 with the end goal of becoming All-Americans for Oregon State.
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