The Husker volleyball team celebrates winning after the game against Wisconsin at the Bob Devaney Sports Center on Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024, in Lincoln, Nebraska.
The Husker volleyball team celebrates winning after the game against Wisconsin at the Bob Devaney Sports Center on Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024, in Lincoln, Nebraska.
Region MVP sophomore Harper Murray led Nebraska volleyball to a resounding victory over Wisconsin to advance to the Final Four on Sunday afternoon.
The Huskers defeated the Badgers, sweeping their bitter rivals for the third time this season (26-24, 25-17, 25-21).
Here are three takeaways and a question from the victory:
Middle blockers junior Rebekah Allick and sophomore Andi Jackson started and finished it for the Huskers against Wisconsin, scoring the first two and blocking the last two points of the match.
Allick finished the game with six blocks and five kills on a .444 hitting percentage. Jackson finished with five blocks, a dig and 10 kills on .474 hitting.
The middles have played a big part in each of the team’s three previous matches with Wisconsin this season. In the three matches against the Badgers, Jackson and Allick have combined for 42 kills and 27 blocks.
Murray played up to her most outstanding player in the region title with her performance Sunday.
Nebraska has had one of the most balanced offenses in the country all year long however, the Huskers had to rely on three players finishing in double-digit kills to get the win.
Murray ended the game tied for second in team kills with 10 in the match. However, Murray, who started off the tournament hitting over .400 in multiple games, didn’t have her best hitting night as she only hit .188. Still, she showcased her much-improved all-around game as she dove around the court for 12 digs and added in four blocks on the night.
While the front row was a struggle at times, she was highly effective from the back row where she came up with several big kills in crucial moments of the match.
Senior outside hitter Taylor Landfair had one of her best games as a Husker to help secure her first trip to the final four. Landfair led all players with 13 kills on .444 hitting while also recording two blocks.
“She got some big kills for us,” Nebraska head coach John Cook said postgame. “Yesterday in practice, I tried to instill in her mind that she was going to have to go high and hard, and she did that today.”
Nebraska stifled the Badgers’ attack all afternoon.
“We just ran into an unbelievable defensive team,” Wisconsin head coach Kelly Sheffield said postgame. “Some of the defensive plays that those guys were making that just nobody in the country is making those in the backcourt.”
Nebraska may have played its best defensive match all season Sunday given the level of competition and familiarity they were up against.
The Huskers held the Badgers to a mere .126 hitting percentage and out-blocking them 12-9. Nebraska just seemed to have a beat on every swing Wisconsin made if not at the net then by the dig. The Huskers racked up a maddening 59 digs in the match, flying all around the court into the crowd and even into the scores table to keep points alive.
“We took some really, really big-time swings,” Sheffield said postgame. “They came up with some really big-time digs.”
Senior libero Lexi Rodriguez led the charge in the digs category flying around the floor for a game-high 17 digs. With her performance in the last two matches, Rodriguez is back on track sitting just nine digs away from the all-time record.
With Sunday’s victory over the Badgers, the Huskers improved to 4-1 in their matchups with their rivals from Madison over the past two seasons. This comes after a rough 2022 season for the Huskers where they dropped both matches to the Badgers.
Nebraska has not just won the games over Wisconsin in recent matchups, it has thoroughly dominated them in every category, racking up more kills, assists, digs and blocks in the three matches this season. Not to mention the Badgers did not win a set in any of the three matches this season in which Nebraska won all nine sets played.
“It’s like (Mohammed) Ali, (Joe) Fraizer Three.“ Cook said. “It’s two heavyweights. I mean, this is a slugfest, long rallies, it’s hard to put the ball away you got this big block you’re dealing with all the time.”
While the Huskers have seemingly gotten over the Wisconsin hump, there is a new Big Ten hurdle on the horizon in the team’s only conference loss this season, Penn State. The Huskers might have an opportunity to get over that hurdle as the two teams are set to match up if the Nittany Lions can defeat Creighton in their fourth-round match.
With Sunday’s win, the Huskers punched their ticket to Louisville next weekend where they will be away from home where they are undefeated in the last two seasons for the first time all tournament.
Nebraska is guaranteed to face a familiar foe in the next round as the Huskers will face the winner of Penn State and Creighton in the first round of the final four. Nebraska has actually played three of the remaining five teams with a record of 2-1 against those teams.
The Huskers will be looking to avenge last year’s performance in the Final Four where they made the championship game only to lose in decisive fashion to Texas.
sports@dailynebraskan.com
{{description}}
Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.
Your browser is out of date and potentially vulnerable to security risks.
We recommend switching to one of the following browsers:
