College Volleyball Statement as Nebraska Sweeps Wisconsin |
Nebraska volleyball rolls to 17-0 with a seventh straight sweep while Wisconsin volleyball takes its first Big Ten loss |
Nebraska just reminded college volleyball who runs the show.
The top-ranked Huskers swept No. 7 Wisconsin 25-23, 25-14, 25-20 on Saturday night in Lincoln, pushing their record to a spotless 17-0.
A blackout crowd of 10,497 packed John Cook Arena and got exactly the show it came for.
For one set, Wisconsin volleyball looked ready to make it a dogfight, hanging within a point or two until the Huskers closed the door late.
Then the second set happened.
Nebraska ripped off a pair of 5-0 runs while the Badgers hit just .053, their lowest single-set mark of the season.
Outside hitter Harper Murray was the headliner, terminating a season-high 20 kills on a .471 clip and fittingly ending the night with a tool off the block.
Nebraska volleyball hit .396 as a team, the best any opponent has managed against Wisconsin this year, and out-blocked the Badgers 9-2.
Wisconsin was held to .171, its first match under .200 in nearly a month.
That is not a slump, that is a wall. |
 Photo by Franco Monsalvo on Pexels. Stock image for illustration, not from the Nebraska vs. Wisconsin match. Free to use under the Pexels License. |
Freshman outside Decelise Champion led the Badgers with 12 kills, and setter Charlie Fuerbringer dished 27 assists while chipping in five kills of her own.
Wisconsin's coach said afterward that his group played well in stretches and that the level on display would beat nearly anyone else in the country.
Nearly anyone is the key phrase.
The sweep was Nebraska's seventh in a row, three of them over ranked opponents, and its fifth consecutive win in this rivalry.
It also handed Wisconsin, now 11-5, its first Big Ten loss of the fall.
For parents and players watching at home, the lesson is in the details: serve tough, pass clean, and stay in system, and the big swings take care of themselves.
Nebraska is still the only unbeaten team in Division I, and right now nobody looks close to changing that. |
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That first set going 25-23 had me nervous for a second. Then the Huskers just completely took over and never looked back.
Been watching Nebraska volleyball since the Stacy Sykora days. This current team reminds me of those squads. Just relentless.
Wisconsin has a really solid program and this still looked easy for Nebraska by the end. That says everything.
The stat that gets me is the team hitting .396. That is not one person carrying them. Every position contributed last night.
I drove three hours to be there last night. Worth every single mile. That crowd energy was absolutely electric from the first serve.
People keep waiting for Nebraska to slip up and they just keep winning. At some point you have to admit this team might go undefeated.
Wisconsin was under .200 for the first time in a month. Nebraska did not just beat them, they exposed something.
John Cook Arena atmosphere on a blackout night is something else. Been going to matches for years and that building gets LOUD.
My daughter plays club volleyball and we watched this together last night. She wants to be Harper Murray when she grows up and honestly I get it.
Best hitting percentage any team has put up against Wisconsin all season and Nebraska did it on the road. Sorry not the road, at home. But still. Elite.
Harper Murray ending the match with a tool off the block is so fitting. That is a players player move right there.
Honestly Wisconsin fought hard in that first set. Staying point for point with Nebraska for most of it is not nothing. They just ran out of gas.
Was at the game last night. That second set felt like watching something historic. The crowd got so loud after those 5-0 runs.
The blocking was what got me. 9-2 in blocks against a team that good? Cook has them playing complete volleyball on both sides.
I feel bad for Wisconsin. They came in ranked 7th and got absolutely dismantled in that second set. .053 hitting is rough.
17-0. Let that sink in. This is not a fluke, this team is just built different this year.
10,497 people in that arena on a Saturday night. Lincoln just hits different on blackout nights. Wish I could have been there.
Harper Murray with 20 kills on .471 hitting is just ridiculous. Wisconsin is a top 10 team and she made them look like JV. Unreal performance.
Was there Saturday night and that second set was something else. Wisconsin just had no answer. The crowd was absolutely electric when Nebraska went on that second 5-0 run.
17-0 and still dropping .396 on a top 10 team at home. I don't know what else you need to see. This is a national championship caliber roster and it's not even close.