One streak has ended for the Nebraska volleyball team, but the more important one still stands to keep the Huskers at the top of the Big Ten standings with a 15-0 league record.
Second-ranked Nebraska made it 22 consecutive wins with a four-set win against Minnesota — 25-12, 22-25, 25-22, 25-19 — on Thursday at the Devaney Sports Center.
The Golden Gophers’ win in the second set ended a run of 16 sets in a row won by Nebraska over six matches.
“It felt weird to lose a set, but I thought we responded really well,†coach John Cook said.
Harper Murray helped lead the Huskers again with 13 kills and 19 digs. Middle blocker Andi Jackson had nine kills on .471 hitting and also six blocks.
Setter Bergen Reilly also got offensive with a career-high six kills, including one awesome dunk at the net early in the match.
“It just felt right a lot,†said Reilly of her setter tips. “I think our passers did a really good job of getting the ball up to the net, and that puts me in really good positions to be offensive. And when my hitters are doing so well then it’s hard for the other team to think about me, too. I was put in really good positions tonight to put it over.â€
Reilly had 40 assists, four blocks and 20 digs, which was also a career-high. She had to play the ball often, which contributed to the Nebraska offense being out-of-system and not as dynamic as it has been.
Reilly became the first Husker setter to record at least 40 assists, 20 digs and five kills in a match in the rally scoring era (since 2001). Earlier in the day, she was named a semifinalist for the national player of the year award, along with teammate Lexi Rodriguez and 12 others.
Taylor Landfair had 12 kills with a .067 hitting percentage while playing against the program she was a part of for four seasons. She got more aggressive later in the match, while also taking some tip shots over her former teammates for kills.
There was a point when it looked like Cook might be going to the bench, but he stuck with Landfair.
“I’m just trying to let her work through it,†Cook said. “She got a couple of big kills when we needed them. When we set her good, she killed it. And the out-of-system stuff she’s got to do a better job.â€
Minnesota junior outside hitter Julia Hanson had one of the best matches of her career with 20 kills. Outside hitter Lydia Grote added 14 kills.
Nebraska finished with a .199 hitting percentage and Minnesota (16-9) hit .130.
Cook expected a fight from the Gophers, and got it.
“Minnesota is a good team,†he said. “They beat Wisconsin and Texas. They’re very good. Hanson is a first-team All-American — she’s hitting .300 on the year. And (Melanie) Shaffmaster is a really good setter and she does a great job. They know how to win ugly. I told them it was going to be like a slugfest tonight, and it was.â€
Minnesota won the second set, and the third set was close again. Then Nebraska got some great plays in the second part of the set — Merritt Beason with a kill on a back-row attack, Landfair with a shot off the block, Rebekah Allick with a kill on a slide attack to the far corner of the court, and then Allick again on a quick set in the middle. Nebraska won the set 25-22 to regain a 2-1 match lead. Nebraska had three blocks in the set.
At the start of the match, Nebraska dominated most of the first set, starting with a 6-1 lead, and then winning six of the final seven rallies to win the set 25-12.
The Huskers’ defense was suffocating, with four blocks and 18 digs to hold Minnesota to .029 hitting in the set.
Reilly even had a solo block of Alex Acevedo on the pin that had the arena buzzing and got a standing ovation from many fans.
Minnesota has some firepower, and it had more success in the second set when Grote had seven kills and Hanson had five.
Minnesota led 20-17 late in the set and Nebraska’s poor passing didn’t help the late comeback it needed. Nebraska got its deficit to 24-22, but then Hanson ended it with a cross-court kill to tie the match.