Louisville continues to turn heads, this time with a resilient, five-set victory against second-seeded Texas on Friday in Austin, Texas, in the NCAA volleyball tournament Sweet 16.
Former Nebraska player and assistant coach Dani Busboom Kelly, in her third season at the helm of Louisville, led the program to its first-ever Elite Eight appearance with a 25-22, 25-22, 17-25, 18-25, 15-12 victory.
Texas entered the match on a 24-match winning streak in its home building and had won its last 36 home NCAA Tournament contests. The Cardinals are unranked.Â
The Louisville duo of Aiko Jones (23 kills) and Anna Stevenson (14 kills) led the way for the Cardinals, who won the first two sets before Texas stormed back with two of its own to force a critical fifth set.
Louisville will play Minnesota on Saturday.Â
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No. 7 Minnesota 3, No. 10 Florida 2: The Gophers hit .331 and Alexis Hart had 16 kills as Minnesota edged the Gators 23-25, 25-14, 16-25, 25-15, 15-11 in Austin.
Adanna Rollings contributed 15 kills while Regan Pittman had 14 as the Gophers advanced to their eighth regional final to face Louisville.
MADISON REGIONAL
No. 4 Wisconsin 3, No. 13 Texas A&M 0:Â The Badgers' stolid defense stymied the Aggies in a NCAA regional semifinal in Madison, Wisconsin, as Wisconsin swept 25-20, 25-17, 25-23.
Wisconsin (25-6) outblocked Texas A&M 9-2 and held the Aggies (23-8) to a .229 hitting percentage. UW's Dana Rettke led with 14 kills, while Molly Haggerty and Grace Loberg had 12 and 10, respectively.
The Badgers face Nebraska in an Elite Eight matchup Saturday at 5 p.m. at UW Field House.
WACO REGIONAL
No. 1 Baylor 3, No. 16 Purdue 1:Â The Bears advanced to their first-ever NCAA Regional final after knocking off the Boilermakers 25-12, 23-25, 25-15, 25-17 in Waco, Texas.
Baylor (28-1) was bolstered by double-digit kill performances from sophomore Marieke van der Mark (16), junior Yossiana Pressley (15) and senior Gia Milana (13). Junior Caitlyn Newtown led Purdue (24-8) with 19 kills
The Bears finished with .339 team hitting percentage to Purdue's .180.
Baylor faces No. 9 Washington on Saturday in Waco.
No. 8 Washington 3, No. 9 Kentucky 1:Â The Huskies finished with a 4-1 run in the fourth set to hold off the Wildcats 25-16, 26-24, 15-25, 25-22 in Waco.
Kara Bajemea's match-high 24 kills lifted Washington (26-6) to an Elite Eight date with Baylor on Saturday.
Leah Edmond finished with a team-high 17 kills for Kentucky (25-6), while Gabby Curry contributed 19 digs.
STANFORD REGIONAL
Penn State 3, Cincinnati 2: Add another team from the Big Ten to the Elite Eight.Â
The Nittany Lions outlasted the Bearcats in a thrilling fifth set, polishing a 20-25, 25-17, 23-25, 25-12, 15-11 triumph to become the fourth team in the league to advance to the final eight teams in the tournament.Â
Serena Gray had a .700 hitting percentage and Tori Gorrell hit .519 to lead Penn State, who will play the winner of Utah and Stanford for a trip to the Final Four.Â