Three players on the Nebraska volleyball team are from California, and it’s possible the program could continue to have success recruiting in the state that produces many of the sport's best.
That won’t be easy, though. Six schools in the AVCA rankings this week are from California.
Nebraska sophomore libero Lara Dykstra is from Redondo Beach, where she was one of the best youth beach volleyball players in the country. At Nebraska, she was a rare freshman starter and helped the Huskers win the Big Ten Conference title.
Freshman outside hitter Kelsey Fien is from Bakersfield, and was ranked the 19th-best high school senior in the country last year.
Freshman right-side hitter and backup setter Alexa Strange is from San Clemente, and will be playing about 40 minutes from her home Saturday.
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Nebraska will play two matches at Irvine, Calif., facing Colgate at 5 p.m. (CDT) and UC-Irvine at 10 p.m. (CDT).
Coach John Cook attempts to schedule a match close to each player's hometown. Last year, Nebraska played at Colorado State, near Morgan Broekhuis’ hometown. Last spring, the Huskers played an exhibition match in Norfolk, close to Hayley Thramer’s hometown of Ewing.
The coach asked the seniors where they’d like to play a road match this season. Lauren Cook said she wanted to play in California and others also liked that possibility.
Lauren Cook, the coach’s daughter, considers California her second home. She was born in San Diego, and that’s where she goes to visit her extended family. John Cook graduated from the University of San Diego and his wife, Wendy, was an All-America setter at San Diego State.
Now Lauren Cook travels to California as the starting setter for the top-ranked team in the country, and she expects several aunts and her grandmother to be there.
A cousin, Karissa Cook, is the starting setter for Stanford. Karissa’s brother, Brian, plays for the Stanford men’s volleyball team.
Lauren Cook said it would be special to play in California.
“My family has only seen me play when I was at UCLA (her freshman year), so it’s a big deal,†Lauren Cook said. “I have a lot of people coming, and I also know for the other girls on our team from California, this is special as well.â€
Having three California players on the NU roster is a record. Before Dykstra last season, the only Californians to earn letters at Nebraska were Jackie Cook (1986-87) and Jennifer Saleaumua (2002-05).
John Cook says it has probably helped recruiting that the Huskers recently had two assistant coaches — Erik Sullivan and Dan Conners — who played at UCLA.
Also, more players are open to leaving the state than in the past.
“I think the economy makes a difference, believe it or not,†John Cook said. “With the recession going on, kids want to get out of California. UCLA for example, all the (University of California) schools got cut. Their athletic department got cuts; they all had to take salary cuts. The economy is tough out there, and the traffic. A lot of kids now want to get out of California. They point-blank tell us that they don’t want to stay. I think that has opened the doors for some kids.â€
John Cook says the program will continue to recruit players from Nebraska first, but believes Nebraska may be able to land more players from California. He planned to visit a high school player in California on Friday.
It’s also beneficial that so many Nebraska matches are broadcast on TV and the Internet, and this weekend’s trip also shows players they may have a chance to play in front of their families.
Strange originally committed to Colorado. After changing her mind, Strange figured she’d stay in-state, and probably go to California. Then she made a visit to Nebraska.
“I’m pretty open-minded, and I kind of wanted to experience something different, especially because, culturally, it’s so different,†Strange said. “You get into this gym and just the environment and atmosphere and it’s a little overwhelming as a volleyball player. Once you see that, you don’t want anything else but that. I wish more California girls would be more open-minded about it.â€
Nebraska had originally planned to play a tournament in San Diego this weekend, and had to scramble after the event was cancelled only a few months ago. That’s why Nebraska will play two matches in one day, something John Cook prefers to avoid.
Because of the two-match schedule, the Husker coach plans to play many of his younger players Saturday.
Colgate went 0-3 the first week of the season. Unranked UC-Irvine will be playing its fourth match in two days when it takes on Nebraska on Saturday night.