Nebraska outside hitters Harper Murray and Taylor Landfair combined to rack up 22 of the Huskers’ 44 kills in a three-set win against Washington on Saturday night in Seattle.
Nebraska dominated for a long stretch of the match and won 25-17, 25-11, 25-21. The Huskers had a .375 hitting percentage and held the Huskies to .158.
Murray finished with 12 kills and a .360 hitting percentage. It wasn’t until Murray’s eighth attack of the match, in the middle of the second set, that she didn’t get a kill after a 7 for 7 start.
Landfair, who has been in the starting lineup the past nine matches, had 10 kills and hit .471. She also had three blocks.
“I think teams are respecting our middle blockers which is allowing are left sides to get a few more kills and do a nice job,†coach John Cook said on the Huskers Radio Network.
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Andi Jackson added seven kills on .333 hitting. Rebekah Allick had five kills, including on match point to stop the Huskies’ late 4-0 run.
Bergen Reilly also got offensive, with kills on five of her six setter dump attempts. Merritt Beason chipped in five kills with two blocks and two ace serves.
It was an impressive road trip for the Huskers after also winning 3-0 at Oregon on Thursday. Against a schedule of long road trips, and two Top 15 teams, Nebraska has won 15 straight sets.
Cook has been impressed with how focused the Huskers have been to not only not be beaten but win in sweeps.
“It’s not an easy road trip, that’s why you’re seeing a lot of these football teams going coast to coast aren’t doing so well,†Cook said. “It’s tough. Are players have done a really good job with it.â€
No. 2 Nebraska coming to the new city in the Big Ten drew a crowd. There was a school-record crowd of 9,768 at Alaska Airlines Arena. It was the first sellout in program history and about 1,100 more than the previous high.
Nebraska’s 21st straight win also finds the Huskers with the early advantage in the Big Ten standings after No. 7 Wisconsin crushed No. 3 Penn State in three sets earlier in the day. Nebraska and Penn State each entered the day undefeated in the league.
So now Nebraska leads the Big Ten with three weeks to go. Here’s the top of the standings: Nebraska (14-0), Penn State (13-1), Wisconsin (12-2) and Purdue (10-3).
Washington (18-6, 8-6 Big Ten) gave the Huskers too many points, with seven serving errors and 19 hitting errors.
Emoni Bush led Washington with 11 kills but hit just .108.
To start the match Washington led 10-7. But as it often does, Nebraska’s defense got better in the second part of the set. By winning eight of 10 rallies, Nebraska quickly had a 15-12 lead. The Huskers hit .480 in the set, not getting blocked once and hitting out just three times.
“We adjusted really well and started blocking balls,†Cook said. “(Washington) is really well coached. I really like how they play. I’ve always liked how they play. They play fast.â€
Nebraska three-time All-American libero Lexi Rodriguez had 11 digs, including digging some big shots early in the match.
-- Brent C. Wagner
