Nebraska volleyball team shocks Wisconsin with win

Second-ranked Nebraska shocked No. 7 Wisconsin with a 25-21, 25-22, 25-19 win in Madison, Wis., on Friday.

Nebraska beat Wisconsin in Madison for the first time since 2013 after losing eight straight. It was the first sweep in Nebraska since 2012.

Nebraska’s winning streak is 18 games, and the Huskers ended the Badgers’ nine-game winning streak.

It was also Wisconsin’s first home loss in its last 26 games. During its nine-match winning streak, Wisconsin dropped just two sets.

Nebraska’s road to the Big Ten includes many more challenges, including six more road games, another matchup against Wisconsin and a trip to Penn State. But the win in Madison was a strong start to the month and knocked Wisconsin out of the top group in the Big Ten race, which now only includes Nebraska and Penn State.

Nebraska’s pitching on Friday played a significant role in the victory. The Huskers had five aces, and more serves led to poor turnovers for Wisconsin, limiting the Badgers’ offense to a season-worst .094 hitting percentage.

Lexi Rodriguez and Olivia Mauch each pitched two first-class innings.

Nebraska had a .202 hitting percentage.

Taylor Landfair has 13 kills. But Nebraska’s offense produced kills from all over, something the Badgers didn’t have. Merritt Beeson had 11 kills, including big ones late in the set. Andy Jackson had seven kills, Harper Murray had six, and Rebecca Alick had three.

Outside hitter Sarah Franklin had 16 kills but was the Badgers’ only major producer. Anna Smrek has eight kills, but also 10 errors with a negative hit percentage. Yulia Orzol has six kills.

Nebraska led in blocks 10-9, with Allik leading the team with seven blocks.

Nebraska won the first set in a surprising way – by blocking.

Nebraska led in blocks, 6-3. This was partly a result of the Huskers’ good pitching creating disadvantageous runs for the Badgers’ hitters.

Nebraska’s blocks were a big difference, as the Huskers only had one more kill than Wisconsin in the set.

The Huskers’ first lead of the set was 9–8. In Nebraska, there were murders on all sides. Jackson threw a shot through two blockers. Murray made a tip when attacking the back line. Beason ended the set with a kill on the back line attack.

The second set was characterized by sharp changes in dynamics. Nebraska trailed but then won seven of its next nine drives. The Badgers then retook the lead with a 9-1 run.

But Nebraska got the final push thanks to strong serving from Mauch, kills from Landfair and another set-point kill from Beason.

The third set was close until Murray served a 4-0 shot late in the set, putting Nebraska up 18-15. The last two points came from errors by Franklin and Smrek.