Husker volleyball goes all in with dominating performance in Las Vegas

Nebraska volleyball didn’t drop a set during its opening weekend.

This year’s Husker squad, ranked No. 1 in the preseason coaches poll, dominated No. 2 Texas Sunday afternoon by set scores of 25-19, 25-19 and 25-16.

Senior middle blocker Andi Jackson hit .571 – that is, she scored on more than half of her attacks with just one error. Jackson led Division I in hitting percentage last season.

Dani Busboom Kelly’s second team at NU started the year in Las Vegas, sweeping hometown team UNLV on Saturday night by scores of 25-18, 25-15 and 25-16.

But the main event was the No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup on Sunday – televised by Fox. And the Big Red didn’t shy away from the spotlight.

In the middle of set one, Nebraska went on a 10-0 run with Bergen Reilly at the service line to pull ahead 15-9. The Longhorns trimmed their deficit to two points. But Reilly took the ball back and finished the set with an emphatic ace across the left side of the court.

The Huskers led by as many as nine points in set two and fended off a late push from Texas to set up the sweep.

Nebraska’s second-year coach liked the aggressive mindset at the service line.

“We’re attacking with our serve. I’m really proud of that,” Busboom Kelly said in an interview during intermission. “When we’re serving great, our defense can really take over.”

In the postgame press conference, Jackson said serving has been an emphasis recently and that Reilly led the charge early.

“We need to put pressure on teams from the service line," Jackson said. "We've worked really hard on that this preseason and over the summer. So, huge credit to Bergen and her consistent demeanor, her consistent ability to put pressure on teams, and also just her calm demeanor that keeps people level-headed on the court.”

Upperclassmen Jackson, Reilly, Murray and Laney Choboy kept the team focused against a team they lost to in national championship their freshman season, the head coach said.

“It starts at the top with the leaders, and those are our four seniors," Busboom Kelly said.

Service pressure continued in the final set, with NU dropping in three aces. The team totaled seven in the match. UT had zero.

Jackson finished the match with nine kills, which led the team. Classmate Harper Murray added eight kills, while sophomores Teraya Sigler and Manaia Ogbechie both had seven.

The Huskers will face South Dakota State Wednesday night, on the road. Then, it’s off to Chicago where NU will play DePaul and then match up against Missouri at historic Wrigley Field.

As for No. 13 Creighton, it got off to a winning start against stiff competition. Brian Rosen’s team defeated No. 9 Purdue on Friday night. The 3-2 victory started off the State Farm Women’s Volleyball Showcase in Sioux Falls for the Bluejays. No. 14 Minnesota got the better of Creighton on Saturday with a sweep. Getting back in the win column, the Bluejays toughed out a win versus No. 20 USC, 3-1.

Creighton will host a tournament called the Bluejay Invitational, featuring Arizona, Pepperdine and Tulsa next weekend.