NEB VB Preview: No. 11 Wisconsin, vs. Oregon
PREVIEW
• The No. 1 Nebraska volleyball team enters the second half of Big Ten play with an away and home split this weekend.
• Nebraska will be in Madison, Wis. for Halloween, taking on the 11th-ranked Badgers on Friday at 8 p.m. at UW Field House.
• The Huskers return home to host Oregon on Sunday at 1 p.m. at John Cook Arena at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.
• Both matches will be televised on BTN and streamed on FoxSports.com. Michelle McMahon and Emily Ehman will be on the call for Friday’s match at Wisconsin, and Larry Punteney and Meredith Nelson Uram will call Sunday’s match vs. Oregon.
• Huskers Radio Network will broadcast all the action on their volleyball affiliate stations, on Huskers.com and on the Huskers App. John Baylor and John Cook will have the call for Friday’s match at Wisconsin, while Baylor and Lauren (Cook) West will call Sunday’s match against Oregon.
• During Sunday’s match, Nebraska will honor 2025 Hall of Fame Class members Stephanie Thater (1989-92) and Lisa Reitsma (1994-97).
BIG TEN DISCOVER CHALLENGE TITLE UP FOR GRABS
• Select conference matches played during the month of October will count toward the Big Ten Discover Challenge, which is in its inaugural season. Each team will play five designated challenge matches throughout the month, with the winner determined by the highest win total across the five matches.
• Nebraska and Purdue are the only teams with unbeaten 4-0 records heading into the final week of the challenge. Friday’s match at Wisconsin counts toward the challenge, as does Purdue’s match at Michigan State on Friday night.
• The Huskers can clinch the challenge title with a win in any number of sets on Friday night, regardless of Purdue’s outcome.
• The top three tiebreakers in order are: head-to-head results that were part of the Big Ten Discover Challenge, winning percentage against common opponents, and highest percentage of total sets won.
ABOUT THE HUSKERS
• Nebraska is off to a 20-0 start for just the second time since joining the Big Ten in 2011. The 2023 Huskers started the year 27-0.
• Nebraska has recorded 11 sweeps in a row, its most since 17 in a row in 2007.
• Nebraska has won 34 sets in a row dating back to Sept. 16, 2025 at Creighton, the most since the 2007 team won 53 sets in a row.
• Nebraska is 56-0 this season in sets when reaching the red zone (20 points) first.
• Nebraska has played 24 sets in the month of October and is 24-0. In only two sets has an opponent reached 20 points (at Purdue - 23 in set one, and at Michigan State - 20 in set three).
• This season, Nebraska has allowed opponents to score 1,125 points through 20 matches, an average of 56.25 per match. That is the lowest mark in the rally scoring era (2001-present). The next closest mark through 20 matches is 1,216 in 2008 (60.8 per match).
• NU’s offense ranks first nationally with a .335 hitting percentage. The Huskers haven’t hit better than .300 in a season since 2007 (.327). The school record for hitting percentage in a season is .331 in 1986. The school record in the rally scoring era is .327 in 2007.
• The Huskers rank second in the nation in opponent hitting percentage at .112. NU led the nation in opponent hitting percentage in 2022 and 2023 and was sixth in 2024.
• The school record for opponent hitting percentage in a season is .103 in 2004.
• The gap between Nebraska’s hitting percentage and opponent hitting percentage is .223, by far the best in the nation. The next closest is Hofstra (.165) and American (.143).
• Over the last five seasons (2021-25), Dani Busboom Kelly has a 140-15 record for a .903 winning percentage, which is the best by any Division I head coach in that span.
• Nebraska’s non-conference schedule included matches against three top-10 teams and five ranked teams. The Huskers went 3-0 against top-10 teams and 5-0 against ranked teams. NU is 7-0 against ranked teams this season.
ROTATION RUNDOWN
• Outside hitter Harper Murray is having a sensational junior season. She leads the team with 3.63 kills per set and is hitting .316. Murray averages 2.24 digs per set and has a team-high 19 aces.
• On Oct. 17 at Michigan State, Murray became the 25th Husker in school history to reach 1,000 career kills at Nebraska.
• Murray is tied for eighth in school history in the rally-scoring era in career aces with 94 and needs three more to tie Lexi Sun (97) for No. 7.
• Senior middle blocker Rebekah Allick is having the best offensive season of her career with 2.53 kills per set on .405 hitting with 1.33 blocks per set.
• Allick ranks No. 5 in career blocks at Nebraska in the rally scoring era with 491, which also ranks No. 4 among active Division I players.
• Junior setter Bergen Reilly paces the Husker attack with 10.02 assists per set, and she also contributes a team-high 2.68 digs per set.
• Reilly ranks No. 4 in school history in career assists in the rally scoring era with 3,225. She needs 107 more to tie Sydney Anderson (3,332).
• Junior middle blocker Andi Jackson is averaging 2.52 kills per set on .414 hitting with 1.18 blocks per set.
• Jackson has a career hitting percentage of .419, which is the No. 1 mark in school history and the No. 1 mark among active Division I players.
• Jackson has been heating up of late. In Big Ten play only, the first-team All-American is averaging 2.66 kills per set with a blistering .533 hitting percentage.
• Senior outside hitter Taylor Landfair provides 1.96 kills per set. Landfair has played in 139 career matches, which is second most by any active Division I player.
• Freshman Teraya Sigler has started every match in the back row for the Huskers. Sigler is averaging 1.36 digs per set and has 59 kills on the season.
• Freshman opposite hitter Virginia Adriano adds 2.11 kills per set.
• Olivia Mauch (2.68 digs per set) and Laney Choboy (2.59 digs per set) lead the Husker back row.
SCOUTING WISCONSIN
• Wisconsin (15-3, 8-2 Big Ten) won a pair of 3-1 matches at Washington and Oregon last weekend.
• The Badgers rank fifth in the nation in hitting percentage (.305) and 19th in opponent hitting percentage (.166).
• Mimi Colyer leads the way with 5.20 kills per set, which ranks second in the Big Ten and fifth nationally.
SCOUTING OREGON
• Oregon heads to Washington Friday night with a 13-7 overall record and 4-6 mark in Big Ten action.
• Alanah Clemente leads the Ducks with 3.54 kills per set. Valentina Vaulet adds 3.36 kills per set. Those two have 32 and 31 aces on the season, respectively.
SERIES HISTORY
• Nebraska is 23-14-1 against Wisconsin and swept all three matches the teams played last year.
• Nebraska is 7-3 all-time against Oregon. The teams played in Eugene last year with NU winning 3-0. Oregon hasn’t been to Lincoln since Aug. 25, 2018, a 3-0 Husker win.
HUSKERS WELCOME EIGHT NEWCOMERS
• Eight of the 17 players on the 2025 roster are newcomers.
• Senior opposite hitter Allie Sczech is the lone transfer the Huskers brought in for 2025. Sczech was a two-time All-Big 12 Second Team performer at Baylor, averaging 2.44 kills per set with a .273 hitting percentage in 2024. Sczech posted a career-high 21 kills and hit .463 in Baylor’s NCAA Tournament second round defeat to Dayton last year. She totaled 754 kills in three seasons at Baylor.
• In addition to Sczech, seven freshmen have joined the fold. Campbell Flynn (6-3, Setter), Ryan Hunter (6-2, Opposite Hitter), Keri Leimbach (5-4, Libero) and Teraya Sigler (6-3, Outside Hitter) all enrolled at Nebraska in January. Virginia Adriano (6-5, Opposite Hitter), Kenna Cogill (6-4, Middle Blocker) and Manaia Ogbechie (6-3, Middle Blocker) joined the Huskers in June.
BUSBOOM KELLY DEBUTS AS NEW HEAD COACH
• Nebraska native Dani Busboom Kelly was named the fourth head coach in program history on Jan. 29, 2025 by Nebraska Director of Athletics Troy Dannen. Busboom Kelly succeeds her former coach and mentor, John Cook, who announced his retirement following the 2024 season after 25 seasons as Nebraska’s head volleyball coach.
• A Husker national champion player and assistant coach, Busboom Kelly spent eight years (2017-24) building Louisville into a national power. The Cardinals reached two NCAA Championship matches, three NCAA Semifinals, five regional finals and won four ACC titles.
• Busboom Kelly compiled a 203-44 (.822) record in her eight seasons at Louisville, including a 120-15 (.889) mark from 2021-24, which was the second-best winning percentage in the country during that span. In 2024, the Cardinals reached the NCAA Championship match for the second time in three seasons.
• Busboom Kelly was the starting libero on Nebraska’s 2006 national championship team, and she was an assistant coach when the Huskers won the 2015 national championship in Omaha. She took the helm at Louisville late in 2016 after being named AVCA National Assistant Coach of the Year in her final season as a Husker assistant, and she guided the Cardinals to heights the program had never experienced.
HOME SWEET HOME
• Nebraska has won 55 home matches in a row dating back to Dec. 1, 2022, which is the longest active streak in the nation.
• The Huskers’ home win streak is its longest since moving into the Devaney Center in 2013, and it’s the third longest home win streak in program history.
• Nebraska’s longest all-time home win streak was 88 matches from 2004-09.
• The Huskers went 22-0 at home in 2024, a school record for home wins in a season.
• Nebraska’s second-longest home win streak is 61 matches from 1988-93.
• Nebraska has won 26 consecutive NCAA Tournament matches played in the Devaney Center, a school record.
REGENTS APPROVE NAMING OF JOHN COOK ARENA
• The home of Nebraska Volleyball will now officially bear the name of one of the legendary coaches in the history of the sport, as the University of Nebraska Board of Regents approved the naming of John Cook Arena at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.
• Cook retired in January following a remarkable 25-year run as the Huskers’ head coach. He guided the Huskers to four national championships, 12 NCAA Semifinal appearances and 14 conference championships. Cook achieved a career record of 883-176 (.834), the fifth-best winning percentage all-time for a Division I volleyball coach. His record of 722-103 at Nebraska was the best winning percentage (.875) for any DI program from 2000-24.
• In addition to the naming of John Cook Arena at the Bob Devaney Sports Center, the project also includes a bronze statue honoring Cook on the north side of the Devaney Sports Center. Nationally recognized sculpture artist and Nebraska native George Lundeen was commissioned to produce the life-size tribute to Cook and his career.
• The court inside John Cook Arena will continue to hold the name of Terry Pettit Court to recognize Cook’s predecessor and fellow Hall of Famer. Additionally, the full athletics complex will continue to be named the Bob Devaney Sports Center in honor of Nebraska Hall of Fame football coach and long-time athletic director Bob Devaney.
HUSKERS SET FOR 23 TV BROADCASTS
• Nebraska volleyball airs on television 23 times this season. The Huskers have 18 national TV appearances on Big Ten Network, FOX, FS1, ABC and ESPN.
• Additionally, Nebraska Public Media was granted the rights to televise the Red-White Scrimmage (Aug. 9), the Alumni Match (Aug. 16), and three regular-season home matches: Grand Canyon (Sept. 13), Maryland (Sept. 27) and Northwestern (Oct. 24).
• All matches that are televised on Nebraska Public Media are also streamed on B1G+. All home matches and Big Ten road matches not selected for TV are streamed on B1G+.
• NU’s match at Lipscomb is available on ESPN+.
FOUR HUSKERS NAMED PRESEASON ALL-BIG TEN
• Four student-athletes from the Nebraska volleyball team were named to the Preseason All-Big Ten Team after a vote by the league’s 18 head coaches.
• Juniors Andi Jackson, Harper Murray and Bergen Reilly were three of just five unanimous selections to the Preseason All-Big Ten Team. They were joined on the 20-player team by senior Rebekah Allick.
• The coaches picked Nebraska as the top team in the preseason poll. The Huskers won their fifth Big Ten title in 2024 with a 19-1 conference record to share the crown with Penn State. Nebraska finished the season at 33-3 and reached the NCAA Semifinals. Penn State, Wisconsin, Minnesota and UCLA rounded out the top five.
• Jackson, a junior middle blocker, had a breakout year in 2024, earning AVCA All-America First Team and unanimous All-Big Ten First Team honors. Jackson averaged 2.62 kills per set with a .439 hitting percentage, which ranked sixth in the nation and fourth in school history. She also put up 1.18 blocks per set.
• Murray, a junior outside hitter, was an AVCA Second Team All-American last year after earning third-team honors as a freshman. Murray led the Huskers in 2024 with 3.40 kills per set and a team-high 39 service aces. She is a two-time All-Big Ten First Team selection. Murray was selected to the NCAA Championship All-Tournament Team last season and was the NCAA Lincoln Regional Most Outstanding Player.
• Reilly, a junior setter, is the first player in Big Ten history to win Big Ten Setter of the Year as both a freshman and sophomore, and she is coming off her second straight AVCA All-America Second Team honor. Reilly averaged 11.08 assists per set in 2024 while leading the Huskers to a .284 hitting percentage, their best since 2016.
• Allick, a senior middle blocker, recorded 1.82 kills per set in 2024 with a career-best .357 hitting percentage. She had a team-high 1.43 blocks per set, which ranked third among Big Ten players and 14th nationally. Allick ranks sixth in school history with 415 career blocks entering the 2025 season. She was an All-Big Ten Second Team selection in 2022 and 2023.
FOUR HUSKERS ON PLAYER OF THE YEAR WATCH LIST
• Rebekah Allick, Andi Jackson, Harper Murray and Bergen Reilly are on the AVCA Player of the Year Watch List. Jackson, Murray and Reilly were on the 30-player watch list announced in July. Allick was one of 17 additions to the list in October.
• The Player of the Year Watch List is compiled by the AVCA Division I Women’s Volleyball Awards Committee. They will also be the group working on the additional phases of the Player of the Year process. Semifinalists will be named in November. Finalists will be announced on Dec. 15, and the Player of the Year Award will be presented in Kansas City at the AVCA Awards Banquet on Friday, Dec. 19.
FLYNN NAMED GATORADE NATIONAL POTY
• Freshman Campbell Flynn was named the Gatorade National Player of the Year on Jan. 10.
• Flynn, a 6-3 setter from Oakland, Mich., was a two-time Gatorade Michigan Volleyball Player of the Year. She recorded 730 assists and 180 digs in her senior season for Mercy High School, leading the Marlins to a 31-3 record and the Division I regional semifinals in 2024. Flynn also compiled 131 kills, 52 blocks and 36 service aces while posting a .394 hitting percentage at net.
• Flynn was a member of the U.S. U21 Women’s National Team that won the gold medal at the NORCECA Championships in 2024 and was ranked as the nation’s No. 4 overall recruit and top setter recruit in the Class of 2025 by PrepDig.com. Flynn concluded her prep volleyball career, which included a state championship in 2023, with 1,973 assists and 737 kills. She also competed in the Under Armour All-America Game. Off the court, Flynn maintained a 3.94 GPA in the classroom.
• Flynn is the sixth Husker all-time to be named the Gatorade National Player of the Year. The others are Harper Murray (2022-23), Ally Batenhorst (2020-21), Lexi Sun (2016-17), Mikaela Foecke (2014-15) and Gina Mancuso (2008-09).
FLYNN, SIGLER EARN GATORADE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
• In addition to being named Gatorade National Player of the Year, Campbell Flynn was named the Gatorade Michigan Volleyball Player of the Year for the second straight year, while fellow Husker newcomer Teraya Sigler was named the Gatorade Arizona Volleyball Player of the Year for the second straight time.
• Sigler, a 6-2 outside hitter from Scottsdale, Ariz., led Horizon High School to a 25-5 record and a fourth straight Conference 5A state championship in 2024. Sigler amassed 619 kills and 354 digs, including 33 kills and 20 digs in the state championship match. She also had 65 service aces and 28 blocks while posting a .398 hitting percentage.
• Ranked as the No. 1 recruit in the Class of 2025 by PrepDig.com, Sigler was a member of the U.S. U21 Women’s National Team that won the gold medal at the NORCECA Championships in 2024. She concluded her prep volleyball career with 1,951 kills and 1,128 digs and competed in the Under Armour All-America Game.
2024 SEASON IN REVIEW
• Nebraska finished the 2024 season 33-3 overall and advanced to the NCAA Semifinals for the second year in a row and seventh time in the last 10 years.
• Nebraska won its 36th all-time conference title and fifth Big Ten title with a 19-1 record in Big Ten play last season. The Huskers went back-to-back as Big Ten champions for the second time, also accomplishing that feat in 2016 and 2017.
• The Huskers’ 29 regular-season wins last year tied the 1983 school record for most wins in a regular season in the NCAA era.
• The Huskers’ 33 wins last season were tied for the most victories by a Husker team since the 2000 national championship team went 34-0.
• The Huskers ranked 11th nationally with a team hitting percentage of .284 in 2024.
• The Huskers ranked sixth nationally and first in the Big Ten in opponent hitting percentage at .143 last season. NU led the nation in opponent hitting percentage in 2022 and 2023.