Huskers Face High Expectations, Tough Schedule in 2001

Lincoln -- The memories of a perfect season remain fresh in the minds of the Nebraska volleyball players. The Huskers' storybook 2000 included a preseason trip to China, a Big 12 Conference title and the program's second national championship. Nebraska became just the second team in NCAA Division I volleyball history to finish a season undefeated. The Huskers were also the first volleyball team to be invited to a White House ceremony honoring their accomplishments.

But Nebraska Coach John Cook can think of only one thing he would like to do with those memories.

Forget them. Fast.

"If we worry about defending something, if we worry about what happened last year, then we won't be living in the here and the now," Cook said. "Last season was perfect in just about every way, but we're going to have to get rid of that at some point - visually and emotionally.

"We didn't have any expectations last year. This year, the expectations couldn't be higher. This is a new team, and there are plenty of challenges waiting for us."

Nebraska will play perhaps the toughest non-conference schedule in the country. The Huskers' first nine matches of the season will be against teams that qualified for the 2000 NCAA Tournament, including three matches against teams that finished the season ranked among the USA Today/AVCA Top 10.

The Huskers will also be challenged to replace 2000 seniors Angie Oxley, Kim Behrends and Jill McWilliams, the undisputed leaders of last season's national title team.

"Leadership-wise, we have to figure out who is going to step up and lead this team," Cook said. "Who is going to take responsibility when the pressure's on in critical situations? Who is going to step up when the stress hits in big matches? We don't have a trip to China to figure that out this year."

NU returns a strong nucleus in AVCA Player of the Year Greichaly Cepero and All-Americans Laura Pilakowski and Amber Holmquist, while two-time All-American and 1999 Big 12 Player-of-the-Year Nancy Metcalf (formerly Meendering) and first-team All-Big 12 selection Jenny Kropp make up a strong senior class.

The Outside Hitters
Junior All-American Laura Pilakowski will lead a young group of left-side hitters. Pilakowski burst onto the national scene last season in her first year as a starter, leading the Huskers with 4.30 kills per game and a .336 hitting percentage, the best mark by a Big 12 outside hitter. In her second season as a major contributor, Cook expects Pilakowski to shoulder more of the passing load and to become a more dominant blocker.

"We're looking for Laura to improve in all of her skills in addition to attack," Cook said. "She is a big-time player, and she needs to realize that."

Sophomore Amy Sibbernsen and junior Pam Krejci will compete with sophomore Anna Schrad for time at the other left -side position. Cook said that Schrad, who competed alongside Allyne Rebholz on the U.S. Junior National Team during the summer, is without a doubt the Huskers' best left-side blocker and an excellent server. Schrad briefly filled a starting role for the Huskers last season when Pilakowski underwent an emergency appendectomy two weeks before the NCAA Tournament.

"Anna was under a lot of pressure when she had to step in for Laura during the NCAA Tournament last season, and she responded well," Cook said. "Those experiences are going to help her this season."

Krejci will move from middle blocker to give the Huskers more depth at outside hitter. One of the Huskers' most versatile players, Krejci has played all three attacker positions and has made great strides during the past year.

"Pam was our most improved player last spring, and she is really developing into an exceptional student-athlete," Cook said. "She's been in the program for three years, she has a lot of experience now, and she is ready to make a big-time contribution to this team."

Sibbernsen, who started 19 matches as a freshman at Michigan State last year, gave the Huskers even more depth on the outside when she decided to transfer to NU for her sophomore season. Although a steady attacker, Sibbernsen has impressed the NU coaches the most with her serving, passing and defense, Cook said.

Rachel Baumstark, a redshirt freshman who would have competed for significant playing time on the outside, suffered the second ACL injury of her career and underwent surgery in April. Baumstark isn't expected to return until the spring.

In part to make up for the loss, Cook will move freshman Allyne Rebholz, a U.S. Junior National Team member, from middle blocker to outside hitter. Rebholz has impressed the coaches with her quick arm swing and her knowledge of the game.

Filling the right-side position will be two-time All-American Nancy Metcalf (formerly Meendering). The 1999 Big 12 Player of the Year, Metcalf redshirted in 2000 after training with the USA National Team during the offseason.

Already one of the most dynamic attackers in school history, Metcalf used her season on the sideline to perfect a jump serve and to develop into one of Nebraska's best defensive players.

"Nancy might be the best all-around player in college volleyball, and no one has forgotten that," Cook said. "She really grew mentally in her approach to the game while sitting out a year. She has a tremendous amount of motiviation to get this team back to the national championship match."

The Middle Blockers
Nebraska will showcase the best middle blocker tandem in the nation in Amber Holmquist and Jenny Kropp.

Holmquist led the nation in blocks per game last season with 1.98, a Nebraska school record.

Holmquist, also the single-season school record holder in block assists and total blocks, also showed great offensive potential in 2000, averaging 3.19 kills per game and ranking fourth nationally in hitting percentage. Cook said the Huskers hope to build on that potential in 2001. NU worked extensively in the spring on getting Holmquist the ball more in transition.

"Amber has proven, beyond a doubt, that she is one of the best blockers ever at Nebraska," Cook said. "This season, we are going to require her to be a more dynamic attacker. She is ready for more opportunities offensively."

Kropp will also be expected to shoulder a bigger offensive load in 2001. The Grand Island, Neb., native, will play two rotations in the front row alongside two-time All-American Nancy Metcalf. If teams key on Metcalf, Kropp's attack opportunities will likely increase after averaging 2.70 kills per game last season.

Defensively, Kropp ranked sixth nationally last season with 1.63 per game in 2000, but Cook said Kropp's numbers were deceptive.

"Jenny doesn't have Amber's numbers, but she equally impacted the team with her block," Cook said. "She creates so many opportunities for us to dig the ball. She slows the ball down so we can play it in transition."

The coaching staff expects Kropp to fill a leadership role.

"Jenny is probably going to be our emotional leader," Cook said. "When she plays with emotion, the team responds."

Sophomore Sara Westling will also figure into the mix in the middle. Cook said that Westling, a Lincoln, Neb., native who sat out last season after transferring from Pacific, is one of the Huskers' best quick attackers and servers.

Melissa Elmer, the fifth middle blocker on the Huskers' roster, has the coaching staff excited about her potential, Cook said, but she will likely take a redshirt year to develop physically.

The Setters
Junior setter Greichaly Cepero virtually redefined the setter position in her first season as a starter last year as she was the only player in the nation at her position to tally 1.80 kills per game and 1.40 blocks per game. Cepero was the only setter ranked among the nation's top 20 in blocks per game and the only setter in the Big 12 to lead her team in kills in a single match. However, Cook said the Huskers are looking for Cepero to evolve into a more complete setter, and the 2000 AVCA Player of the Year spent much of the spring working on the location and consistency of her sets.

"Greicha was the national player of the year last season," Cook said. "But she is going to take it to a whole new level this year."

Freshman Michelle Lynch will back up Cepero. Cook said that Lynch, who was listed as one of the top five prep setters in the nation by volleyball recruiting analyst Bill Feldman, is a very good attacker and could back up Metcalf on the right side.

The Defensive Specialists
The Huskers have a talented trio of defensive specialists and will probably use two on a regular basis with the 18-player substitution rule. Junior Lindsay Wischmeier is the most experienced of the three. Cook said that Wischmeier, who started at setter her freshman season, has nerves of steel and is the most competitive and mentally tough player on the team. At the service line, Wischmeier is the Huskers' best under pressure.

"She can serve consistently in any zone to set up our block, and she can take a team out of it offensively with her serve," Cook said. "She is very focused and very competitive. We will expect that same level of intensity from her in practice and in matches that we got last season."

Sophomore Jenae Dowling is the Huskers' other returning defensive specialist. Cook said Dowling, who played in 16 matches last season, made a lot of progress on her serve and passing during the spring.

"Jenae brings a certain amount of toughness to our team, and she has a great competitive spirit about her," Cook said. "She played in some big matches last season when she probably wasn't quite ready, but proved that she could handle those pressure situations."

Freshman Sara Parks is the newcomer in the back row. Parks, a product of Papillion-LaVista High (Neb.) has impressed the coaching staff with her defense and could contribute immediately, Cook said.

Huskers Season With Tough Slate
Nebraska plays an extremely competitive schedule in 2001. The Huskers open at the prestigious State Farm/NACWAA Classic against Hawaii in a rematch of the teams' 2000 national semifinals match. NU then play either national runnerup Wisconsin, or Pacific, the event's host. The following weekend, the Huskers return to California to face two more 2000 NCAA Tournament teams, Long Beach State and UC Santa Barbara.

Nebraska s opens its home slate Sept. 7-9 with the US Bank/Arby's Classic and will face three teams that finished in the final USA Today/AVCA Coaches Top 25 poll -- UCLA, Pepperdine and Notre Dame.

NU will open Big 12 Conference play Sept. 12 with Kansas State at home. Five teams that qualified for the 2000 NCAA Tournament await the Huskers in league play, including the Wildcats, Colorado, Missouri, Texas A&M and Texas Tech.

Huskers Dominate Conference Play
Nebraska continued its conference dominance in 2000 by adding its fourth Big 12 Conference trophy to the Nebraska Coliseum. Nebraska has won 23 Big Eight/Big 12 championships in the past 25 seasons and owns an all-time record of 375-32-1 (.919) against Big 12 schools.

Dealing a Full House
The Husker faithful had another strong showing during the 2000 season. Nebraska finished second in the nation in volleyball attendance, drawing a school-record 80,252 fans in 19 matches for an average of 4,224 per contest. The Husker faithful broke the NCAA regular-season attendance record as 12,504 fans cheered Nebraska to a 3-0 win over Colorado Nov. 4 at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.

Home-Court Advantage
Nebraska posted a perfect 18-0 record in the Nebraska Coliseum in 2000, continuing the building's tradition as one of the most feared places to play in college volleyball. Nebraska enters the 2000 season riding a 29-match win streak in the Coliseum. Nebraska has posted 11 undefeated seasons at home in school history, including five in the past seven years.

All-America U
With Greichaly Cepero, Amber Holmquist and Laura Pilakowski earning All-America honors in 2000, the University of Nebraska volleyball program has now earned 38 AVCA All-America certificates, the second-highest total of any Division I institution. Cepero and Pilakowski were recognized on the first team in 2000, while Holmquist earned second-team honors. A total of 21 Huskers have earned All-America status, ranking Nebraska second all-time in total All-America athletes.

Academic Success
In 2000, Laura Pilakowski was a Verizon Second-Team Academic All-American, and seven Huskers earned Academic All-Big 12 honors, which tied for the league-high.

Overall, Nebraska has produced an NCAA-leading 13 Academic All-Americans, who have earned a nation's best 19 Academic All-America certificates. Nebraska has had at least one GTE/CoSIDA Academic All-American/Verizon Academic All-American in 14 of the last 17 seasons.

Don't Go There
Look for Nebraska junior middle blocker Amber Holmquist will continue her assault on the NU record books in 2001. Last year in only her sophomore season, Holmquist smashed three Husker records and moved up two other NU charts. Holmquist set new NU single-season records for block assists (199), total blocks (220) and blocks per game (1.98). The nation's best blocker, Holmquist also began to climb up the Nebraska career-record charts. She ranks 11th all-time in total blocks (339) and block assists (309). If Holmquist simply matches her freshman and sophomore total blocks and block-assists numbers in her junior and senior season with Nebraska, she will shatter the two records, exceeding the current career record in total blocks by 87 blocks and the current career record in block-assist by over 100.

The 6-foot-4 middle blocker, who has already broken a Big 12 Conference record with 16 total blocks at Texas Oct. 22, also broke the Big 12 blocks-per-game average of 1.79 this season, the single-season block assist record of 164 held by former NU middle blocker Tonia Tauke, and the Big 12 single-season total blocks record of 190 set by Texas A&M's Amber Woosley in 1998.