Nebraska opens Big 12 slate with No. 22 Kansas State, Texas Tech

Lincoln -- The top-ranked Nebraska volleyball team opens Big 12 Conference play Wednesday when it travels to Manhattan, Kan., to face Kansas State in a 7 p.m. match.

Saturday, the Huskers return to the NU Coliseum to play host to Texas Tech in a 1 p.m. match. The contest kicks off a three-match home stand, as the Huskers face Creighton Tuesday, Sept. 25, and Iowa State Wednesday, Sept. 26.

Nebraska has shown continuous improvement in the weeks leading up to the Big 12 season. The Huskers are 6-1 against teams ranked in the AVCA/USA Today Coaches Top 25 poll and own a 2-1 mark against teams ranked in the top 10.

Since falling, 3-1, at Long Beach State Sept. 1 in their first defeat since 1999, the Huskers have defeated No. 13 UCSB, No. 20 Notre Dame, No. 15 Pepperdine and No. 7 UCLA. Nebraska has improved statistically in every defensive category since the loss. The Huskers have limited their last four opponents to a .097 hitting percentage, while out-blocking them 4.04-1.71 and out-digging them 17.33-13.25.

Offensively, five Huskers are averaging more than 2.48 kills per game. Senior right side hitter Nancy Metcalf has led the way with 4.57 kills per game, followed by junior middle blocker Amber Holmquist (3.00 kpg), junior outside hitter Laura Pilakowski (2.91 kpg), senior middle blocker Jenny Kropp (2.48 kpg) and sophomore outside hitter Anna Schrad (2.48 kpg).

Nebraskas Amber Holmquist Named AVCA National Player of the Week
Dallas -- After earning Big 12 Conference Player of the Week honors early Monday afternoon, Nebraska middle blocker Amber Holmquist was selected by the American Volleyball Coaches Association as the AVCA Division I National Volleyball Player of the Week for her impressive performances in the Sept. 7-9 US Bank/Arbys Classic.

Holmquist is the first Husker to be selected by the AVCA as its national player of the week since three-time AVCA All-American Lisa Reitsma won the award Nov. 13, 1995.

The Huskers most effective attacker last week, Holmquist totaled 32 kills on 44 swings with hitting percentages of .600, .529 and .647 as NU defeated three ranked teams -- No. 15 Pepperdine, No. 20 Notre Dame and No. 7 UCLA. Holmquist, who averaged 3.56 kills per game and 1.44 blocks per game in the tournament, produced her best match of the season Sunday to lead the Huskers to a sweep of the Bruins in the championship match of the US Bank/Arbys Classic at the NU Coliseum. The second-team AVCA All-American posted a team-best and a season-high 13 kills on 17 swings for a .647 hitting percentage, and she also recorded a season-high seven blocks in NUs sweep of the Bruins. Holmquist earned tournament MVP honors for her efforts.

A Look at No. 22 Kansas State (4-2)
The Huskers open their 2001 Big 12 Conference slate Wednesday at Kansas State. The Wildcats, the only conference team to push Nebraska to five games last season, list five players who hail from Nebraska on their roster. In fact, Kansas States top three attackers are from Nebraska, including Grand Island native Liz Wegner (first, 5.09 kills per game), Spencer native Lisa Mimick (second, 3.00 kpg) and North Bend native Jenny Pollard (third, 2.91 kills per game). Other Nebraskans on the KSU roster include Jayne Christen (Tecumseh) and Katie Stanzel (Omaha).

The Wildcats are 4-2, with their only losses coming to No. 12 Hawaii and No. 8 UCLA. KSU has struggled offensively at times, hitting .244 as a team with first-year setters Laura Downey and Gabby Guerre at the controls.

• The Coach: The Wildcats are led by first-year coach Susie Fritz, who took over the reigns Aug. 1 after four-year coach Jim McLaughlin accepted the head coaching position at Washington. Fritz spent four years as an assistant at KSU before taking the head job.
• The Series: Nebraska is 61-1 all-time against Kansas State. The Wildcats lone win came Sept. 22, 1999, at the NU Coliseum. KSU became the first league team to beat the Huskeres at home since 1977.
• The Last Time: The 2000 Nebraska squad became just the second team in school history to finish the conference season undefeated when it beat KSU, 3-2, in Manhattan Nov. 26. The Huskers were led by Anna Schrad, who posted 15 kills and 17 digs starting in place of AVCA All-American Laura Pilakowski, who was sidelined after an appendectomy.

A Look at Texas Tech (6-2)
Nebraska will play its first Big 12 home match against Texas Tech Saturday at 1 p.m. The Red Raiders, who will face Texas on Wednesday, are 6-2 overall and won the Red Raiders Classic last week with wins over Stephen F. Austin, UTEP, Lamar and Ohio.

Senior setter Skydra Orzen, who earned tournament MVP honors last weekend, ranks second in the Big 12 Conference with 13.97 assists per game, and Texas Tech ranks third in the league with 17.17 kills per game. Freshman outside hitter Kelly Johnson ranks among the conferences individual leaders with 3.73 kills per game.

• The Coach: Texas Tech Coach Jeff Nelson is 140-69 in his seventh year.
• The Series: Nebraska leads the all-time series, 14-1. Nebraska hasnt lost to Texas Tech since Oct. 26, 1999, when the Huskers fell in five in Lubbock.
• The Last Time: The Huskers defeated Texas Tech, 3-0, Nov. 22 in Lincoln. Setter Greichaly Cepero led NU with 11 kills, 25 assists and a match-high nine blocks, while Amber Holmquist added 10 kills on a career-high .769 hitting percentage. Defensively, NU held the Red Raiders to .071 at the net.

The Big 12s Best
Nebraska is 4-1 all-time in Big 12 Conference openers, losing a five-game match to Kansas State in 1999.The Huskers have won four Big 12 championships and 23 Big 12/Big Eight conference titles in the past 25 seasons. Nebraska owns an all-time record of 375-32-1 (.919) against Big 12 schools.

Shes Baaaack ...
One of the most dynamic attackers in school history, senior Nancy Metcalf (formerly Meendering) missed the 2000 national title run but has made an impressive return to the court this season. Metcalf has been the Huskers go-to player offensively, averaging 4.57 kills per game on a .357 hitting percentage. Metcalf, a two-time AVCA All-American, has also been a clutch performer defensively, averaging a team-best 3.30 digs per game, including a career-best 23 at then-No. 12 Pacific, Aug. 25.

Metcalfs performances have not gone unnoticed. She earned State Farm/NACWAA MVP honors after averaging 4.71 kills per game, a .377 hitting percentage, and 4.00 digs per game against then-No. 5 Hawaii and Pacific.

Metcalf was also named the Big 12 Conferences first 2001 volleyball player of the week Sept. 3 on the strength of her performances at the Sept. 1-2 Long Beach State Tournament. Metcalf led NU with a match-high 25 kills on a .477 hitting percentage in a 3-1 loss to No. 3 Long Beach State Sept. 1. The Hull, Iowa, native also posted the team-high in kills with 12 on a .375 percentage in the sweep over No. 13 UC Santa Barbara Sept. 2.

Nancy has waited a long time, and she is making the most of her opportunities right now, Nebraska Coach John Cook said. She has definitely returned from her year off as a better player. Shes having a great time out on the court, and it has been fun to watch.

Metcalf already owns five school records, including single-season kills per game with 5.09 in 1999. The 1999 Big 12 Player of the Year, Metcalf redshirted in 2000 after training with the U.S. National Team during the offseason.

Top Dog
The Huskers were voted No. 1 in the AVCA/USA Today Coaches Top 25 poll released Sept. 10. The vote extended the Huskers streak of consecutive weeks ranked No. 1 to 16, an AVCA record. NU is one of just three teams to be ranked in the AVCA poll for all 238 weeks, 210 of which have been in the top 10.

Dominant Defense
Nebraska has shown noticeable improvement statistically in every defensive category since its Sept. 1 upset loss to then-No. 8 Long Beach State. Against Long Beach State and in the two matches prior to the loss, the Huskers allowed a .211 opponent attack percentage while posting just 2.82 blocks per game and 14.73 digs per game. Since the loss, Nebraska has held its opponents to a .097 hitting percentage, while out-blocking opponents 4.04-1.71 and out-digging them 17.33-13.25. The Huskers serving has also improved. NU combined to commit 42 service errors in its first three matches (Pacific, Hawaii, Long Beach State), but the Huskers have erred just 27 times in their last four matches (UC Santa Barbara, Pepperdine, Notre Dame, UCLA).

Sure Shot
Through the Huskers first seven matches, Amber Holmquist has been their most effective attacker. The junior middle blocker has 69 kills in 109 swings. She has hit for a .364 percentage or better in every match, including three performances of .600 or better. The Houston, Texas, native has hit .600, .529, and a season-best .647 in her last three matches.

Holmquist leads the Huskers and the Big 12 Conference with a .495 hitting percentage in 2001. She finished the 2000 season ranked fourth nationally with a .406 hitting percentage. Holmquist hit .500 or better in 14 matches last season, and she swung at a .600 or higher clip six times.

Home Sweet Home
The Huskers have won 33 consecutive matches at home, and 32 consecutive matches at the NU Coliseum (NU defeated Colorado, 3-0, last season at the Bob Devaney Sports Center). Nebraskas last loss in Lincoln was a five-game defeat to Kansas State Sept. 22, 1999.

The Huskers have gone undefeated at home 11 times in program history and have been perfect at home five times in the past seven years.

Top of the List
In the Big 12 Conference statistics released Monday, Nebraska led the league in hitting percentage (.304) and blocks per game (.346). NU players led both of the categories individually as well. Junior middle blocker Amber Holmquist ranks first in the conference with a .495 hitting percentage, and senior middle blocker Jenny Kropp leads the league with 1.74 blocks per game.

200 Down ...
Husker fans witnessed a milestone in NU Coach John Cooks career this weekend at the US Bank/Arbys Classic. The second-year Nebraska coach secured his 200th career victory when the Huskers defeated Notre Dame Sept. 9. Cook compiled 161 wins in seven seasons at Wisconsin, and he is 40-1 at Nebraska. The 2000 AVCA Coach of the Year, Cook guided the Huskers to a 34-0 record and a national championship in his first season at NU.

Full House
Nebraska ranks second nationally in the latest NCAA volleyball attendance rankings. The Huskers are averaging 4,145 fans per contest through their first three home matches. Hawaii is first with 6,189 fans per match. Penn State, Wisconsin and Pacific round out the top five.

Nebraska finished second nationally in attendance last season, 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 Nebrasa to a 3-0 win over Colorado Nov. 4 at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.

Super Setter
Greichaly Cepero virtually redefined the setter position as a sophmore last year and had one of the most successful seasons by a setter in school history, guiding the Huskers to a No. 1 ranking, a 34-0 record and a .312 hitting percentage (second in the nation) in her first season at the position.

Cepero was the only setter ranked in the top 10 of three different Big 12 categories during the regular season. She was 10th in hitting percentage, ninth in assists per game and third in blocks per game. A unique setter because of her blocking ability, Cepero was the only setter in the country to rank among the nations top 20 in blocking (18th, 1.48 per game). Cepero led Nebraska in solo blocks with 28 and was responsible for 34 percent of the Huskers total blocks (161 of 477.5). For the season, the Dorado, Puerto Rico, native, averaged 11.90 assists, 2.14 digs, 1.48 blocks and 1.83 kills per game. In conference matches, Cepero tallied 1.68 blocks per game and 2.03 kills per game.

Cepero led NU with 12 double-doubles, three of which were triple-doubles. She fell one dig or one kill short of a triple-double four times. Cepero was just one kill short of the schools first quadruple-double when she produced nine kills, 46 assists, 10 digs and 11 blocks at Texas Oct. 22.

Cepero capped her incredible 2000 season with countless awards. She was named the Honda Award winner for volleyball, the AVCA Player of the Year, a first-team AVCA All-American, the Big 12 Female Athlete of the Year, the Big 12 Player of the Year, the NCAA Tournament Central Regional MVP, a Second-Team Academic All-District VII selection and a First-Team Academic All-Big 12 selection.

Cepero became the seventh NU setter to earn All-America honors and the first to be named player of the year. Husker setters have combined to win 13 All-America awards.

Despite her all-around numbers and 2000 accolades, NU Coach John Cook emphasized that Cepero hadnt reached her potential as a setter. The 2000 AVCA Player of the Year spent much of the spring working on the placement and conistency of her sets, the results were aparent in NUs 2001 opening weekend. Cepero combined to average 13.57 assists against No. 5 Hawaii and No. 12 Pacific at the State Farm/NACWAA Classic, 1.67 higher than her 2000 average of 11.90 assists per game.

Last Time Out
Nebraska improved its 2001 record against ranked opponents to 6-1 with sweeps of No. 15 Pepperdine, No. 20 Notre Dame and No. 7 UCLA at US Bank/Arbys Classic in Lincoln over the weekend. Senior right side hitter Nancy Metcalf was the Huskers leading hitter against Pepperdine with 14 kills, and junior outside hitter Laura Pilakowski led NU against Notre Dame with 14 kills. Sunday against UCLA, the Huskers were led by junior middle blocker Amber Holmquist, who posted a season-high 13 kills on 17 swings for a .657 hitting percentage and a season-high seven blocks en route to earning tournament MVP honors. Joining Holmquist on the all-tournament team was Metcalf, junior setter Greichaly Cepero, and senior middle blocker Jenny Kropp, who averaged 2.22 blocks per game over the three matches. NU Coach John Cook reached a coaching milestone against Notre Dame, recording the 200th win of his career. The ninth-year head coach, who spent seven seasons at Wisconsin, is 40-1 at the helm of the Huskers.

All-America U
Nebraska is the only team in Division I with four All-Americans in its starting lineup. Junior setter Greichaly Cepero and junior outside hitter Laura Pilakowski earned first-team All-America honors in 2000, while junior middle blocker Amber Holmquist was recognized on the second team. Joining the three 2000 All-Americans is Nancy Metcalf, a first-team All-America selection in 1998 and 1999. Metcalf, the 1999 Big 12 Player of the Year, redshirted 2000 after training with the U.S. National Team during the offeason.
The Nebraska volleyball program has now earned 38 AVCA All-America certificates, the second-highest total of any Division I institution. A total of 21 Huskers have earned All-America status, ranking Nebraska second all-time in total All-America athletes.

Nebraska Coach John Cook
John Cook (201-74) enters his second season as the Nebraska head coach after guiding the Huskers to one of the most successful seasons in NCAA history in 2000. Cook, who was named the AVCA Coach of the Year, guided the Huskers to a 34-0 record as they became just the second team in NCAA history to cap an undefeated season with a national title.

Nebraska was ranked No. 1 in the AVCA/USA Today Top 25 poll for a record 14 straight weeks and broke single-season school records for wins and winning percentage. Sophomore setter Greichaly Cepero earned AVCA National Player-of-the-Year honors. Three Huskers won AVCA All-America certificates, and five Nebraska players were named to the All-Big 12 teams. Laura Pilakowski earned Verizon/CoSIDA Academic All-America honors, and a conference-best seven Huskers earned Academic All-Big 12 recognition.

Cook took over the Nebraska head coaching job after serving as associate head coach during the 1999 season. Before returning to Nebraska in 1999, he led Wisconsin to six straight postseason appearances in seven seasons as the Badgers head coach.

Cooks accomplishments at Wisconsin earned him praise as one of the games top young coaches. He built the Badger program into a top-10 program during his seven-year career in Madison, which included back-to-back trips to the NCAA regional finals in 1997 and 1998.

Cook, 44, is 197-73 all-time and compiled a 162-73 record at the helm of the Badgers, including an 89-51 Big Ten record. He was named the Big Ten Co-Coach and AVCA District 2 Coach of the Year in 1997 after leading the Badgers to a share of the Big Ten title with a 19-1 mark and school-record 30-3 overall record.

Cook coached four All-Americans, nine AVCA All-District award winners, 11 All-Big Ten honorees and two Big Ten freshmen of the year at UW. He also coached 21 academic All-Big Ten selections during his seven seasons.

A graduate of the University of San Diego, Cook earned his bachelors degree in history in 1979. He completed his masters degree in teaching and coaching effectiveness from San Diego State in 1991.

Cook and his wife Wendy, a former two-time All-America setter at San Diego State, are the parents of two children, Lauren, 10, and Taylor, 7.

Pilakowski Power
Junior outside hitter Laura Pilakowski broke the all-time, all-sport female record with 702 vertical jump points and also set an NU volleyball record with a 28-inch vertical jump during preseason performance testing Aug. 10.

Pilakowskis school-record 702 vertical jump points total was 104 points higher than any other Husker. The Columbus, Neb., native also led the team in the 40-yard dash (5.40 seconds), 40-yard dash points (557), the pro agility run (4.56 seconds), pro-agility run points (474) and the vertical jump (28 inches). Senior All-American Nancy Metcalf posted team-best marks for the 10-yard dash (1.79 seconds) and 10-yard dash points (484). Overall, the Huskers improved their performance index scores by an average of 80 points, and they improved their team vertical jump average by over an inch.