NU Returns to Lincoln for Final Homestand

After playing three of its last four matches on the road, No. 10 Nebraska returns to Lincoln this week for its final two regular-season home matches. The Huskers take on Kansas at 7 p.m. Wednesday before facing Baylor Saturday at 7 p.m. at the NU Coliseum. Nebraska will honor seniors Jenae Dowling, Anna Schrad and Sara Westling in a special ceremony following the match against the Bears.

Nebraska hopes to use the week at home to get back on track after dropping a four-game match at No. 5 Kansas State Nov. 15. The loss snapped the Huskers’ eight-match winning streak and marked the first time that they had been swept by a conference opponent in a season series since 1997. NU now sits solidly in second place in the Big 12 standings with three matches remaining. Kansas State (15-1), which has four matches left, holds a two-game lead over the Huskers, who are well ahead of third-place Texas A&M (11-5).

Nebraska was not without a few bright spots in the KSU match. Sophomore middle blocker Melissa Elmer led the Huskers with 13 kills and 10 blocks for her third double-double of the season. Elmer has tallied at least 10 blocks four times this season, including twice in the last four matches. She leads the Big 12 in conference matches with a .368 hitting percentage and 1.68 blocks per game.

Elmer was one of seven underclassmen who played the majority of the match against KSU. She was joined by redshirt freshman Kelsey Fautsch, who saw her most significant action this month. Fautsch came off the bench and tied her career-high with 10 kills. Before the KSU match, Fautsch had played in just two games in November and had not recorded a kill since Nov. 1.

For Starters: The Latest on Nebraska’s Probable Lineup

Outside Hitter

• #7 Dani Mancuso (6-2, Fr., Omaha, Neb.): After seeing limited duty in September and October, Mancuso has started six straight matches on the left side. She is averaging 1.96 kills per game and had 10 kills at Kansas State Saturday.
• #26 Jennifer Saleaumua (5-11, So., National City, Calif.): Saleaumua is widely considered NU’s top all-around player and best passer. She leads NU with 15 double-doubles. She leads NU in kills (3.18 per game) and digs (4.00 per game), which ranks second in the Big 12.
• #13 Ally Rebholz (6-1, Jr., Indianapolis, Ind.): NU’s starter on the right side, Rebholz ranks fourth on the team with 2.45 kills per game. In NU’s 6-2 offense, Rebholz shares time with senior Anna Schrad, who moved to the right side after the Texas Tech match Oct. 29. Schrad is averaging 1.14 blocks per game when playing on the right side.

Middle Blocker

• #8 Melissa Elmer (6-2, So., Fort Wayne, Ind.): Elmer leads the Big 12 with 1.65 blocks per game and ranks third in the league with a .346 hitting percentage. She posted a career-high 15 blocks at Kansas Oct. 8, the third-highest total in school history and the most blocks by any player in the Big 12 Conference this season. She has recorded 10 blocks twice in the last four matches.
• #15 Sara Westling (6-2, Sr., Lincoln, Neb.): Westling has started 19 of NU’s 27 matches. She has had at least four blocks eight of the last nine matches and ranks 10th in the Big 12 with 1.06 per game.

Setter

• #2 Michelle Lynch (5-11, Sr., Jacksonville, Ill.): In her first season as a starter, Lynch leads NU with 7.47 assists per game and 37 service aces. Lynch shares setting duties with freshman Dani Busboom in Nebraska’s 6-2 (two-setter) offense. Busboom ranks second on the team with 33 service aces.

Libero

• #1 Amanda McCormick (5-8, Fr., Muncie, Ind.): McCormick has started nine of the past 10 matches and is averaging 3.43 digs per game, the second-highest average ever by an NU freshman. Against Missouri Oct. 15, McCormick had 31 digs -- the third-highest total in school history and the most by any player in the Big 12 this season.

Seniors Honored Saturday
Nebraska will honor three seniors Saturday following the Baylor match, as libero Jenae Dowling, outside hitter Anna Schrad and middle blocker Sara Westling will be playing in the final regular-season home contest of their careers. All three players have made significant contributions on and off the court at Nebraska. They are all two-time academic All-Big 12 honorees, and each has held a starting role at some point during their careers. During the seniors’ tenure at NU, the Huskers won the 2000 national title and three Big 12 championships and have posted a 119-8 record.

Schrad is the most decorated of the three. A Lincoln Pius X graduate, Schrad is a three-year starter who ranks second on the team this season with 3.03 kills per game. The only player on the squad who saw action in the 2000 NCAA championship game, Schrad has amassed 916 kills, 89 service aces, 853 digs and 245 blocks during her career. She is a two-time first-team academic All-Big 12 selection and a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-District VII pick.

Westling served as the Huskers’ third middle blocker before earning a starting role this season. She ranks seventh in the Big 12 in hitting percentage (.308) and fourth in blocks per game (1.17) in Big 12 matches. Westling is a two-time academic All-Big 12 selection.

Dowling was the Huskers’ top serving and defensive specialist during her first three seasons, but has been a part-time starter at libero in 2003. Dowling averages 3.45 digs per game and was ranked among the Big 12 leaders in that category in September. Dowling is a two-time academic All-Big 12 selection.

Kansas Quickly (18-9, 10-6)
Kansas brings an 18-9 overall record and a 19-6 conference mark into this week’s match at the NU Coliseum. The Jayhawks have won four straight since upsetting then-No. 25 Missouri Nov. 5. Kansas is tied with Colorado for fourth in the Big 12 standings.

The Jayhawks are led by junior middle blocker Ashley Michaels, who averages 3.20 kills per game on a team-best .320 hitting percentage. Michaels had 14 kills and hit .407 in KU’s sweep of Iowa State Nov. 15. Senior outside hitter Sarah Rome also had a hot hand against the Cyclones, as she tallied 14 kills and swung for a sizzling .591 hitting percentage. Rome leads KU with 3.51 kills per game.

Kansas lists one player on its roster from Nebraska, freshman outside hitter Megan Hill. The Lincoln Southeast graduate has seven kills in 13 games this season.

KU Head Coach Ray Bechard owns a 100-79 record in his sixth season with the Jayhawks. His daughter, Ashley Bechard, is a junior setter.

Nebraska-Kansas Series
There is no question that Nebraska has dominated its series with Kansas, but as for the series record, it depends who you ask. Nebraska records show the Huskers with a 71-0 all-time advantage, while Kansas records show that NU leads the series 70-1. The match in question was played on Oct. 17, 1975.

An extensive search of the Lincoln Journal and Lincoln Star archives turned up nothing that could solve the debate. However, the search did reveal five matches in the AIAW national tournament Dec. 11-12 that were not previously listed in the Nebraska archives, and the Huskers’ 1975 record should be adjusted to 35-12.

Regardless of the discrepancy, the Huskers have defeated KU in three games 43 times. Kansas has only taken the Huskers to five games one time, on Nov. 23, 1990.

The Last Time We Met
Melissa Elmer produced career highs in kills and blocks to lead No. 7 Nebraska to a 31-29, 25-30, 30-28, 30-24 win over Kansas before 1,243 fans at the Horejsi Family Athletics Center Oct. 8. The sophomore middle blocker tallied 15 blocks, which bested her previous career-high by five and ranks third all-time on the NU single-match performance charts. Elmer also drilled 16 kills on a .524 hitting percentage in the victory.

The Huskers received a standout performance from sophomore outside hitter Jennifer Saleaumua, who pounded a career-best 19 kills while swinging at a .340 clip. Saleaumua contributed 11 digs and tied her career high with seven blocks. Senior middle blocker Sara Westling also had a career-high six blocks, as Nebraska totaled a season-high 22 team blocks overall.

Sarah Rome led KU with 12 kills, but hit just .143, as the Jayhawks fell to 11-6 overall and 3-3 in the Big 12.

Coming Up
Nebraska plays its last regular-season home match Saturday, Nov. 22, when Baylor comes to Lincoln. The Bears are in eighth place in the Big 12 standings with a 4-12 league record. The Huskers have never lost to Baylor in 16 meetings.

Following the Baylor match, Nebraska concludes conference competition Wednesday, Nov. 26, at Colorado. The Huskers have Saturday, Nov. 29 off. The NCAA Tournament selection show is scheduled for Sunday, Nov. 30, at 7 p.m. Central on ESPNEWS. As in years past, Nebraska will watch the show on the media level of the Memorial Stadium skyboxes. All media are invited to attend.

38 Consecutive Sellouts
Nebraska owns a streak of 38 consecutive sellouts at the NU Coliseum. The Huskers sold out all 17 matches they played at the Coliseum last season (NU played one match at the 13,595-seat Bob Devaney Sports Center). NU ended the 2001 season with 10 straight sellout crowds at the Coliseum. The Huskers sold out every match at the Coliseum in 2001 except a Tuesday, Sept. 25, match against Creighton. In 2003, NU has sold out all 11 of its matches at the Coliseum. The Huskers drew 6,142 fans for their match against Iowa State Oct. 25 at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.

All About Elmer
Second-year starter Melissa Elmer is one of the Big 12’s best middle blockers and one of the Huskers’ top candidates for postseason honors. Elmer leads the Big 12 with 1.65 blocks per game and ranks third in the league with a .346 hitting percentage. She is hitting .368 in Big 12 matches, which ranks first in the conference. Elmer is tied for third on the team with 29 service aces.

Elmer was named the Big 12 Player-of-the-Week Oct. 14, winning the award for her career performances against Kansas Oct. 8 and Kansas State Oct. 11. Elmer had a career-high 15 blocks at Kansas, the highest number of blocks by any player in the Big 12 Conference this season. The total ranks third all-time on the NU single-match performance charts behind former All-Americans Amber Holmquist (16, 2000) and Karen Dahlgren (18, 1984) and is also the highest by a Husker in the rally-scoring era.

Against KSU, Elmer posted a career-high 19 kills, seven more than any other player involved in the match.

Saleaumua at Her Best Against Top Teams
Last Saturday at Kansas State, Nebraska concluded a five-match stretch in which it faced four ranked teams in 13 days. Sophomore outside hitter Jennifer Saleaumua rose to the occasion, leading the Huskers to a 4-1 record during the stretch while averaging 3.67 kills per game on a .279 hitting percentage to go along with 4.48 digs per game in November. Saleaumua produced double-doubles in all five matches matches (No. 12 Northern Iowa, No. 21 Texas A&M, No. 25 Missouri, Texas, No. 5 Kansas State) to increase her team-leading total in that category to 15.

In league matches, Saleaumua leads the Huskers in kills per game (3.32) and digs per game (4.21), which is tied for first in the conference.

Saleaumua posted a career-best 27 digs against Missouri Oct. 15, which is the second-highest total by a Big 12 player this season.

Offensively, Saleaumua has posted double-figure kill totals in 18 of her last 20 matches. Oct. 8 at KU, Saleaumua recorded a career-best 19 kills on a .340 hitting percentage.

Nebraska Notables

• Freshman outside hitter Dani Mancuso recorded 11 kills against Texas Nov. 12 and 10 at Kanas State Nov. 15, marking the first time this season that she has posted double-figure kills in back-to-back matches. Mancuso also had a career-high 10 digs at KSU.
• Since switching to the right side five matches ago, senior outside hitter Anna Schrad is averaging 1.14 blocks per game. Her season average is 0.67.
• Sophomore setter Michelle Lynch has produced 14 service aces in the last six matches. Lynch leads the team with 37 service aces. Lynch is tied for second in the Big 12 with 0.44 service aces per game against league opponents.
• Senior middle blocker Sara Westling has produced at least four blocks in eight of the last nine matches to move into the Big 12 statistical rankings. She is 10th in the conference with 1.06 blocks per game in league matches.
• Redshirt freshman right side hitter Kelsey Fautsch came off the bench and tied her career-high with 10 kills. Before the KSU match, Fautsch had played in just two games in November and had not recorded a kill since Nov. 1.

Cook’s Winning Ways
Nebraska Coach John Cook has been amazingly successful during his four seasons at the helm, posting a 119-8 record. Cook picked up his 100th victory as Nebraska’s head coach Sept. 5, when NU defeated New Orleans, 3-0.

Cook’s only losses in his first three seasons were to 2001 NCAA champion Stanford, 2001 NCAA runner-up Long Beach State, 2002 NCAA champion USC and 2002 NCAA semifinal participant Hawaii. Cook has lost just three Big 12 Conference matches, going 74-3 and winning three league titles.

Cook was the AVCA Coach of the Year in 2000 after leading Nebraska to a 34-0 season and a national title. He was also named the 2001 Big 12 Coach of the Year. In 2001, NU posted a 31-2 mark and advanced to the NCAA semifinals. Last season, Nebraska also finished with a 31-2 record and advanced to the NCAA regional finals. The Huskers have won three Big 12 titles under Cook.