No. 1 Huskers Head to Omaha

2006 NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball Championship
Omaha, Neb. ? Qwest Center Omaha

National Semi #1 No. 4 UCLA (33-3) vs. No. 1 Nebraska  (31-1)
Thursday, Dec. 14 ?Qwest Center Omaha ?  6 p.m. ? Live on ESPN2 & ESPNU

National Semi #2  No. 2 Stanford (29-3) vs. No. 3 Washington (29-4)
Thursday, Dec. 14 ?  8:30 p.m. ? Live on ESPNU; Tape-Delayed on ESPN2

National Final Thursday’s Winners ?  Saturday, Dec. 16  ? 8 p.m. ? Live on ESPN2
 
Radio:  Nebraska matches will be carried on the Husker Sports Network  (B107.3 FM in Lincoln and Omaha), KFAB Radio and Huskers.com
Live Stats: Huskers.com and NCAAsports.com
Series Records: vs. UCLA (NU leads 7-4); vs. Washington (Tied at 1-1);  vs. Stanford (Stanford leads 7-4)

No. 1 Huskers Head to Omaha for NCAA Title Shot
The No. 1 Nebraska volleyball team heads to Omaha this week in search of the program’s third national title, as the Huskers make the 56-mile drive from the Nebraska Coliseum to Qwest Center Omaha for the NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball Championship. What awaits the Huskers is a frenzied environment unlike any recent NCAA Championship, as Omaha and the state of Nebraska showcases its love for college volleyball and especially the home-standing Huskers. The event, one of the most anticipated college sporting events in recent years, sold out nine months in advance, as an NCAA record crowd of over 16,000 is expected for each of the two sessions.

Following two days of final exams, the Huskers will arrive in Omaha on Wednesday morning and will take on the UCLA Bruins (33-3) in Thursday’s first national semifinal, set for 6 p.m. central. Fans can listen to all of the action with John Baylor and Diane Mendenhall on the Husker Sports Network, including B107.3 FM in Lincoln and Omaha. Fans can also watch the action live on television as the contest will be carried to a national audience on ESPN2 (Ch. 35 in Lincoln) and ESPNU (Ch. 609 on DirecTV, Ch. 148 on Dish Network; Ch. 220 on Cox Cable in Omaha).

The Huskers (31-1) are enjoying a historic season en route to the school’s 10th NCAA semifinals appearance. The Huskers, who have been ranked No. 1 the entire season, rallied from a 2-0 deficit to down No. 9 Minnesota last Saturday to become the first team in school history to win a regional on the road. While Nebraska enjoys the comforts of its home away from home, it will see a trio of Pac-10 powers eager to stake a claim to the conference’s sixth straight NCAA title, including UCLA, Pac-10 champion Stanford and defending NCAA titleist Washington, which toppled the Huskers for the national crown in 2005.

Worth Noting
?-Nebraska looks to become the third team in NCAA history to lead the AVCA poll the entire season, as only UCLA (1992) and USC (2003) have accomplished the feat since the poll’s inception in 1982.
?-The Huskers have played their last 71 matches as the nation’s top-ranked team in the AVCA poll, dating back to the end of 2004. In that span, NU has a record of 67-4.
?-The 2006 NU volleyball team is only the third group of Huskers to earn consecutive trips to the NCAA semifinals, as the feat happened in 1989 and 1990 and 2000 and 2001, and are looking to become the first Husker team to reach the title match in consecutive seasons.
?-Since 1986, every four-year senior class except one (1994) has been to at least one national semifinal during their Husker career.
?-NU is making its 10th NCAA national semifinal (1986, 1989, 1990, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2001 and 2005). The Huskers are 5-4 in their previous nine national semifinals, including a 3-2 mark under John Cook.
?-Nebraska reached the 30-win plateau for the third straight season and the 18th time in school history over the weekend. During the 11 years of Big 12 Conference competition, Nebraska has reached 30 wins eight times, while the other 10 teams in the league have accomplished the feat once - Kansas State in 2003.
?-Seniors Dani Mancuso and Dani Busboom have helped Nebraska to a 122-10 record (.924), two NCAA  national semifinal appearances and three Big 12 titles over the last four years. The pair of seniors could finish their careers with the most wins over a four-year stretch since the NCAA era begin in 1981.
?-The 2006 season marks the third straight year and the fourth time since 2000 that Nebraska is the No. 1 seed entering the NCAA Tournament.
?-NU is 36-3 (.923) against ranked opponents since the start of the 2004 season and 73-11 (.869) under John Cook. This season, NU is a perfect 10-0 against ranked foes.
?-According to research by Rich Kern, Nebraska’s 18-1 record against the other NCAA Tournament qualifiers is the best of any team in the NCAA Tournament field. Florida was second with an 18-2 record against NCAA  qualifiers.
?-Nebraska is making its 25th NCAA Tournament appearance, a total which ties for fourth among all Division I programs. Only Penn State, Stanford and UC Santa Barbara have longer streaks, as those three schools have qualified for all 26 NCAA Championships.
?-The Huskers’ streak of 13 straight NCAA Regionals is the longest active in the country, as only five programs have reached regionals in each of the past four seasons. NU is 28-12 all-time in NCAA regionals.
?-Sarah Pavan joined an elite group when she earned her second straight Big 12 Player-of-the-Year honor on Nov. 28. She is the first NU player to be named player of the year in consecutive years since former AVCA National Player of the Year Allison Weston in 1994 and 1995, and only the sixth Husker to ever be named a two-time conference player of the year.
?-Nebraska’s four first-team All-Big 12 selections are the most since 2002 and the fifth time that NU had at least four first-team All-Big 12 honorees (1996-2000-01-02-06).
?-Nebraska is averaging 1.64 service aces per game over the last 12 matches, compiling a 69-to-65 ace-to-error ratio. The Huskers have had more aces than errors six times during their eight-match win streak.
?-Sarah Pavan now has 16 career matches with at least 20 kills (7 in 2004; 1 in 2005; 8 in 2006) a total that is nearly half of NU’s total of 34 since the 2000 season. Three other current Huskers have had at least one 20-kill match during their Husker careers: Jordan Larson (21 vs. Minn and 20 vs. K-State this season), Dani Mancuso (2004 at K-State) and Christina Houghtelling (2005 at Oklahoma).
?-With the No. 1 ranking in the Dec. 4 AVCA poll, the Huskers have spent 69 weeks all-time at No. 1, the most of any Division I program. UCLA is second with 51 weeks. NU has been ranked No. 1 in 29 of the last 30 polls dating back to the start of 2005.

Husker Probable Starters
MB - #15 Kori Cooper: 6-2, Fr., Amarillo, Texas - Cooper splits time with Amanda Gates at middle blocker, averaging 1.70 kills and 0.95 blocks per game. Cooper is fourth in the Big 12 with a .356 hitting percentage and was second in league matches (.354). She had a strong performance in the NCAA Regional semifinal against No. 14 San Diego, totaling nine kills on .571 hitting and a team-high six blocks. Her best match of the regular season came in a win over Iowa State on Nov. 8, where she totaled a career-high 12 kills on .429 hitting and five blocks. She also totaled six kills in six swings at Kansas on Nov. 22 and had seven kills and a career-best eight blocks at No. 9 Texas on Oct. 18. A Volleyball Magazine Fab 50 pick, Cooper enrolled at NU in January after graduating from Amarillo High School a semester early. Cooper was a co-captain of the 2005 U.S. Youth National Team, helping Team USA to a fourth-place finish.

MB - #11 Tracy Stalls: 6-3, Jr., Denver, Colo. - Stalls earned first-team All-Big 12 honors at middle blocker, averaging 2.62 kills and 1.41 blocks per game. She leads the Big 12 and is 11th nationally in hitting percentage and is fourth in the league in blocks. Stalls has reached double figures in kills 11 times, including a career-high 16 kills and 12 blocks at Colorado on Nov. 11 and 13 kills on .375 hitting against No. 9 Minnesota in the regional final on Dec. 9. She had six kills and 10 blocks against American and 10 kills on .467 hitting in the sweep of Northern Iowa. She also totaled 14 kills in wins over NCAA qualifiers Long Beach State and Minnesota during the regular season. Stalls has also had 11 matches where she has hit .500 or better, including a season-best .727 vs. Texas Tech (9-1-11) on Sept. 23 and .714 (10-0-14) vs. NCAA qualifier Middle Tennessee on Sept. 2. Stalls ranked among the top-15 blockers nationally in each of her first two years as a Husker. Before enrolling at NU, Stalls was a two-year member of the U.S. National Developmental Program and a member of Team USA.

OPP - #9 Sarah Pavan: 6-5, Jr., Kitchener, Ontario - The two-time  Big 12 Player of the Year, Pavan leads the Big 12 and ranks 10th nationally in kills per game (5.07), while also ranking among the Big 12 leaders in points per game (5.97, first) and service aces per game (0.33, sixth). Pavan has eight matches with at least 20 kills, including a season-high 24 kills in three contests (vs. Long Beach State, at Baylor and vs. Iowa State). Pavan recorded her third double-double of the year in the regional final against No. 9 Minnesota, totaling 20 kills and 11 digs in the Huskers’ come-from-behind win. A two-time Big 12 Player of the Week, she earned her most recent honor on Nov. 21, when she totaled 46 kills on .544 hitting and seven aces in a pair of sweeps. She has reached double figures in kills in each of her last 29 matches and 31 times in 32 matches this season. Pavan led NU with 18 kills in a sweep of No. 8 Texas on Nov. 25 and finished with 23 kills and matched her career high with four aces against Baylor on Nov. 18. She earned MVP honors in both of NU’s early-season tournaments and was the Big 12 Player of the Week on Sept. 11, averaging 6.70 points and 5.90 kills (.409 hitting percentage) in three wins. She had one of the best matches of her career against Long Beach State on Sept. 9, totaling 24 kills on .400 hitting against the 49ers, including eight kills on eight swings in the opener. Pavan was the 2005 Big 12 Player of the Year, averaging 3.82 kills, 1.66 digs and 1.25 blocks per game. She established her career high in kills as a freshman with 35 in the NCAA Regional against USC. Pavan, who carries a 4.0 GPA in biochemistry, was a member of the Canadian National Team at age 16.

OH - #10 Jordan Larson: 6-2, So., Hooper, Neb. - Larson is one of the country’s top all-around performers, earning first-team All-Big 12 honors for the first time in 2006. She averages 4.21 kills and 3.38 digs per game, ranking in the Big 12’s top 10 in aces (0.50/gm, second), points (5.20, third), kills (fourth) and digs (10th). Larson, the co-Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, is the only player in the league’s top 10 in kills and digs.  She leads NU with 21 double-doubles, including a stretch of 10 in a row earlier this season. Larson earned MOP honors in the Gainesville Regional last weekend following a career-high 21 kills and 17 digs against No. 9 Minnesota. Larson has averaged 4.07 kills on .324 hitting and 0.73 aces per game in four NCAA Tournament games, leading NU with 16 kills in each of the first two rounds. She had one of her best matches of the year at Kansas on Nov. 22, totaling 13 kills on a season-high .571 hitting. She had 13 kills, 17 digs and matched her career high with six blocks at Colorado on Nov. 11 and had a match-high 16 kills in a sweep of No. 17 Oklahoma on Nov. 4. Larson earned the Big 12 weekly honor in early October after averaging 5.17 kills and 4.17 digs in two sweeps, including a career-high 20 kills against Kansas State on Oct. 4. As a freshman, Larson led all conference freshmen in kills, digs, hitting percentage and service aces. She was rated the No. 2 player in the country by Prepvolleyball.com and spent two years on the U.S. Junior National Team.

DS - #5 Rachel Schwartz: 5-9, So., Lincoln, Neb. - Schwartz is a former walk-on who is used as a defensive specialist, averaging 2.49 digs and 0.19 aces per game. She has tied or set career highs in digs seven times this season, and has reached double figures in digs 16 times in 2006, including six of NU’s last eight matches. Schwartz totaled 10 digs in NU’s sweep of San Diego and then added nine digs and matched her career high with three aces against No. 9 Minnesota. She recorded her career high with 15 digs in NU’s win at No. 9 Texas on Oct. 18 and had 14 digs and three aces in a win at Baylor on Sept. 30. Schwartz appeared in 30 matches as a freshman as NU’s defensive specialist in 2005, finishing with 18 digs and five aces. She was a first-team all-state selection at outside hitter at Lincoln East High School in 2004.

   -or- OH - #7 Dani Mancuso: 6-2, Sr., Omaha, Neb. - Mancuso moved into the outside hitter position vacated after Christina Houghtelling’s season-ending injury. Mancuso averages 2.52 kills, 0.64 blocks and 0.74 digs per game, primarily playing the front row. She has reached double figures in kills in six of NU’s last nine matches, averaging 2.75 kills per game while hitting .275 in that stretch. She had tied or established season highs in kills twice during the NCAA Tournament, including a season-best 15 kills in NU’s regional final win against No. 9 Minnesota. Mancuso had 11 kills and six blocks in NU’s first-round win over American and had eight kills on .375 hitting against Northern Iowa on Dec. 2. She had 11 kills on a season-high .647 hitting at Kansas on Nov. 22 and had 10 kills on .316 hitting in a sweep of Texas A&M on Nov. 15. In 2005, Mancuso was NU’s backup at all three outside hitter spots, averaging 1.38 kills, 1.15 digs and 0.68 blocks per game. She shared the outside hitter spot with Houghtelling in 2004, averaging 2.77 kills and 0.29 service aces per game, including a career-high 22 kills in a win at Kansas State.

S - #12 Rachel Holloway: 5-10, R-Fr., Franklin, Tenn. - Holloway is the first Husker freshman to start in a 5-1 system in the NCAA era (1981-present), earning first-team All-Big 12 and All-Central region honors in the process. She averages 13.39 assists, 2.50 digs and 1.12 kills per game, ranking third in the Big 12 and 12th nationally in assists. Holloway has 12 double-doubles and comes off a career-high 65 assists in the regional final against No. 9 Minnesota - the ninth time she has had at least 50 assists in a match this year. Holloway has helped NU hit .400 or better six times this season, including four times over the past month. She totaled 39 assists and five kills while helping NU hit .423 against Northern Iowa in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Holloway recorded 57 assists against both Colorado and Iowa State, adding 13 digs and four blocks at Colorado on Nov. 11 and four stuffs at ISU on Nov. 8.  She was chosen as the Big 12’s Player of the Week on Oct. 16, after averaging 16.00 assists per game in sweeps of Colorado and Missouri. Holloway, who leads all freshmen nationally in assists, totaled 57 assists, eight digs and seven kills against Minnesota,  helping NU hit .337. Last summer, Holloway captained the U.S. Youth National Team to a gold medal at the NORCECA Junior Championships in Mexico. Holloway, who graduated high school a year early, was the Colorado Gatorade High School Player of the Year in 2004.

L -  #18 Dani Busboom: 5-11, Sr., Cortland, Neb.  - Busboom earned Big 12 co-Libero-of-the-Year accolades in 2006, totaling 4.95 digs per game to lead the Big 12 while also chipping in .79 assists per game.  She has reached double figures in digs 31 times in 33 matches, including a streak of 21 straight matches in double figures before it was snapped against Texas A&M on Nov. 15. Busboom became the first Husker to record 500 digs in a season following her 17-dig effort versus Northern Iowa on Dec. 2 and also ranks second on NU’s career dig list (1,231). She has totaled at least 20 digs seven times, including a career-high 23 on three occasions. Last season, she averaged 6.45 assists and 1.82 digs in NU’s 6-2 offense, helping NU hit .322 as a team. Busboom is seventh on NU’s career assists list with 2,922 and is the second player in school history on top-10 lists in both assists and digs, joining former NU All-American Val Novak.

Regional Final: No. 1 Nebraska 3, No. 8 Minnesota 3
Sarah Pavan and Jordan Larson combined for 41 kills, as No. 1 Nebraska clnched a berth in the NCAA semifinals with a 25-30, 22-30, 30-20, 30-25, 15-9 victory over No. 9 Minnesota on Dec. 9.  The Huskers did it the hard way, winning the final three games after falling behind 2-0 to earn their 10th trip to the national semifinals. It marked the 10th time in school history and the first time in NCAA Tournament play that Nebraska had rallied back from a 2-0 deficit.

Larson posted her 21st double-double of the year, totaling a career high 21 kills and 17 digs en route to Regional Most Outstanding Player honors. Pavan finished with 20 kills and 11 digs for her fourth double-double of the year and joined Larson and freshman setter Rachel Holloway, who totaled a career-high 65 assists, on the Regional All-Tournament team.

The Huskers would not be going to Omaha if it weren’t for the efforts of seniors Dani Mancuso and Dani Busboom, both of whom made major contributions in NU’s comeback. Mancuso totaled a season-high 15 kills, while Busboom tied Larson for team-high honors with 17 digs. Tracy Stalls was the fourth Husker to finish in double figures in kills, finishing with 13 kills and six blocks.

Regional Semi: No. 1 Nebraska 3, No. 14 USD 0
Sarah Pavan had a match-high 15 kills on .500 hitting, as No. 1 Nebraska rolled into the Gainesville Regional final with a 30-21, 30-20, 30-15 sweep of No. 14 San Diego at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center on Dec. 8. With the win, the Huskers improved to 30-1 on the season and reached the 30-win plateau for the third straight year and the 18th time in school history.

Pavan put on a show in the final two games, totaling 13 of her 15 kills, as the Huskers finished the night hitting .385 as a team. NU also got outstanding performances from freshman Kori Cooper, who totaled nine kills on .571 hitting and a match-high six blocks, and sophomore Jordan Larson, who finished with eight kills, four blocks, nine digs and three service aces in completing NU’s 24th sweep of the year.

Rachel Holloway guided a Husker attack that saw three players hit .500 or better, totaling 35 assists, five digs, four kills and a pair of service aces.  The Huskers totaled seven aces and held USD without an ace, as NU totaled a positive ace-to-service error ratio for the seventh time in the past eight matches.

Scouting The National Semifinalists
UCLA (33-3): Under the direction of Coach Andy Banachowski (1,035-269 in 40 years), the Bruins make their first appearance in the national semifinals since a runner-up finish in 1994. UCLA features the country’s top middle blocker in senior All-American Nana Meriwether, who averages 4.12 kills per game, while leading the country in both blocks (1.97 per game) and hitting percentage (.460). She was one of three Bruins who earned first-team All-Pac 10 honors in 2006, joining setter Nellie Spicer (13.66 assists, 2.46 digs, 0.75 blocks and 1.11 kills per game) and outside hitter Katie Carter (3.36 kills and 0.93 blocks per game). In all, five Bruins average more than two kills per game, as UCLA brings an eight-match win streak into the national semifinals and has not dropped a game during the NCAA Tournament.
Series History: Nebraska leads the series, 7-4, including a win over the Bruins at Qwest Center Omaha in the 2005 NCAA Tournament. Four of the 11 previous meetings have come during the NCAAs.

 Stanford (29-3): Head Coach John Dunning (159-23 in six years at Stanford) has the Cardinal looking for their seventh NCAA title and second in three years. Stanford, which won the Pac-10 with a 16-2 mark, features a quartet of first-team All-Pac 10 performers. Sophomore Cynthia Barboza leads the Stanford attack with 4.28 kills per game while also averaging 3.07 digs and 0.44 service aces per game. She is joined by middle blocker Foluke Akinradewo (3.87 kills and 1.42 blocks per game, .439 hitting pct.) and outside hitter Kristin Richards (3.82 kills and 3.32 digs per game), giving Stanford as much firepower as anyone in the country. Bryn Kehoe guides a Cardinal attack that is hitting .291 as a team and averaging 16.96 kills per game.
 Series History: Stanford leads the all-time series, 7-4, but Nebraska won the most recent meeting - a 3-0 sweep at the 2005 AVCA Showcase in Omaha. The teams have met three previous times in the NCAA Tournament (1986, 1996 and 2001) with the Cardinal taking the last two meetings.

Washington (29-4): Head Coach Jim McLaughlin (143-44 in six years at Washington) has the Huskies two wins away from becoming the fourth team to repeat as NCAA champions. UW tied UCLA for second in the Pac-10 with a 15-3 record and has lost only one match since Oct. 1. Washington features Pac-10 Player of the Year Christal Morrison, who averaged 4.63 kills, 3.12 digs and 0.78 blocks per game. Senior setter Courtney Thompson guides a potent offense, leading the country with 14.70 assists per game, after earning first-team All-America honors in 2005. The Huskies’ third Pac-10 honoree was middle blocker Alesha Deesing, who averaged 2.54 kills on .379 hitting and 1.06 blocks per game. 
Series History: The teams have met just twice with Washington sweeping the Huskers in the 2005 title match. NU won the only other meeting during the 2003 season.

What to Watch For
 ?-Sarah Pavan enters the national semifinals needing 20 kills to move into sole possession of third place on NU’s single-season list, passing Lisa Reitsma, who had 561 kills in 1996.
 ?-Tracy Stalls will look to become only the third Husker player to hit over .400 in a season. The junior enters Thursday’s match hitting .405, the best hitting percentage by a Husker since Amber Holmquist hit .406 in 2000.
 ?-With 52 service aces this season, Jordan Larson is two aces away from tying Annie Adamczak for seventh place on NU’s single-season ace list. Larson’s total is the most by a Husker in 18 years.
 ?-Larson also needs two solo blocks to move into the top-five on NU’s single-season list in that category. The sophomore has 30 solo blocks this season, the most ever by a Husker outside hitter.
 ?-With 13.39 assists per game, Rachel Holloway is threatening to be the seventh Husker - and first since 1998 - to average more than 13.50 assists per game.