Huskers Host Ameritas Players Challenge

Ameritas Players ChallengeFriday, Sept. 7: 
New Mexico State (6-1) vs. Louisville (3-3) ? NU Coliseum ? 4:30 p.m.

No. 11 Duke (5-1) at No. 1 Nebraska (5-0) ? NU Coliseum ? 7 p.m.

Saturday, Sept 8:
Third-place match ? NU Coliseum ? 4:30 p.m.
Championship match ? NU Coliseum ? 7 p.m.

The Essentials
Tickets:  Tickets for both days at the Nebraska Coliseum (4,030) are sold out
Television:  None
Radio:  Nebraska matches will be carried on selected Husker Sports Network stations, including B107.3 FM in Lincoln and KHUS 93.3 FM in Omaha, and on the Internet at Huskers.com
Live Stats: Huskers.com
Internet Video: Both of Nebraska’s matches will be carried live on HuskersNside

The top-ranked Nebraska volleyball team continues its challenging non-season schedule by hosting the Ameritas Players Challenge this weekend at the Nebraska Coliseum. The four-team tournament features No. 11 Duke (5-1) and a pair of NCAA qualifiers from a year ago in Louisville (3-3) and New Mexico State (5-1).

Action gets underway in Lincoln on Friday with a doubleheader featuring New Mexico State and Louisville at 4:30 p.m., before the Huskers and Blue Devils square off at 7 p.m. The two winners of Friday’s matches square off at 7 p.m. on Saturday with the third-place match starting at 4:30 p.m.

Fans can listen to both of Nebraska’s matches across the state on the Husker Sports Network, including B107.3 FM in Lincoln and KHUS 93.3 FM in Omaha, as well as on the Internet at Huskers.com. HuskersNside subscribers can also watch both of the Huskers’ matches this weekend, as every home match and selected road contests will be carried on the site.

The Huskers, who have three wins over nationally ranked foes in their first five contests, come off a dominant defensive performance over the weekend, holding Creighton, third-ranked Penn State and No. 17 Cal Poly to a combined .127 hitting percentage. The Huskers have held four of their first five opponents under .150 hitting and lead the Big 12 with 18.19 digs per game. Although the season is still in its infant stage, Nebraska’s dig total would be the highest in school history, topping the school mark of 17.42 set in 2004. In fact, the Huskers have only averaged 17.00 digs per game twice in school history with the other coming in 1993.

NU Volleyball Quick Hits
?-Nebraska has won its last 15 matches against ranked opponents dating back to the start of last season.

?-With 1,596 kills, Sarah Pavan could pass both Nancy Metcalf (1,603) and Allison Weston
(1,633) on NU’s career kills list this weekend. Pavan has been in double figures in kills in 49 of her last 50 matches at NU.

?-Kori Cooper is hitting .468 and averaging 2.60 kills per game in three matches against ranked opponents this season, including 10-kill outbursts against No. 5 UCLA and No. 3 Penn State.

Worth Noting
?-With a win on Friday against Duke, the Huskers can tie for fourth place on the all-time NCAA home win streak list. Nebraska has currently won its last 57 matches at home dating back to the 2004 campaign.

?-NU is 41-3 (.932) against ranked opponents since the start of the 2004 season and 77-11 (.874) against ranked foes under John Cook.

?-Friday’s match against Duke will be the 93rd consecutive sellout at the Nebraska Coliseum. The Huskers are 86-6 at the NU Coliseum in that stretch.

?-The Huskers have played their last 78 matches as the nation’s top-ranked team in the AVCA poll, dating back to the end of 2004 season. In that span, NU has a record of 74-4. In fact, Husker juniors Amanda Gates, Jordan Larson and Rachel Schwartz have been a part of the nation’s No. 1 team in every match during their collegiate careers.

?-With the No. 1 ranking in Monday’s CSTV/AVCA poll, the Huskers have spent 74 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 34 of the last 35 polls dating back to the start of 2005.

?-Nebraska’s match against Penn State in Omaha on Sept. 2 drew an NCAA record crowd of 13,081, shattering the old mark of 12,504 set by the Huskers in the Bob Devaney Sports Center during the 2000 season. It marked the 10th time over the last three seasons that Nebraska has drawn a crowd in excess of 10,000 at  Qwest Center Omaha. The new record may be on the books for a few weeks, as Nebraska’s match with Hawaii on Oct. 21 is fast approaching the 13,000-ticket mark.

?-Nebraska has held its last two opponents without a service ace, marking the fourth time since the 2000 season that has occurred.

?-Nebraska has a 101-5 (.953) record since the start of the 2004 season.

?-WIth the season-opening victory over Tennessee at the AVCA Showcase on Aug. 25, Nebraska became just the third program in NCAA Division I history to reach the 1,000-win plateau, joining UCLA (1,038) and Missouri State (1,007).
The Huskers’ win over UCLA in the championship match of the AVCA Showcase marked the first-ever meeting between programs with 1,000 wins.

?-Sarah Pavan’s selection as AVCA Player of the Week on Aug. 27 marked just the third time a Husker volleyball player has garnered the AVCA’s weekly honor.  She joins Amber Holmquist and Allison Weston as Nebraska’s other two-time recipients.

What to Watch For this Weekend
 Several Husker players are within milestones entering this weekend’s Ameritas Players Challenge. 
 ?-The Huskers have won their last 50 matches at the Nebraska Coliseum, dating back to the 2004 season.
 ?-Jordan Larson is nine aces away from passing Nikki Stricker (1990-93) and Kathi DeBoer (1984-87) for eighth place on NU’s all-time list.
 ?-Sarah Pavan is four kills shy of 1,600 in her career and could potentially move past Nancy Metcalf and Lisa Reitsma into sole possession of second place on NU’s all-time kills list this weekend. 
 ?-Pavan is also quickly closing on NU’s all-time service ace list, as she notched her 100th career ace in Monday’s sweep of Cal Poly. 
 ?-Christina Houghtelling is three blocks away from reaching 200 for her career.

Husker Probable Starters
MB - #11 Tracy Stalls: 6-4, Sr., Denver, Colo. - Two-year captain who earned second-team AVCA All-America honors in 2006. Stalls is second in the Big 12 with a .441 hitting percentage, averaging 2.31 kills and 1.00 blocks per game in 2007. She had 16 kills on .640 hitting and four blocks in a win over fifth-ranked UCLA to earn a spot on the AVCA Showcase All-Tournament Team.  Stalls averaged 2.67 kills and 1.41 blocks per game in 2006, leading the Big 12 in hitting percentage (.400) and ranking 11th nationally. She totaled a career-high 17 kills in the 2006 NCAA semifinals against UCLA, one of 13 matches with at least 10 kills in 2006. Stalls spent part of the summer with the USA National Team, playing in the Pan America Cup and averaging 2.25 kills per game while hitting .615.

MB - #15 Kori Cooper: 6-2, So., Amarillo, Texas - Second-year starter who shares the position with junior Amanda Gates. Cooper averages 2.36 kills and 0.93 blocks per game in 2007, while hitting .397 on the year. Cooper has reached double figures in kills twice in 2007, totaling 10 kills against No. 5 UCLA on Aug. 25 and versus No. 3 Penn State on Sept. 2. She totaled 10 kills on .350 hitting in a sweep of Penn State and hit .625 on eight swings against No. 17 Cal Poly on Sept. 3. She sparked NU to a win over UCLA in the AVCA Showcase with 10 kills on .526 hitting and four blocks. Cooper was one of two freshmen starters in 2006, averaging 1.67 kills and 0.95 blocks per game in 30 matches. She finished fourth in the Big 12 in hitting percentage (.344) - topping all conference newcomers in that category - and was second in hitting percentage in league matches (.354).

-OR - #17 Amanda Gates: 6-1, Jr., Columbus, Neb. - Gates alternates with Cooper at the M2 spot in the Husker lineup. Gates comes off her best match of the year, totaling three kills in as many swings against No. 17 Cal Poly on Sept. 3. She has seen action in three matches, averaging 1.67 kills and 1.33 blocks per game. Gates started 11 matches in 2006, averaging 1.27 kills and 1.18 blocks per game. Gates, who has a 4.00 GPA in communication studies, totaled a career-high 10 blocks in the 2006 opener against San Diego. She made a major contribution in the NCAA title match, coming off the bench for three key blocks to spark NU’s comeback from a 27-25 deficit in game three.

L - #5 Rachel Schwartz: 5-9, Jr., Lincoln, Neb. - Schwartz, who was NU’s defensive and serving specialist in 2006, won the starting libero job over freshman Kayla Banwarth in fall camp. Schwartz is second on the team with 3.81 digs per game, establishing a career high with 17 digs against fifth-ranked UCLA on Aug. 25 and against No. 17 Cal Poly on Sept. 3. She started 29 matches in 2006, averaging 2.41 digs, 0.23 aces and 0.30 assists per game. She totaled double figures in digs a total of 15 times despite playing only three rotations.

OPP - #9 Sarah Pavan: 6-5, Sr., Kitchener, Ontario - Pavan is a three-time first-team AVCA All-American and reigning Honda-Broderick Cup winner. Pavan averages a Big 12-best 5.38 kills and 2.09 digs per game. Pavan has been the MVP of both of NU’s tournaments and was selected as the AVCA National Player of the Week on Aug. 27, totaling 39 kills on .385 hitting in a pair of wins. She was dominant in a sweep of No. 17 Cal Poly on Sept. 3, finishing with 17 kills on .485 hitting against the Mustangs.  Pavan tallied a match-high 25 kills, 12 digs and three blocks in a win over No. 5 UCLA on Aug. 25.  She was the AVCA player of the Year in 2006, leading the Big 12 in kills (5.10) and points per game (5.98), while hitting .313 on the season. Pavan reached double figures in kills in 33 of 34 matches as a junior, including 10 matches with at least 20 kills. Pavan, who needs 183 kills to break Allison Weston’s school record of 1,778, is on pace to become just the fourth four-time, first-team All-American in NCAA volleyball history. She carries a 4.0 GPA in biochemistry and was recognized as the ESPN the Magazine Academic All-American of the Year for all sports at the Division I level for the 2006-07 year. She declined an opportunity to play with the Canadian team this summer to take an upper-level chemistry class so she can graduate this season. She made her Canadian National
Team debut at age 16.

OH - #10 Jordan Larson: 6-2, Jr., Hooper, Neb. - Larson is one of the country’s top all-around performers, earning first-team AVCA All-America honors in 2006. She enters this weekend’s tournament averaging 3.81 kills and 3.62 digs per game after earning all-tournament honors in NU’s first two weekends of action. Larson has two double-doubles - an 11-kill, 15-dig effort with five blocks against UCLA and a 11-kill, 12-dig performance in a sweep of Penn State on Sept. 2  Last year, she averaged 4.13 kills and 3.50 digs per game and was the  only player in the Big 12 to rank in the top 10 in both categories. She was the Big 12’s Co-Defensive Player of the Year and totaled a team-high 22 double-doubles in 2006. Larson had 19 kills on .378 hitting and 15 digs in the win over No. 2 Stanford in the NCAA title match. She was also the Most Outstanding Player at the NCAA Gainesville Regional with 3.62 kills, 3.25 digs and 0.50 aces per game, highlighted by a career-high 21 kills and 17 digs in the regional final against No. 9 Minnesota.

OH - #3 Christina Houghtelling: 6-2, Sr., Cambridge, Neb. - Houghtelling has returned to her 2005 form after missing all of last season after shoulder surgery. She leads all Big 12 outside hitters in digs and ranks fourth overall with 4.40 per game while also averaging 3.00 kills per game. Houghtelling comes off her best offensive performance of the year, totaling a season-high 12 kills on .379 hitting in a sweep of No. 17 Cal Poly on Sept. 3. Houghtelling also collected her second double double of the year with 10 kills and 13 digs against fifth-ranked Penn State on Sept. 2 She topped NU in digs in both matches at the AVCA Showcase en route to Big 12 Defensive Player-of-the-Week honors, highlighted by a career-best 23 digs against No. 5 UCLA on Aug. 25. She was the 2005 AVCA Player of the Year, averaging 3.69 kills, 2.49 digs and 1.03 blocks per game in helping the Huskers to 33 wins and an NCAA finals appearance. Houghtelling was among the Big 12 leaders in both kills (10th) and hitting percentage (.375, fifth) in 2005. She tied for the team-lead with six double-doubles, including a 19-kill, 20-dig performance against Kansas State. She also was a first-team Academic All-American who carries a 3.90 GPA entering her final college semester.

S - #12 Rachel Holloway: 5-10, So., Franklin, Tenn. - Holloway is one of five AVCA All-Americans in the Husker lineup and held her job despite a strong challenge from senior Maggie Griffin in fall camp. Holloway is second in the Big 12 with 14.00 assists per game and also chips in 3.12 digs per game. She is tied for the team-lead with two double-doubles - a 35 assist, 12-dig outing against Creighton on Aug. 31 and  61 assist, 16-dig effort against No. 5 UCLA on Aug. 25. Holloway, who has been selected for both all-tournament teams, guided NU to a season-best .397 hitting against No. 17 Cal Poly on Sept. 4. She was a third-team All-American in 2006, piloting an offense that led the nation in assists (16.20/gm) and kills (17.40/gm) and ranked second in hitting percentage (.295). She averaged 13.43 assists, 2.49 digs and 1.11 kills per game, finishing 11th nationally in assists. Holloway, who was only the second freshman in NCAA history to be a starting setter for a title team, totaled 13 double-doubles in 2006. She tallied a career-high 65 assists in the NCAA Regional title win over Minnesota.

Scouting The Ameritas Players Challenge
 The Huskers welcome another talented field to Lincoln for third edition of the the Ameritas Players Challenge.
Duke: The Blue Devils come to town with a 5-1 record and a No. 11 national ranking. Duke’s No. 11 ranking this week is its highest ranking in program history. The Blue Devils, who went 29-4 and reached the second round of last season’s NCAA Tournament, already have a win over then-No. 13 Purdue and took fourth-ranked USC to the limit before falling, 19-17 in game five. Senior Carrie DeMange paces the Blue Devil attack, averaging 4.86 kills and 2.76 digs per game. She is one of three starters averaging over three kills per contest. Setter Ali Hausfeld averages 13.48 assists and 1.14 kills per contests, while Jenny Stull paces Duke with 5.64 digs per game. All three players, as well as Jourdan Norman (2.18 kills and 1.32 blocks per game) were starters on Duke’s 2005 NCAA Tournament team that lost to Nebraska in the second round.
 Nebraska leads the all-time series, 4-1 and has won the last four meetings dating back to the 1994 season. 

Louisville: The Cardinals are 3-3 on the season and look to snap a three-match losing streak. Louisville, which went 25-6 before losing in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, traveled to Hawaii over the weekend and suffered losses to No. 5 UCLA, No. 16 Hawaii and No. 22 Kansas State. Middle blocker Jana Matiasovska was the Big East Co-Preseason Player of the Year and averages 3.90 kills per game. She is one of three Cardinal players with at least 2.50 kills per game.
 The Huskers have seen plenty of the Cardinals over the last four years, as NU traveled to Louisville for the 2004 NCAA Regional before the Cardinals trekked to Omaha for the 2005 NCAA Regional. Louisville has participated in one of NU’s non-conference tournaments in each of the last two years. Nebraska has won all five meetings in series history, inlcuding a 3-0 sweep last season.

New Mexico State: The Aggies of New Mexico State make their inaugural visit to the Nebraska Coliseum this weekend for the Ameritas Players Challenge. NMSU has won 30 matches in three of the past four seasons and tied NU for the national lead in wins in 2006 with 33. The Aggies finishes second in the Western Athletic Conference and fell to Colorado in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. NMSU is 6-1 on the season following a win over New Mexico on Tuesday, suffering their only loss to then-No. 6 Texas last weekend. Outside hitter Lindsey Yon paces the Aggies with 4.71 kills per game in her first season after transferring from Texas A&M.
 The only time the two teams have met came at the Cal State Fullerton Mikasa Preview in 1998, a four-game Husker win over the Aggies.

Holiday Inn Downtown Classic Rewind
Another week, another tournament title for the Big Red as Nebraska posted three sweeps, including victories over No. 3 Penn State and No. 17 Cal Poly. Sarah Pavan was selected as tournament MVP and was joined on the seven-member all-tournament team by Jordan Larson and Rachel Holloway.
 
 vs. Creighton (W, 3-0):  Sarah Pavan and Jordan Larson combined for 33 kills, lifting No. 1 Nebraska to a 30-23, 30-18, 30-26 in the home opener.  Pavan finished with a match-high 18 kills on .394 hitting and seven digs, while Larson totaled 15 kills on .345 hitting, four service aces, three blocks and eight digs.  Larson stepped up in the finale, delivering four kills and served the final four points to help NU close game three with a 5-0 run after falling behind 26-25.  Nebraska out-hit Creighton, .282-.125 and totaled 50 digs, including a team-high 12 by Rachel Holloway. The sophomore setter led NU in digs for the first time in her career and also chipped in 35 digs and a pair of aces en route to her second straight double-double.
 
 vs.  No. 3 Penn State (W, 3-0):  No. 1 Nebraska relied on a strong defensive performance and took advantage of a raucous crowd at Qwest Center Omaha, sweeping No. 3 Penn State, 30-20, 30-21, 30-27 in front of a crowd of 13,081 - the largest regular-season crowd in NCAA volleyball history.  The Huskers held Penn State to just .134 hitting, more than over .150 points below its season average. Nebraska received double-figure dig efforts from outside hitters Christina Houghtelling and Jordan Larson, who totaled 12 digs apiece, as well as libero Rachel Schwartz, who totaled a team-high 14 digs.   NU also held Penn State All-American outside hitters Nicole Fawcett and Megan Hodge in check for most of the match, as the duo combined for 21 kills on .081 hitting on 74 swings.  Four Huskers finished with at least 10 kills, including a match-high 12 from Sarah Pavan. NU’s left side attack of Larson and Houghtelling totaled 11 and 10 kills, respectively, while middle blocker Kori Cooper delivered 10 kills and a team-high four blocks.
 
 vs.  No. 17 Cal Poly (W, 3-0):  Top-ranked Nebraska turned in a complete performance in a 30-20, 30-19, 30-18 sweep of No. 17 Cal Poly.  The Huskers hit .393 as a team and held Cal Poly to just .120 hitting and out-digging the Mustangs, 55-44. Nebraska never trailed and had three players finish with at least 10 kills.   Sarah Pavan led a potent Husker offense with a match-high 17 kills on .483 hitting, while Christina Houghtelling (12 kills on .379 hitting and eight digs) and Jordan Larson (11 kills and 13 digs) joined Pavan in double figures. The Huskers also received strong performances from the middle blocking trio of Tracy Stalls, Kori Cooper and Amanda Gates, who combined for 17 kills on .600 hitting. Rachel Holloway joined Pavan and Larson as NU’s third all-tournament selection, dishing out 51 assists and adding seven digs to propel the Husker attack.

Two AVCA Players of the Year in the Same Lineup...Never Happened Before 2007
With Sarah Pavan winning the AVCA National Player-of-the-Year Award in 2006, Nebraska has now had four AVCA National Players of the Year, including three this decade.

With the return of 2005 AVCA National Player of the Year Christina Houghtelling to the lineup this year, the Huskers are the first team in NCAA volleyball history to field two former AVCA National Players of the Year on the court at one time.

Pavan and Houghtelling look to become only the fifth player in college volleyball history to win the AVCA honor more than once, joining Logan Tom (Stanford, 2001-02); Misty May (Long Beach State, 1997-98); Tara Cross (Long Beach State, 1988-89) and Teee Williams (Hawaii, 1987-89).

Nebraska Looks to Join Repeat Club
This fall, the Huskers will look to join an elite list, as only five programs have repeated as national champions. The most recent was USC, which took home back-to-back titles in both 2002 and 2003.

Nebraska at No. 1 - It’s a Record
Nebraska has now spent 74 weeks all-time at No. 1 in the AVCA poll, the most weeks at No. 1 of any Division I program. In all, 55 of the 74 weeks at No. 1 have come under Coach John Cook. Nebraska is one of two teams to be ranked in the AVCA Coaches poll for all 354 weeks of its existence. The Huskers have been ranked in the top 10 for 320 weeks, which trails only Stanford’s 324 weeks in the top 10. Dating back to the end of the 2004 season, Nebraska has played its last 78 matches as the nation’s No. 1 team, going an impressive 74-4 in that stretch.

Huskers Enjoy Home-Court Advantage
From Lincoln to Omaha to North Platte, Nebraska has enjoyed overwhelming support across the state. The Huskers have won their last 63 matches in the state, including matches in Omaha and North Platte, dating back to 2004.

With its three wins last weekend at the Holiday Inn Downtown Classic, the Huskers have extended their home-court win streak to 57 matches - the fifth-longest streak in NCAA history. Nebraska is the only program to have two win streaks among the top-five all-time.

A Harbinger of Things to Come?
Traditonally, the winner of the AVCA Showcase has fared well in the postseason, and the Huskers will look to continue that trend in 2007. Of the 12 previous winners, 10 have advanced to the NCAA National Semifinals, including five of the past six seasons. The two previous times NU won the showcase (2001 and 2005), the Huskers advanced to the NCAA Semifinals.

Pavan Leads Powerful Husker Attack
 Nebraska returns one of college volleyball’s most prolific players in right-side hitter Sarah Pavan. A three-time All-American, Pavan will look to become only the third player in NCAA history to become a four-time first-team All-American and has enjoyed an impressive start to the 2007 campaign.

• Garnered AVCA National Player of the Week for the second time in her career after averaging 5.57 kills per game on .382 hitting, 2.00 digs, 1.00 blocks and 0.43 service aces per game.
• Totaled 25 kills and 12 digs in NU’s victory over UCLA, the second-highest kill total of her career. Her 25 kills against the Bruins were NU’s third-highest total under John Cook. 
• Collected MVP honors at the Holiday Inn Players Challenge, averaging 5.33 kills and 2.11 digs per game in three victories, including sweeps over No. 3 Penn State and No. 17 Cal Poly.
• Finished with 17 kills on a season-high .483 hitting against Cal Poly.

In addition to her volleyball accomplishments, Pavan maintains a perfect 4.0 GPA in biochemisty and was the ESPN the Magazine Academic All-American of the Year in Division I in 2006-07.

Houghtelling Plays Like It’s 2005
After missing all of last season after shoulder surgery, it has not taken Christina Houghtelling long to get back into the swing of things. The senior from Cambridge averages 3.00 kills and is fourth in the Big 12 with 4.40 digs per game.

Houghtelling was the Big 12’s Defensive Player of the Week following the AVCA Showcase, averaging 5.00 digs and 0.86 blocks per game, highlighted by a career-high 23 digs in the Huskers victory over No. 5 UCLA. She has a pair of double-doubles and had her best offensive match of the year against Cal Poly on Sept. 3, delivering a season-high 12 kills on .379 hitting and eight digs.

Larson Provides All-Around Skills
While the Huskers return two AVCA National Players of the Year, Nebraska’s most valuable all-around performer could be junior outside hitter Jordan Larson. A first-team All-American in 2006, Larson is second on the team in both kills (3.81) and digs (3.62) while ranking among second in the Big 12 in service aces (0.56/game).
 Larson, who had 22 double-doubles last season, has picked the pace this season, recording three in the Huskers’ first five contests - all against ranked opponents. Larson now has 30 double-doubles during her Husker career.

The Set-Up on Holloway
Sophomore Rachel Holloway guides one of the most prolific offensive attacks in college volleyball. The sophomore earned All-America honors in 2006 and has os second in the Big 12 averaging 14.00 assists per game. She totaled a season-high 61 digs against fifth-ranked UCLA on Aug. 25 - one of two matches with at least 50 assists. Holloway has made strides in her defensive play as well, averaging over three digs per game this season.

Huskers Continue Big 12 Dominance 
Nebraska’s Big 12 title in 2006 continues one of the most successful runs in NCAA history. The Huskers have won nine Big 12 titles in the last 11 years and 28 Big Eight/Big 12 crowns in 31 years. Over the last decade, Nebraska is 206-14 in Big 12 matches, including 135-5 under Head Coach John Cook.

Nebraska: All-American U 
Nebraska continued its string of All-America success in 2006 with four Huskers earning AVCA All-America accolades.  Rachel Holloway, Jordan Larson, Sarah Pavan and Tracy Stalls were all selected, increasing Nebraska’s NCAA-leading totals to 29 players and 57 certificates, respectively. Nebraska has had at least one All-American every season since 1983, a total of 25 straight seasons, including 22 in Cook’s seven seasons.

Cook’s Winning Ways 
Nebraska Coach John Cook has been amazingly successful during his tenure, posting a 225-14 record (.941 winning percentage). All 14 losses have come against teams that advanced to the NCAA Tournament, including the eventual NCAA champion in 2001 (Stanford), 2002 (USC) and 2005 (Washington).

A two-time AVCA National Coach of the Year, Cook has enjoyed greater success in the Big 12, going 135-5 in conference play in his seven years at Nebraska. The Huskers have won six Big 12 titles over the last seven seasons (2000-02, 2004-06) and have dropped just 49 of the 463 conference games they have played over the past six years, good for an .894 winning percentage.

Nebraska Coliseum: Sold Out for 2007
Coming off a national title, it was no coincidence that interest in Nebraska volleyball is at an all-time high. When single-match tickets at the NU Coliseum went on sale on Aug. 1, they were scooped up in 45 minutes, insuring that Nebraska’s NCAA record streak of Coliseum sellouts would reach triple figures by the end of the year. Fans began camping out in front of the ticket office 16 hours before tickets went on sale. Prior to this season, the quickest NU had ever sold out its Coliseum matches was nine days.

The Huskers will carry a streak of 92 consecutive sellouts at the NU Coliseum into Friday’s match with Duke. The streak began with a 10-game stretch to close the 2001 campaign, and has carried over through the last five seasons. The last non-sellout came on Sept. 25, 2001, against Creighton.

Success in the Classroom
Nebraska continued to excel in the classroom in 2006, as Sarah Pavan was named the CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year, not only in volleyball, but in all sports in the University division. She became the second Husker student-athlete to ever receive this distinction and the first since former Husker Rob Zatechka in 1994.

The Huskers have had 29 academic All-Americans in volleyball, including at least one in 19 of the past 23 seasons. In July, Nebraska was also awarded the AVCA GamePlan Academic Team award for the 12th time, the most of any Division I program.

Pavan may meet her toughest test to repeat as Academic All-American of the Year from her own team NU’s starting lineup includes three senior All-Americans with GPAs of 3.90 or better in Sarah Pavan (4.00 in biochemistry), Tracy Stalls (3.946 in an individualized program of studies) and Christina Houghtelling (3.90 in elementary education).

Husker Recruiting Class Among Nations’ Best
Nebraska’s incoming class of freshmen is very well thought of around the country, as the class was ranked fifth nationally by both Volleyball Magazine and Prepvolleyball.com.

The group includes four Volleyball Magazine Fab 50 selections in Kayla Banwarth, Brooke Delano, Lindsey Licht, Tara Mueller along with walk-on Jordan Willberger. Licht enrolled in January and went through spring drills with the team.

Licht and Banwarth made their Husker debuts during the AVCA Showcase last weekend, while Mueller saw action against Creighton on Aug. 31.

Huskers Tabbed by Big 12 Coaches
Defending national champion Nebraska has been selected as the preseason favorite to win the Big 12 volleyball title for the 11th consecutive season in a vote of the league’s head coaches The Huskers received 10 of the possible 11 first-place votes while tallying 100 points overall. Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own teams.  Last season, NU earned its third NCAA title after going 33-1 overall and 19-1 against the league for its third straight Big 12 crown and ninth title in 11 years of Big 12 action.

 Right-side hitter Sarah Pavan, the 2006 AVCA Player of the Year, headlines a deep and talented Husker roster.  Four additional All-Americans will also be featured among the returning starters -- setter Rachel Holloway, outside hitters Christina Houghtelling and Jordan Larson and middle blocker Tracy Stalls.    In addition to those five All-Americans, the Huskers also feature three other players with starting experience from a year ago, including middle blockers Kori Cooper and Amanda Gates and defensive specialist Rachel Schwartz, who will move to libero this fall.

Texas was second behind NU with 91 points, including one first-place vote.  The Longhorns were followed by Missouri, Texas A&M and Colorado filling the top five spots.  Iowa State was sixth with Kansas State, Baylor, Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas Tech rounding out the poll. 
Nebraska also paced the conference with a Big 12 record five preseason All-Big 12 selections, including Holloway, Houghtelling, Larson, Pavan and Stalls.

Husker Volleyball and Team USA
Members of the Nebraska volleyball program had a busy summer representing USA Volleyball in competitions all over the world. 

• Senior middle blocker Tracy Stalls returned to the U.S. National team for the first time since 2004 and helped Team USA to a fourth-place finish at the Pan American Cup in Colima, Mexico. Stalls started the first three matches before suffering a slight knee injury that knocked her out of competition. In her three matches, she averaged 2.25 kills per game on .615 hitting, highlighted by 13 kills on 18 swings against Argentina and eight kills on 10 swings in a five-game match over the Dominican Republic.
• Freshman outside hitter Tara Mueller started for the U.S. Junior National Team in July at the Under-20 World Championships in Thailand, helping Team USA to a fourth-place finish. Mueller started all seven matches at libero, ranked third among all tournament players in digs with 36 and eighth in serve reception percentage. 
• Assistant Coach Lee Maes served as the Head Coach of the USA Junior National A2 Team, leading them to a perfect 5-0 record and a gold medal at the 2007 European Global Challenge in Pula, Croatia.

Tall Tales
According to research done by Rich Kern (www.richkern.com), Nebraska’s 2007 roster is the tallest in the country. The Huskers’ average height is 6-1.36, edging Stanford and Pepperdine (6-1)

Next Week
The Huskers open Big 12 Conference action next Wednesday, Sept. 12, when No. 7 Texas visits the NU Coliseum. First serve is set for 7 p.m.