Huskers Trek to ISU this Weekend

No. 2 Nebraska (22-1, 14-1 Big 12)
at Iowa State (15-10, 9-6 Big 12)

Sun., Nov. 11 ? Ames, Iowa (Hilton Coliseum) ? 4 p.m.

Television:  None

Radio: Husker Sports Network, including B107.3 FM in Lincoln and KHUS 93.3 FM in Omaha, and on Huskers.com

Video: HuskersNside (subscription required)

Live Stats: Huskers.com

The Nebraska volleyball team begins a road trip this weekend, as the Huskers travel to Ames, Iowa, for a matchup with the Iowa State Cyclones. First serve from Hilton Coliseum is set for 4 p.m. on Sunday and the match will be carried on the Husker Sports Network, including B107.3 FM in Lincoln, KHUS 93.3 FM in Omaha, and on the Internet at Huskers.com. Live stats will be available with a live video feed carried on HuskersNside.

The No. 2 Huskers (22-1, 14-1 Big 12) extended their win streak to three matches with a three-game sweep of Colorado on Wednesday night. The Huskers hit .388 as a team and received double-doubles from Jordan Larson (17 kills, 17 digs), Sarah Pavan (12 kills, 10 digs) and Christina Houghtelling (11 kills, 16 digs). Rachel Holloway dished out 47 assists and helped all five attackers hit above .350 in the win, including middle blockers Kori Cooper (nine kills on .500 hitting) and Tracy Stalls (nine kills on .471 hitting). NU also performed well on defense, holding the Buffaloes to .129 hitting and just .038 hitting over the final two games.

Iowa State (15-10, 9-6 Big 12) comes off a big 3-2 victory over Baylor Wednesday night in Ames. The Cyclones, who have lost at home just once in Big 12 action, placed four players in double figures in kills, including a match-high 22 from Lauren Cummings, while Victoria Henson totaled 18 kills and five blocks in the win. Middle blocker Erin Boeve nearly put together a triple-double against the Bears, finishing with 12 kills, 12 digs and a team-high eight blocks. ISU totaled 102 digs in the match, including 29 from Ashley Mass and 19 from Kaylee Manns, who also added 70 assists and six stuffs.

NU Volleyball Quick Hits
?-Nebraska’s four academic all-district picks equals the highest number of selections in school history (also 2006, 2002 and 2001).
?-Nebraska’s five-game wins over Missouri and Kansas State last week marked the first time the Huskers have won consecutive five-game matches since the 1998 NCAA Tournament (Pepperdine & Wisconsin).
?-After her 31 kills against K-State, Sarah Pavan is the fifth Husker to record multiple 30-kill matches in a career, joining Nancy Metcalf (6); Allison Weston (5); Lisa Reitsma (4) and
Kathi DeBoer (2).
?-Christina Houghtelling is averaging 4.92 digs per game over her last three contests, including a career-high 26 digs at K-State on Nov. 3

Scouting Iowa State
 Former Husker great Christy Johnson has Iowa State   looking to make consecutive NCAA appearances for the first time in school history. The Cyclones are 15-10 on the season and have rebounded nicely after a 1-4 start.

ISU is led by senior middle blocker Erin Boeve, who averages a team-best 3.72 kills per game along with 1.34 blocks and 2.02 digs per game. Sophomore setter Kaylee Manns guides the Cyclone attack and is fifth in the Big 12 with 12.57 assists per game, while also totaling 3.02 digs per contest. ISU has five players averaging better than 2.46 kills per game, while the Cyclones are averaging 18.48 digs per game in league play.

The Huskers have owned the all-time series with the Cyclones, winning all 71 matches dating back to 1975. The Huskers went 24 meetings between 1994 and 2006 without dropping a game to ISU, before the Cyclones took game two last season in Ames. The only time the teams have gone five games came in 1989.

Last Time vs. Iowa State
Behind a match-high 18 kills from Sarah Pavan, the top-ranked Nebraska volleyball team held off a game Iowa State squad, 33-31, 30-19, 30-20 in the first matchup on Oct. 10.

Pavan ht .351 on 36 swings and added nine digs to lead three Huskers with at least 10 kills in the sweep. Christina Houghtelling totaled 12 kills on .391 hitting and 10 digs for her fifth double-double of the year, while All-American Jordan Larson totaled 11 kills and a team-high 13 digs for her eighth double-double of the year. The victory was Nebraska’s 64th consecutive home win, breaking the school record of 63 established between 1999 and 2002, and the Huskers’ 25th straight triumph overall dating back to last November.

The Huskers were given a stern test by the Cyclones. ISU held NU to .271 hitting, snapping a streak of 11 straight matches over .300, while out-digging NU, 54-51.

Worth Noting
?-Iowa State Coach Christy Johnson was an assistant under NU Coach John Cook during the 1997 and 1998 seasons at Wisconsin, helping the Badgers to a 60-8 record and a Big Ten co-championship in 1997.
?-Johnson was a two-time All-American setter at Nebraska and holds the top-two single-season assist averages in school history. In fact, NU setter Rachel Holloways average of 13.92 assists per game is the highest by a Husker since Johnson’s junior season in 1994.
?-Sunday’s match will be a homecoming for freshman Kayla Banwarth. She hails from Dubuque, which is 150 miles away from Ames. Banwarth has seen time at libero and as a serving and defensive specialist this season and had four digs during game three against Colorado.
?-The Huskers have reached the 20-win plateau for the 33rd consecutive season. The next longest active streak of 20-win seasons by a Big 12 school is three by Texas (2004-06).
?-The Huskers are 77-3 (.963) in their last 79 Big 12 Conference matches dating back to the 2003 season.
?-Nebraska is 73-4 (.948) on the road in Big 12 action in eight seasons under Coach John Cook.
?-Nebraska is 13-11 all-time when a player totals at least 30 kills, and last Saturday’s win at Kansas State was the first time since 1998 when the Huskers won a match after a player totaled 30 kills. It snapped a four-match losing streak dating back to 1999.
?-Sarah Pavan’s 31-kill night at KSU was also the 25th time a player had reached 30 kills in a match, as two Huskers (Janet Kruse and Eileen Shannon) both totaled 32 kills in a win against Kentucky in 1989.
?-Nebraska has a 118-6 (.951) record since the start of the 2004 season.
?-Nebraska is 187-17 (.917) in November since 1983 and has not lost more than one match in the month since 1993.
?-NU’s non-conference opponents are a combined 144-51 (.738) with six of the eight opponents in the top 25 nationally this week.
?-Rachel Holloway’s 72 assists at Kansas were the most by a Husker player in the rally-scoring era (2001-present) and the most since Fiona Nepo had 76 against Texas A&M on Oct. 18, 1998.
?-The Huskers are ranked first in the NCAA’s most recent RPI rankings released Wednesday. This is the second year the NCAA has released its RPI data during the year.

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 and ranks third nationally in hitting percentage (.447), averaging 2.69 kills and 1.12 blocks per game. She has been in double figures in kills in four of the last seven matches, including a 15-kill, nine-block performance at No. 12 Kansas State on Nov. 3. She hit .480 on 25 swings against the Wildcats in reaching double figures in kills for the sixth time this season. Stalls led the team in kills against No. 11 Hawaii with 13 kills on 23 swings and a pair of blocks on Oct. 21. She enjoyed one of her best matches at Missouri on Oct. 17, totaling 15 kills on .737 hitting and six blocks.  Stalls had 10 kills on .600 hitting and five stuffs vs. Texas Tech on Sept. 15. She totaled seven kills on .462 hitting and three blocks in a sweep of No. 7 Texas on Sept. 12. She was named to the Ameritas Players Challenge All-Tournament team, averaging 3.00 kills per game on .654 hitting. Stalls hit over .600 in both matches, including a season-best .692 (9-0-13) against New Mexico State. She had 16 kills on .640 hitting and four blocks in a win over No. 5 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). 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 - Two-year starter who has enjoyed a breakout 2007 campaign. Cooper is fourth in the league in hitting percentage (.376), averaging 2.48 kills and 1.03 blocks per game. Cooper has been in double figures six times and had a career-high 14 kills on .385 hitting against Missouri on Oct. 31. She totaled 11 kills on .688 hitting and a season-high seven blocks against No. 17 Kansas State on Oct. 3. Her previous season high in kills was 12 on .706 hitting and four blocks against Baylor on Sept. 29. Cooper had 11 kills and five blocks at Texas Tech on Sept. 15, and drilled nine kills on .692 hitting with three stuffs versus No. 7 Texas on Sept. 12. 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. 

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 in fall camp. Schwartz ranks ninth in the Big 12 with 3.90 digs per game, setting a career high with 21 digs against Missouri on Oct. 31. Prior to that, her previous high was 17 digs against fifth-ranked UCLA on Aug. 25, and against No. 17 Cal Poly on Sept. 3. Schwartz has been in double figures in digs in 14 of her last 16 matches, including 16 digs and a pair of aces at No. 12 Kansas State on Nov. 3, and 15 digs against No. 25 Oklahoma on Oct. 13. She had a 16-dig effort against Texas A&M on Sept. 22. Schwartz totaled 10 digs and matched her career high with three service aces at Texas Tech on Sept. 15. Schwartz started 29 matches as NU’s defensive specialist in 2006, averaging 2.41 digs, 0.23 aces and 0.30 assists per game.

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. She is on pace to become just the fourth player in NCAA history to be a four-time first-team All-American. This season, Pavan averages 4.91 kills, 1.88 digs and 0.43 service aces per game, ranking first in the Big 12 in kills, aces and points per game (5.76). Pavan has five double-doubles, including one in each of her last three matches. She was named Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week on Nov. 5, averaging 5.30 kills on .363 hitting, 2.40 digs and 5.95 points per game in a pair of wins. Pavan had 31 kills - the most by a Husker since 2004 - and 10 digs in NU’s comeback at K-State on Nov. 3. She totaled a match-high 22 kills and 14 digs against Missouri on Oct. 31. Pavan became NU’s all-time kills leader against Kansas on Oct. 20, as she totaled 17 kills on .406 hitting against the Jayhawks. Pavan now has 1,873 career kills, eclipsing the previous mark of 1,778 by Allison Weston from 1992 to 1995.  Pavan totaled a match-high 18 kills on .516 hitting and four blocks at Missouri on Oct. 13. She totaled a match-high 16 kills on .351 hitting and two blocks against No. 25 Oklahoma on Oct. 13. Pavan led NU with 18 kills on .361 hitting and nine digs in a sweep of Iowa State on Oct. 10. She totaled a match-high 16 kills on .364 hitting and five blocks in NU’s sweep of No. 17 Kansas State on Oct. 3.  Pavan collected her second double-double of the year against Texas A&M on Sept. 22, totaling 12 kills and 10 digs.  She led NU to a sweep of No. 7 Texas on Sept. 12, delivering a team-high 17 kills on .520 hitting. Pavan was selected as the MVP of both the AVCA Showcase and the Holiday Inn Downtown Classic. She was 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 National 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. She also 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. Pavan declined an opportunity to play with the Canadian team this summer to take an upper-level chemistry class so she can graduate in May. She made her Canadian National Team debut at age 16.

OH - #10 Jordan Larson: 6-2, Jr., Hooper, Neb. - Larson is a returning first-team AVCA All-American and one of the nation’s premier outside hitters. She averages 3.50 kills, 3.46 digs and 0.42 service aces per game, ranking second in the league in aces, ninth in points per game (4.30) and 10th in kills. Larson, who has 10 double-doubles this year,  had one of her best matches of the year on Wednesday against Colorado with 17 kills and 17 digs while hitting .414. She went over the 1,000-kill plateau for her career against Missouri with a season-high 17 kills and 16 digs on Oct. 31.  Larson was named the Big 12’s Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 22, after leading NU with 18 digs against Missouri on Oct. 17 and 15 digs versus No. 11 Hawaii on Oct. 21. Larson has a team-high nine double-doubles, including 13 kills, 14 digs, five blocks and three aces at Colorado on Oct. 6. She had 17 kills, 11 digs and three aces at KU on Sept. 26, and a 15-kill, 10-dig effort against Texas A&M on Sept. 22.  She earned all-tourney honors at the AVCA Showcase and the Holiday Inn Downtown Classic. Larson recorded a season-high 16 kills and 14 digs against No. 11 Duke on Sept. 7. Larson had 11 kills, 15 digs and a season-high five blocks against No. 5 UCLA on Aug. 25. 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. 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.

OH - #3 Christina Houghtelling: 6-2, Sr., Cambridge, Neb. - Houghtelling has returned to her 2005 form after missing all of last season following shoulder surgery. She leads all Big 12 outside hitters in digs (3.97 dpg), while averaging 3.25 kills per game on .316 hitting. She is second on the team with eight double-doubles, as she totaled 11 kills and 16 digs against Colorado on Nov. 7. Houghtelling finished with 14 kills and 22 digs against Missouri on Oct. 17. She totaled a career-high 26 digs, four blocks and seven kills in NU’s win at Kansas State on Nov. 3. Houghtelling also had 14 kills and a match-high 19 digs at No. 25 Oklahoma on Oct. 13. She totaled a season-best 19 kills on .410 hitting and 11 digs in a sweep at Colorado on Oct. 6. Houghtelling was the MVP of the Ameritas Players Challenge, hitting .535 and averaging 4.17 kills, 3.00 digs and 0.67 blocks per game. She recorded a then-season high 15 kills on .519 hitting and nine digs in the sweep of New Mexico State. Houghtelling had 12 kills and hit .379 against No. 17 Cal Poly. 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. 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 guides one of the most prolific offensive attacks in college volleyball, piloting an offense that leads the country in kills and assists per game and ranks third in hitting percentage. The second-team All-American in 2006 is seventh nationally in assists per game (13.92) and also averages 2.30 digs and 0.95 kills per game.  Nebraska has hit .300 or better 18 times in 23 matches, including .400 or better on four occasions. Holloway turned in an exceptional effort at No. 12 Kansas State, totaling a career-high 72 assists, six blocks and 13 digs for her fourth double-double of the year. It came on the heels of a 64-assist, 13-dig, seven-kill performance against Missouri on Oct. 31. Holloway totaled 55 assists - the most in a three-game match by a Husker since 1998 - in guiding NU to a .458 hitting percentage at Missouri on Oct. 17. Holloway totaled 50 assists and three blocks in NU’s sweep of Colorado on Oct. 6, and had 43 assists and eight digs against No. 17 K-State on Oct. 3. She totaled 39 assists, three aces and six digs against Baylor on Sept. 29, as Nebraska hit .500 as a team. She played one of the best matches of her career vs. No. 7 Texas on Sept. 11, dishing out 39 assists, as NU hit .400 as a team while adding six kills and six digs.  She has two double-doubles on the year - a 35-assist, 12-dig outing against Creighton on Aug. 31, and a 61-assist, 16-dig effort against No. 5 UCLA on Aug. 25. Holloway was a third-team All-American in 2006, averaging 13.43 assists, 2.49 digs and 1.11 kills per game, finishing 11th nationally in assists. Holloway became only the second freshman in NCAA history to be a starting setter for a title team.

Last Match: Huskers Sweep Buffs
Jordan Larson’s 17 kills and 17 digs led three Husker double-doubles, as No. 2 Nebraska rolled past Colorado, 30-17, 30-22, 30-20, on Nov. 7

Larson paced a blistering NU attack, hitting .414 on 29 swings, as she matched her season best in kills and fell one shy of a season high in digs en route to posting her team-best 10th double-double. It was also the first time in 12 matches that Larson paced NU (22-1, 14-1 Big 12) in kills, while she also chipped in a pair of aces in the win.

Fellow outside hitters Christina Houghtelling and Sarah Pavan joined Larson in posting double-doubles against the Buffaloes. Houghtelling totaled 11 kills on .421 hitting and 16 digs, while Pavan chipped in 12 kills, 10 digs and four blocks.  Rachel Holloway guided the Huskers to a .388 hitting percentage ? their best effort in over a month, as she totaled 47 assists and helped all five primary attackers hit over .350 in NU’s 19th sweep of the year.

While NU’s offensive effort was sharp, NU Coach John Cook was more pleased with the Huskers’ work on the defensive side of the net, recording 62 digs and holding CU to .129 hitting.