Huskers Host No. 24 Ohio State Saturday Night

No. 10 Nebraska vs. No. 24 Ohio State • Saturday, Sept. 24 • NU Coliseum • 7 p.m.

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

Web Video: BTN.com

Live Stats: Huskers.com

The No. 10 Nebraska volleyball team welcomes the No. 24 Ohio State Buckeyes to the NU Coliseum on Saturday, Sept. 24 at 7 p.m., in a match that will be carried live on NET and can also be seen on BTN.com.

Nebraska (8-1) is fresh off a thrilling 3-2 win over No. 5 Penn State on Wednesday night. The Huskers opened the conference schedule with a bang by topping the Nittany Lions in front of a roaring NU Coliseum. Penn State could not overcome a dramatic effort by NU to win their inaugural Big Ten Conference match. The Buckeyes take on Iowa on Friday, Sept. 23 in Iowa City before facing the Huskers. 

Nebraska will honor a Husker legend on Saturday as Nancy Metcalf's jersey will be retired during the match. Metcalf will become just the seventh former volleyball player to have her jersey retired at NU. She is remembered as one of the best players in Nebraska volleyball history as she was just the second three-time AVCA First-Team All-American at Nebraska and played for the United States in the 2004 Olympics.

Ohio State and Nebraska have met 10 times, with Nebraska leading the series 7-3. The last time the two schools met was on Sept. 2, 2005 when Nebraska swept the Buckeyes 3-0 (30-15, 30-19, 30-17).

Fans can listen to all of the action with John Baylor and Diane Mendenhall on the 25-station Husker Sports Network, including B107.3 FM in Lincoln and Twister 93.3 FM in Omaha. Fans outside the state will also be able to catch the live audio feed for free on Huskers.com.

Getting to Know the Buckeyes

Location: Columbus, Ohio

Enrollment: 56,064

Nickname: Buckeyes

Colors: Scarlet and Gray

Head Coach: Geoff Carlston (Minnesota '93)

Record at School: 61-42 (3 years

Overall Record: 254-106

Asst. Coaches: Jayme Gergen, Don Gromala

2010 Record: 24-12

2010 Big Ten Record: 10-10 (6th)

2010 Postseason: NCAA Regional Semifinalist

2010 Final Ranking: 19th

Letterwinners R/L: 8-7

Starters R/L: 2+1/4

Series Record: Nebraska leads, 7-3

Last Meeting: NU won, 3-0 (9/2/05)

Last NU Win: 9/2/05

Last NU Loss: 12/14/91

Longest NU Winning Streak: 5

Current NU Winning Streak: 5

Two sets: 0-2

Three sets: 6-0

Four sets: 1-1

All-Time Nebraska/Ohio State Series (NU Leads 7-3)

Dec. 8, 1978           L, 2-15, 14-16

Oct. 18, 1980          L, 13-15, 10-15

Nov. 24, 1984         W, 15-13, 15-11, 15-7

Sept. 8, 1990          W, 15-9, 8-15, 16-14, 15-9

Dec. 14, 1991         L, 15-9, 9-15, 16-17, 7-15

Sept. 12, 1992         W, 15-12, 15-8, 15-2

Sept. 13, 1997         W, 15-5, 15-13, 15-11

Sept. 12, 1998         W, 15-8, 15-3, 15-10

Dec. 8, 2000           W, 15-9, 15-6, 15-5

Sept. 2, 2005          W, 30-15, 30-19, 30-17

Scouting the Ohio State Buckeyes

• The Buckeyes are 10-3 on the year, heading into a weekend where they face Iowa on Friday, Sept. 23 and Nebraska on Saturday, Sept. 24.
• Ohio State enters the weekend with a six match winning streak, with three wins that came at the Ohio State Sports Imports Classic against Albany (3-1), Akron (3-0) and Maryland (3-1).
• Junior outside hitter Mari Hole was named the Sports Imports Classic All-Tournament MVP and leads the Buckeyes in points per set at 4.98. Junior outside hitter Emily Danks ranks second at 4.83 with senior middle blocker Kelli Barhorst third at 3.11.
• At setter, freshman Taylor Sherwin is averaging 11.06 assists per set with junior Amanda Peterson at 9.00.
• Danks leads the squad in aces per set at .57 and 26 so far in 2011. Hole and Sarah Mignin each are averaging .24 aces per set and a total of 11 each for the season.
• Defensively, Mignin has a team-high 5.17 digs per set average. Hole ranks second at 2.39 with freshman libero Alyssa Winner third at 2.07.
• At the net, Barhorst leads the team with a 1.15 blocks per set average with 11 solos and 42 assists. Freshman middle blocker Anna Faul ranks second at .96 with a solo and 23 assists.
• Ohio State is averaging 18.75 points, 15.04 kills and 13.98 assists per set while hitting .249. OSU is averaging 1.26 aces, 16.57 digs and 2.45 blocks per set and has a .967 serve reception percentage.
• With eight ace serves last weekend and a total of 143, Danks has moved to seventh on the Ohio State career ace list.
• Barhorst has moved to 13th in Ohio State career solo blocks with 50. Barhost has 281 assists blocks and ranks 10th on the all-time list.

The Last Time Nebraska and Ohio State Met (Sept. 2, 2005)

Columbus, Ohio - Behind a career-high 12 blocks from All-American Sarah Pavan, then-No. 1 Nebraska improved to 3-0 on the season with a dominant 30-15, 30-19, 30-17 sweep of then-No. 12 Ohio State.

Pavan, who easily topped her career high of nine blocks against Texas last November, totaled 12 blocks, the highest blocking total by a Husker in the last two seasons, helping NU hold a commanding 15.5-3 advantage in that category. She also added nine kills, three aces and five digs in the win.

Fellow All-American Melissa Elmer chipped in a season-high 11 blocks and eight kills, as NU held OSU, which ranked third nationally in team hitting in 2004, to just .091 hitting, including .000 in both the first and third games.

Scouting the Huskers

• Nebraska is 8-1 in 2011 and enters Saturday night's match ranked No. 10 in the latest AVCA Coaches Poll.
• The Huskers are 8-0 this season when holding opponents below .200 hitting. Nebraska is 0-1 when opposing teams hit above .200.
• Nebraska has totaled double-digit blocks in five matches this season, including a season-high 16.5 blocks against New Mexico State.
• The Huskers tallied a season-low six errors against Albany on Sept. 3. The last time NU had six errors or less in a match was against Sacred Heart on Dec. 2, 2010.
• As of Sept. 18, Nebraska ranks first in the Big Ten in opponent hitting percentage at .102. The Huskers are seventh in hitting percentage (.274), eighth in assists (12.63), third in blocks (2.82), ninth in kills (13.50), 12th in service aces (0.90) and seventh in digs (14.23).
• As of Sept. 18, Hayley Thramer is first in the Big Ten in blocks (1.65), while Jordan Wilberger is third (1.50) and Morgan Broekhuis is ninth (1.23). Brooke Delano ranks eighth in hitting percentage (.379), and Gina Mancuso is ninth in points (4.28) and eighth in kills (3.87). Lauren Cook is seventh in assists with 10.97, and Lara Dykstra is ninth in digs (3.73).
• Gina Mancuso has 138 kills so far in 2011, averaging 3.94 per set.
• Morgan Broekhuis is also averaging more than three kills per set (3.00), as she has a total of 105 kills in her sophomore season.
• Lara Dykstra has 119 digs so far in her freshman campaign, averaging 3.40 per set.
• Lauren Cook has totaled 382 assists in 2011, averaging 10.91 per set. Her efforts have led NU to a .268 hitting percentage on the season.
• Under Head Coach John Cook, the Huskers improved to 310-9 when winning the first set of the match after their win over Penn State on Sept. 21.
• Three Huskers have combined for eight double-doubles in 2011, with Mancuso tallying five, Broekhuis tabbing two and Werth notching one of her own.

Gina Mancuso  |  2011 (5)  |  NU Career (5), All (5)

Opponent (Date)                       K          A          D          B

New Mexico State (Aug. 26)       16         0          14         2

Creighton (Sept. 8)                    12         0          10         1

Saint Mary's (Sept. 9)                15         1          11         3

Iowa State (Sept. 17)                 14         0          11         1

Penn State (Sept. 21)                22         0          10         2

Hannah Werth |  2011 (1)  |  NU Career (23), All (23)

Opponent (Date)                       K          A          D          B

Colorado State (Sept. 2)            12         0          15         1

Morgan Broekhuis |  2011 (2)  |  NU Career (2), All (2)

Opponent (Date)           K          A          D                      B

Iowa State (Sept. 17)     11         2          10         4

Penn State (Sept. 21)    12         4          11         4

• Three Huskers average more than a block a set, including Broekhuis (1.17), Wilberger (1.41) and Thramer (1.64).

Tough Tests

With the visit by No. 24 Ohio State this week, Nebraska will be taking on its fourth top-25 team this season.

The Huskers hold a 2-1 record against top-25 teams, losing to then-No. 15 Colorado State on Sept. 2 in five sets in Fort Collins, Colo., but notching a thrilling 3-2 victory over No. 5 Penn State on Sept. 21.

Hot in September

Historically, the Huskers' two best months are September (293-26) and November (214-18), as they have all-time winning percentages of .918 and .922, respectively. NU has lost only five matches in September since 2004, including none from 2005-08.

After five wins so far in September, the Huskers are 116-8 in the month under Head Coach John Cook. 

Cook Reaches 500

With the Huskers' win over Albany on Sept. 3, Head Coach John Cook tallied his 500th win as a head coach.

No Place Like Nebraska

Nebraska celebrated a streak of 150 consecutive sellouts at the NU Coliseum on Sept. 8. It is the longest sellout streak across all NCAA women's athletics. The Huskers averaged 4,632 fans per home contest last season. As of Sept. 22, Nebraska ranks third in current home win streaks with 27.

Small Membership

Lara Dykstra became just the seventh true freshman to start a season opener during Head Coach John Cook's era at Nebraska. Sophomore Morgan Broekhuis was the last Husker to do so in 2010.

Dykstra Digging

Through the first nine matches of her collegiate career, freshman Lara Dykstra has totaled 119 digs and has averaged 3.40 digs per set. Her 28 digs against New Mexico State ranked ninth in Nebraska volleyball single-match performances and were the highest total by a Husker since 2009.

Thramer Makes Impact

Sophomore Hayley Thramer made her first career start at New Mexico on Aug. 27. She tabbed eight blocks against New Mexico State and three against New Mexico. She notched another eight blocks against Penn State on Sept. 21. She currently ranks first in the Big Ten in blocks, averaging 1.65 per set.

Volleyball Blackshirts

Nebraska kept Albany at a .038 hitting percentage for the match, including a .075 percentage in set two and -.079 in set three. The Huskers held Creighton to a .053 hitting percentage on Sept. 8,Weber State to a .071 hitting percentage on Sept. 10 and Iowa State to a .087 hitting percentage on Sept. 17. The Huskers held Penn State to a .182 hitting percentage on Sept. 21.

Holding Their Own

As of Sept. 18, the Huskers rank seventh in the Big Ten in hitting percentage (.274), eighth in assists (12.63), third in blocks (2.82), seventh in digs (14.23), first in opponent hitting percentage (.102), ninth in kills (13.50) and 12th in aces (0.90).

Broekhuis Breakout

Morgan Broekhuis recorded the first double-double of her career against Iowa State on Sept. 17, with 11 kills and 10 digs. She notched another double-double against Penn State with 12 kills and 11 digs. Broekhuis has 105 kills for the Huskers in 2011, with a hitting percentage of .260.

Mancuso Paving Her Way

Gina Mancuso has notched five double-doubles so far in 2011, most recently against Penn State on Sept. 21. She tallied 22 kills and 10 digs to lead NU in topping the Nittany Lions. Mancuso leads all Nebraska hitters with 138 kills in 2011.

Map to Success

Nebraska has eight players on its 2011 roster who were Volleyball Magazine Fab 50 selections, representing the top 50 players in that year's recruiting class. Five of the Huskers' last seven recruiting classes have ranked in the top five nationally, including the 2009 class that was ranked second by Prepvolleyball.com.

Volleyball Magazine Fab 50 Members

Year       Players

2008       Allison McNeal

2009       Gina Mancuso, Hannah Werth, Hayley Thramer, Lauren Cook

2010       Morgan Broekhuis

2011       Lara Dykstra, Taylor Simpson

The Home for All-Americans

Nebraska continued its string of All-America success in 2010, as Brooke Delano, Lindsey Licht and Hannah Werth were named AVCA All-Americans. The trio upped Nebraska's NCAA-leading totals to 34 players and 70 certificates. Nebraska has had at least one All-American every season since 1983, a total of 29 straight seasons, including 35 All-America awards in Cook's 11 years at Nebraska.

AVCA All-America Certificates

No.        School     Awards

1.          Nebraska 70

2.          Stanford    65

3.          Penn State             51

4.          Hawaii                 50

5.          UCLA                  41

Pre-Season All-Conference Picks

The Huskers were picked to finish in a tie for second in the Big Ten preseason coaches' poll. The Huskers also had three players picked to the preseason All-Big Ten list. Unanimous selection senior Brooke Delano was joined by juniors Lauren Cook and Hannah Werth.