Freshman Force, Sophomore Sensation + Trust = Glory

Nebraska Volleyball Championship Highlight Video

Nebraska Wins Fourth National Volleyball Title

Huskers’ Cohesive Volleyball Coaching Staff

NCAA: Fien's Kill a Memorable Final Swing

 Randy York N-Sider

Official Blog of the Huskers

Six days before Christmas, Nebraska got the greatest gift a Big Red heart can receive – the reason to believe. When John Cook's team finished its magic ride and reinforced its reputation as a state treasure, high-energy broadcaster John Baylor’s signature wrap-up best describes the state of the union for Husker volleyball: mission accomplished!

With four Nebraska NCAA volleyball championships (32-1 in 1995, 34-0 in 2000, 33-1 in 2006 and 32-4 in 2015) now in the vault, including three under Cook’s gritty guidance, how did this particular road to glory come to such a compelling conclusion? In my mind, the outcome goes beyond dreaming big and executing with courage and chemistry. I believe the two most pivotal players in the three-set sweep of Texas last Saturday night were two of the Huskers’ youngest – freshman force Mikaela Foecke and sophomore sensation Kelly Hunter.

Neither was among the three Huskers earning first-team (Kadie Rolfzen), second-team (Amber Rolfzen) or third-team (Justine Wong-Orantes) All-America honors. Neither delivered the final dagger in CenturyLink's championship match either. That honor belonged to Kelsey Fien, who carved her Nebraska tradition niche on the biggest stage in American volleyball history (17,561).

But who would have guessed that Foecke would finish with a championship match-high 19 kills? That explosive performance helped Foecke become the first freshman NCAA Final’s Most Outstanding Player Award winner since Penn State’s Deja McClendon in 2010. Let’s be honest, though. Foecke’s fire doesn’t light the torch without sophomore setter Kelly Hunter, who redshirted in 2014 before becoming the general on the court. Now's also a good time to remind fans that Nebraska did not experience a loss in November or December. After back-to-back 3-1 home-court losses to Minnesota and Wisconsin in late October, the Huskers won 16 staight matches under Hunter's steady guidance, true grit and unflappable leadership.

Cook Concentrates on Courage, Character, Chemistry and Camaraderie

Talk about dreaming big while wearing Destination Omaha tee-shirts as a constant reminder in their passionate pursuit of perfection. Only a team like Nebraska and a coach like Cook can be so brave and bold and emerge with gifted players perfectly willing to suppress personal goals in favor of team objectives. Such unselfishness reflects amazing leadership and incredible respect. Hunter was in charge of split-second analytics and overall distribution. She was, in effect, the catalyst for a young Nebraska team that – believe it or not – had lost five straight matches to Texas and, in fact, dropped nine of its last 10 meetings against the Longhorns.

Saturday night ended the drought. Hunter was one of four Huskers on the seven-player NCAA All-Tournament Team, joining outside hitter Foecke and fellow Huskers Amber Rolfzen (middle blocker) and Justine Wong-Orantes (libero). Yes, all four all-tournament selections return next season, along with Kadie Rolfzen.  The Huskers' only first-team All-American, Kadie obviously will do whatever's needed to win, the only stat that truly matters in any sport.

"What a great college volleyball environment! This is unbelieveable," Cook told Saturday's crowd. "Omaha's the greatest sports town in America, and they prove it over and over. You broke the all-time attendance record in America for volleyball. You guys are awesome! Thank you."

Celebrating a National Title and Special Commencement for Hall and Ostrander

Sunday afternoon, 3,000 Nebraska fans celebrated Nebraska’s remarkable championship run at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. Nebraska Director of Athletics Shawn Eichorst, a first-generation college graduate in his family, presented scholar-athlete rings to senior graduates Cecilia (CeeCee) Hall (Linkoping, Sweden) and Husker co-captain Alicia Ostrander (Gordon, Neb.). The championship match prevented both seniors from attending UNL's commencement.

A first-generation college graduate in his family, Cook appreciated Hall’s gumption, contributions and poise and praised Ostrander’s positive attitude and leadership throughout the season, even though she spent most of her time on the bench, cheering on and reinforcing her teammates.

Steady, Sure-Handed Hunter Enabled Cook to Rearrange the Huskers' Lineup

Credit Hunter for being the glue that held Nebraska together from the onset of the Huskers' three-set sweep to Fien's final magical moment. Diane Mendenhall, the Husker Sports Network's volleyball analyst who teams with Baylor, called Hunter's championship match performance "amazing", especially when she was forced to call and execute so many bump sets. "Kelly is so sure-handed, she can put balls anywhere, even when they're out-of-system," Mendenhall said. "I'm amazed at some of the balls she analyzes and then throws up."

Mendenhall is not alone. If Hunter had not been willing to redshirt a year before Nebraska changed and switched major gears in its fast-moving offense, 2015 probably would have been another season without a national title run, let alone a breakthrough championship. When the Huskers lost back-to-back games at home, Nebraska was so punchless that Cook decided to go for an extreme makeover almost two months into the season. "We changed everything," he told Husker fans on Sunday. "We changed an All-American left side into a new position.  We took a great right-side player and put her in the middle, and we moved our right side to the left (enabling a freshman to become the NCAA Finals MVP).

One person was responsible for Cook's daring move to reshuffle the deck and play with a dramatically changed lineup. Kelly Hunter's versatility became the extreme and her leadership enabled the makeover. Why? Two simple words – total trust. "Any great team or organization has to be built on trust," Cook said. "This decision was built on trust. Our players  trusted our coaches, and our coaches trusted our players. We could not have done it without Kelly Hunter. She taught me about the power of trust in yourself and the power of trust in your training."

Cook: The Greatest Feeling You Can Have in Coaching is Just Watching

"You know what? It's so freeing and rewarding for a coach, I just sat out there and watched it all go on Saturday night," Cook said. "I had so much trust in this team that they were going to get it done. It's the greatest feeling you can have in coaching. I couldn't be happier as a coach and I couldn't be happier for this young team."

The media tried to coax Cook to look through the new lens in his eyes and describe the Huskers' future possibilities. Smartly, Cook did not go there. After a season of Destination Omaha from start to finish, he wasn't ready to even think about a plan that might be tied to next year's Final Four in Columbus, Ohio, no less.

Big Red fans will never forget how the Huskers upset defending national champion Penn State (3-2) the first weekend in October, then lost (3-2) the next night at Ohio State. Cook deserves a week or two to sit back and reflect. Makes you wonder though when NCAA 2016 volleyball tickets will go on sale and how many Husker fans would be willing to buy right now.

Nebraska's 2015 National Champion Players and Coaches

Husker Fans Everywhere Can't Wait to See What's B1G in Cook's Next Dream

Happy New Year, John Cook, staff and student-athletes. I'm sure you already know your team will begin the 2016 season in the catbird seat, and every Husker volleyball follower, including me, can't wait to see what's B1G in your next dream. In the meantime, congratulations Huskers! You just proved once again that there's absolutely NO place like Nebraska!

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