Huskers Open NCAA Tournament With Harvard

Friday, Dec. 4	WATCH	WATCH	LISTEN	FOLLOW
Wichita State vs. Kansas State		Free Video		Live Stats
Nebraska vs. Harvard	BTN2GO	Free Video	Free Audio	Live Stats
Saturday, Dec. 5
Nebraska vs. Wichita State	BTN2GO (TBD)	Free Video	Free Audio	Live Stats

• For the 12th straight year, the Nebraska volleyball team will open the NCAA Tournament at home, as the Bob Devaney Sports Center was chosen as one of the 16 host sites for the NCAA first and second rounds this weekend. 

• The Huskers, making their 34th straight NCAA Tournament appearance, were selected as the No. 4 overall seed in the 64-team field.
• Nebraska will open the tournament on Friday, Dec. 4 against the Harvard Crimson (15-10), the first-ever meeting between the teams. It also marks Harvard’s first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance.
• The match will start at either 7 p.m. (no sooner) or 30 minutes after the conclusion of the 4:30 p.m. match, which features the Kansas State Wildcats (17-11) of the Big 12 Conference and the Wichita State Shockers (26-8) of the Missouri Valley Conference. Friday’s winners will meet in the second round on Saturday at 7 p.m.
• Any match involving the Huskers will be televised on NET and streamed at BTN2GO.com. All three matches will have a free video stream on Huskers.com. John Baylor and Diane Mendenhall will have the radio call on Husker Sports Network (107.3 FM in Lincoln and 105.9 FM in Omaha, and AM590 in Omaha if the Huskers play on Saturday). A free live audio stream and live stats are available at Huskers.com.
• All-session tickets for the first and second rounds in Lincoln went on sale Monday at 8 a.m. Tickets are available online at Huskers.com, by calling Nebraska Athletics Development and Ticketing at 800-8-BIGRED, or by visiting Nebraska Athletics Development and Ticketing in person after 8 a.m. All-session ticket prices are set at $34 (reserved A and B levels) and $30 (C level). Student all-session tickets are just $5. As of Wednesday evening, fewer than 100 tickets for the weekend remained.

HUSKERS AT A GLANCE
• Nebraska finished the regular season 26-4 and 17-3 in the Big Ten. It’s their most regular-season wins since 2010 and matches their most Big Ten wins since joining the conference in 2011.
• The Huskers have won 10 straight matches entering the NCAA Tournament, their longest win streak since the 2011 season.
• Nebraska finished the regular season with a 3-0 sweep of Penn State, its first sweep of the Nittany Lions since 2007 and second win over PSU this season. Penn State dropped both matches in a Big Ten season series for just the second time since 2002.
• Nebraska led all Big Ten teams with a 14.33 kills per set and 15.70 digs per set average during the regular season.
• The Huskers hit .271 as a team and held opponents to .168 on the season, ranking second and third, respectively, in the conference. It was Nebraska’s best opponent hitting percentage since 2011 (.145).
• Nebraska turned up its defensive play in Big Ten action, averaging 2.94 blocks per set to rank second in the conference.

SERIES HISTORY
• Nebraska has never played Harvard.
• Nebraska is 82-4 all-time against Kansas State, the last meeting a 3-2 upset by KSU in the NCAA Tournament second round in Lincoln.
• Nebraska is 11-0 all-time against Wichita State, and all 11 have been sweeps. The last meeting was the NCAA Tournament second round in Lincoln in 2007.

UP NEXT
The winner of Saturday’s second-round match will advance to the Lexington (Kentucky) Regional. Other seeded teams in that regional include: No. 5 Washington, No. 12 Ohio State and No. 13 BYU. The Lexington Regional could potentially be a reunion of sorts should the top seeds win, as Nebraska, Washington and BYU were all paired together in the Seattle Regional last year.

ABOUT THE HUSKERS
• Two-time All-American Kadie Rolfzen is putting up a team-best 3.23 kills per set along with 2.74 digs per set. The junior outside hitter earned her third career All-Big Ten honor as a unanimous selection.
• Junior libero Justine Wong-Orantes averages 4.43 digs per set and was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and honorable-mention All-Big Ten. Wong-Orantes averaged 4.57 digs per set in conference matches to rank second in the Big Ten.
• All-Big Ten middle blocker Amber Rolfzen leads the team with 136 blocks. Her 1.59 blocks per set ranks first in the Big Ten and fifth nationally, and her block average is the best by a Husker since Melissa Elmer’s school-record 2.17 in 2005.
• True freshman outside hitter Mikaela Foecke averages 3.00 kills per set and was a unanimous Big Ten All-Freshman Team selection.
• Setter Kelly Hunter guides the Husker attack with 11.36 assists per set and was a two-time Big Ten Setter of the Week.
• Outside hitter Kelsey Fien, an All-Big Ten performer in 2014, is averaging 2.61 kills per set.
• Senior middle blocker Cecilia Hall is putting up 1.69 kills per set and 1.07 blocks per set on the season.
• Sophomore Annika Albrecht has a team-leading 38 service aces. She served six aces in a three-set win over Rutgers on Oct. 30, one shy of the school record for aces in a match.

SCOUTING HARVARD
• Harvard (15-10, 10-4 Ivy League) is making its first appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
• Harvard is led by two-time All-Ivy pick Kathleen Wallace, who put up 3.26 kills and 2.48 digs per set. Fellow first-team All-Ivy selection Corinne Bain averaged 2.4 kills per set and 5.64 assists per set in Harvard’s 6-2 system.
• Christina Cornelius, the Ivy League Rookie of the Year and first-team All-Ivy, ranked sixth nationally with 1.57 blocks per set.
• The Crimson averaged 2.98 blocks per set during the season to rank eighth in the country. Harvard also ranked 21st nationally in opponent hitting percentage (.161).

SCOUTING KANSAS STATE
• Kansas State won eight of its final 12 matches during the regular season to tie for fourth in the Big 12 with a 9-7 conference record and 17-11 overall record. The Wildcats are appearing in Lincoln for the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time in the last five years.
• The Wildcats led the Big 12 in digs per set with 17.45 per set.
• Grand Island native Katie Brand is a two-time All-Big 12 First Team pick after averaging 11.10 assists per set.
• Outside hitter Brooke Sassin and middle blocker Katie Reininger were All-Big 12 Second Teamers. Sassin led the team with 3.50 kills per set and added 3.01 digs per set. Reininger had 2.55 kills per set and 0.98 blocks per set during the season.

SCOUTING WICHITA STATE
• Wichita State (26-8, 15-3 Missouri Valley Conference) is making its ninth NCAA Tournament appearance and eighth in the last nine years, missing only in 2014.
• The Shockers are making their fourth NCAA appearance in Lincoln and first since 2011.
• Abbie Lehman leads the team with 2.90 kills per set and 1.12 blocks per set. Lehman hit .415 in the regular season and ranked 15th in the nation. Katie Reilly adds 2.60 kills per set.
• Setter Emily Hiebert averages 10.30 assists per set.
• The Shockers hit .264 on the season to lead the MVC and rank 26th nationally.

ROLFZEN ECLIPSES 1,000 CAREER KILLS
Junior outside hitter Kadie Rolfzen became the 21st Husker to reach 1,000 career kills when she did so against Wisconsin on Oct. 24. Rolfzen is just the ninth Husker to do so before her senior season and the first since Jordan Larson as a junior in 2007.

• A two-time third-team All-American, Rolfzen proved herself to once again be a top six-rotation player in the Big Ten with 3.26 kills per set and 2.72 digs per set in conference play, earning All-Big Ten honors for the third straight season.
• Rolfzen earned the first Big Ten Player of the Week award of her career on Nov. 2 after 3.7 kills and 2.5 digs per set vs. Rutgers and Maryland, including a career-best .692 hitting percentage vs. Maryland.
• Rolfzen has a team-high 37 career double-doubles (12 this season) and was the Big Ten Co-Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 21.
• In addition to three All-Big Ten honors, Rolfzen is an academic All-Big Ten honoree.

WONG-ORANTES GAINING RECOGNITION
Junior libero Justine Wong-Orantes ranks fifth in school history in career digs. Wong-Orantes is in the midst of one of the best defensive seasons by a Husker all-time and was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year for her efforts:

• Wong-Orantes has 447 digs on the season for an average of 4.43 per set, which would be the fifth-best single-season mark in school history. Assistant coach Dani Busboom Kelly holds the school record at 5.04 digs per set in 2006.
• Wong-Orantes surpassed 1,000 career digs at Iowa State on Sept. 19, becoming the fastest Husker to reach 1,000 digs, doing so in just 75 matches.
• Wong-Orantes was named the espnW National Player of the Week after a career-high 30 digs in a comeback win at No. 1 Penn State on Oct. 2.
• Wong-Orantes earned two Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week awards in the month of October, the most recent following 27 digs at Illinois on Oct. 17, a career high for a three-set match.

POSITION SWITCH PAYS OFF FOR AMBER ROLFZEN
Junior Amber Rolfzen made a position switch from outside hitter to middle blocker in the offseason, and the return has been significant.

• Rolfzen led the Big Ten in blocking with 1.59 blocks per set, ranking fifth in the nation. She capped the regular season with the first All-Big Ten selection of her career.
• Rolfzen’s block average is the best by a Husker since Melissa Elmer’s school-record 2.17 in 2005.
• Rolfzen posted at least five blocks in eight straight matches from Sept. 26 to Oct. 23. The last Husker to do that was three-time All-American Melissa Elmer in 2005.
• Rolfzen was the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 12 following a pair of eight-block matches along with a season-best 12 kills against Michigan.
• Rolfzen again earned the weekly defensive honor on Nov. 2 after matching her season high of eight blocks against Maryland, averaging 2.0 blocks per set in sweeps of the Terrapins and Rutgers.
• Rolfzen added a third Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honor on Nov. 30 after 17 kills and 15 blocks combined against Illinois and Penn State, including a .567 hitting percentage.

HUSKERS TURN TO SOPHOMORE SETTER HUNTER
Redshirt sophomore Kelly Hunter coordinates the Husker attack with 11.36 assists per set. The Papillion, Neb., native - who was high school teammates with Husker twins Kadie and Amber Rolfzen - has helped the Huskers play at a faster tempo this season and has the Huskers hitting .271 on the season after hitting .236 in 2014. Although she played sparingly in 16 matches as a freshman in 2013, Hunter is seeing the first regular match action of her career after redshirting last year behind senior Mary Pollmiller. Hunter’s impact was felt immediately as the season began:

• Hunter earned Big Ten Co-Setter of the Week on Nov. 23 after posting 12.71 assists per set and leading the Huskers to a combined .340 hitting percentage in two wins.
• Hunter was named the Big Ten Setter of the Week on Aug. 31 and the Nebraska Invitational MVP on opening weekend after a 50-assist, 11-dig, eight-kill performance against Pittsburgh.
• Hunter had a career-high 57 assists and nine kills in a 3-2 comeback win against Oregon on Sept. 5.
• Hunter has notched 50 or more assists seven times this season.
• Hunter has 10 double-doubles this season.

FRESHMAN FOECKE MAKES INSTANT IMPACT
True freshman Mikaela Foecke, PrepVolleyball.com’s No. 2 recruit, has been an impact player for the Huskers since the beginning of the season. Foecke is second on the team in kills per set (3.00) and service aces (22).

• Foecke was one of four Big Ten freshmen to earn a unanimous selection to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team.
• Foecke was a two-time Big Ten Freshman of the Week, earning the honor in back-to-back weeks on Sept. 14 and Sept. 21. Her first honor came after hitting .632 vs. Georgia Tech with 12 kills and no errors. Her second honor came following 13 kills and four digs in back-to-back matches at Creighton and Iowa State.
• Foecke had a career-high 22 kills in a 3-2 comeback win at Penn State on Oct. 2.
• After switching from the right side to her more natural left side, Foecke recorded six consecutive matches of double-digit kills from Sept. 5 to Sept. 19.
• Foecke served five aces in back-to-back sweeps at Northwestern and Illinois on Oct. 16 and Oct. 17.

ROAD WARRIORS
Nebraska completed the road portion of its Big Ten schedule with a 9-1 record, the best by the Huskers since joining the Big Ten and the best road record by a Big Ten team this season. The Huskers’ only road loss of the Big Ten season was in five sets at Ohio State on Oct. 3.

HUSKERS COME IN AT NO. 5 IN AVCA POLL
Nebraska finished the regular season ranked fifth in the AVCA Coaches Poll. The Huskers had been ranked as high as No. 3 earlier in the season, their best ranking since Oct. 14, 2012.

• Nebraska has appeared in all 493 AVCA Coaches Polls since it was established in 1982. Nebraska and Stanford are the only two programs to be ranked in every poll all-time.

B1G CONFERENCE LEADING THE WAY
The Big Ten continues to set the tone as the top volleyball conference, with nine teams in the NCAA Tournament field and seven teams in the AVCA Top 25.

HALL NAMED TO ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT FIRST TEAM
Middle blocker Cecilia Hall was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District 7 First Team in November. A senior from Linkoping, Sweden, Hall carries a 3.67 GPA majoring in biochemistry. A two-time Big Ten Distinguished Scholar and four-time academic All-Big Ten selection, Hall is the first member of the Husker volleyball team to receive academic all-district honors since 2013 and becomes the first first-team honoree since 2012.

COOK WINS NO. 600
Nebraska head coach John Cook captured his 600th career win in a 3-1 victory against Pittsburgh on Aug. 29. Cook entered the season with 597 career wins in 23 years as head coach at Wisconsin and Nebraska, and the Huskers’ third win of the season made him one of 15 active Division I head coaches to reach 600 career wins.

OSTRANDER AND HUNTER NAMED 2015 CAPTAINS
Senior outside hitter Alicia Ostrander and sophomore setter Kelly Hunter were selected team captains for the 2015 season. Ostrander enjoyed a breakout role in 2014 with 2.49 kills pet set. After the volleyball season, she will join the Nebraska women’s basketball team for their season. A standout at both sports at Gordon-Rushville High School, Ostrander practiced with both teams over the summer. Hunter, a highly touted recruit out of Papillion, Neb., took over the setter reins as a sophomore after redshirting in 2014 while Mary Pollmiller finished out her career.

HUSKERS TRAVELED THE GLOBE IN 2015 SUMMER
A few Huskers spent their summers traveling the globe playing competitively.

• Justine Wong-Orantes was selected to the first ever B1G Foreign Tour Team and played matches with other Big Ten student-athletes in Croatia, Slovenia and Italy in June. The team also participated in community service initiatives and toured European cities.
• Briana Holman was selected to the U.S. Collegiate National Team and competed at the World University Games in Gwangju, South Korea in July. It was her second time competing with the U.S. CNT, as she took part in the Tour of China in 2014. Holman had 18 kills in the tournament with two blocks and two aces, as the U.S. CNT finished ninth overall.
• Alicia Ostrander took part in the U.S. Collegiate National Team round-robin tournament at the USA Volleyball Girls’ Junior National Championships in June. Ostrander’s CNT Blue Team was the tournament champion with a perfect 3-0 record. Ostrander tallied 31 points in the three matches.

HUSBAND, WIFE DUO JOIN COACHING STAFF
Chris Tamas is in his first season as a Husker assistant coach, while his wife, Jennifer (Joines) Tamas, is a volunteer assistant. The two came to NU in May from Cal Poly, where they spent the past two seasons in the same roles. Both Chris and Jen are former U.S. National Team captains. Chris was a first-team AVCA All-American in 2003 at Pacific, while Jen was the Big West Conference Player of the Year in 2003 at Pacific.

FORMER HUSKERS CAPTURE GOLD WITH TEAM USA
Three former Huskers - Jordan Larson-Burbach, Kelsey Robinson and Kayla Banwarth - captured gold medals at the FIVB World Championship and FIVB World Grand Prix in the last calendar year. The World Championship in Italy last October was the first major gold medal for the U.S. Women’s National Team. The USA followed up by winning gold at the World Grand Prix at the CenturyLink Center in Omaha in July. Robinson was named the tournament’s best outside hitter.

HUSKER FANS LEAD NATION IN ATTENDANCE AGAIN
For the second straight season, the Huskers led the nation in attendance in 2014. NU’s average of 8,083 fans per match was 1,726 more than runner-up Hawaii. Nebraska also set a new single-match attendance record under the current Bob Devaney Sports Center configuration when 8,585 raucous fans filled the arena to the rafters as the Huskers beat No. 3 Penn State on Oct. 3, 2014. High attendance marks are nothing new for Nebraska volleyball:

• In 2013, Nebraska set an NCAA record with an average attendance of 8,175 fans per match.
• In 2013, the Huskers led the nation in attendance for the first time since 1992, ending Hawaii’s 21-year reign as the national leader.
• Nebraska has ranked in the top three nationally in attendance every season since 1990 (25 straight seasons).
• The Huskers have sold out every regular-season match since 2001, a streak of 204 consecutive matches, the longest sellout streak in the history of NCAA women’s athletics.
• The Devaney Center has hosted the three largest regular-season crowds in NCAA history and seven of the 10 largest.

EXPERIENCED HUSKERS SET FOR 2015
One year after rolling out the youngest team in school history, the 2015 Nebraska volleyball team is an experienced group with four players who have been to three straight NCAA regional finals and three who have been to two.

• Junior outside hitter Kadie Rolfzen is a two-time All-American and All-Big Ten selection who recorded 3.55 kills per set in 2014.
• Senior outside hitter Kelsey Fien is also coming off All-Big Ten honors after 3.21 kills per set last year.
• Junior libero Justine Wong-Orantes is the first player to lead the Huskers in digs as both a freshman and a sophomore after recording 3.85 per set last year.
• Sophomores Annika Albrecht and Sydney Townsend are back after solid freshman seasons in the back row.
• NU has great depth at middle blocker with seniors Meghan Haggerty and Cecilia Hall, as well as junior Amber Rolfzen entering the fold at that position.
• The Huskers are reloading at setter, where sophomore Kelly Hunter takes the reins after redshirting last season. Hunter was the nation’s top high school setter in 2012-13 by PrepVolleyball.com and played in 16 matches as a freshman in 2013. She and senior outside hitter Alicia Ostrander will captain the 2015 squad.
• Outside hitter Olivia Boender is ready to step on the court for the Big Red after redshirting in her first year at NU.

TALENTED NEWCOMERS JOIN THE FRAY
NU welcomes one of the nation’s top recruiting classes, including outside hitter Mikaela Foecke (West Point, Iowa), the No. 2 overall prospect by PrepVolleyball.com, and Kenzie Maloney (Louisville, Ky.), the publication’s top-ranked libero. Setter Brooke Smith (Weatherford, Texas) and middle blocker Tiani Reeves (Gothenburg, Neb.) also come highly acclaimed, though Reeves is set for a redshirt season. Junior middle blocker Briana Holman, a first-team All-American at LSU and January transfer, must sit out 2015 without her scholarship release from LSU.