Huskers Take Two at Ameritas Players Challenge

LINCOLN, Neb. - The top-ranked Nebraska volleyball team captured its second sweep of the day on Friday, topping Gonzaga 25-15, 25-12, 25-11 in front of 8,277 at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.

Nebraska improved to 8-0 on the season with its 24th straight win overall. The Huskers have also won 24 consecutive sets dating back to the season opener against Florida, their longest streak since 2010. 

Mikaela Foecke led the Huskers with 12 kills while hitting .455. The NU offense was sharp again with a .442 hitting percentage. Nebraska has hit at least .300 in seven of eight matches and averaged .485 in the two matches on Friday. The Husker defense was equally impressive, limiting the Bulldogs (6-3) to .108 hitting. 

Andie Malloy and Briana Holman each had eight kills, while Holman added three blocks. Amber Rolfzen also had three blocks along with five kills. Kadie Rolfzen had seven kills and a match-high 13 digs. Kelly Hunter chipped in 36 assists, five kills and five digs, as well as three aces. Justine Wong-Orantes had 10 digs, while Annika Albrecht had eight. 

Set 1: The Huskers battled back from a 4-2 deficit to take a 6-4 lead behind the serve of Foecke. The Huskers used their block to extend the lead to 10-7, as Amber Rolfzen was in on two of the 3.5 blocks in the set. Five Huskers tallied at least two kills in the set as NU continued to pull away for the 25-15 win. The Huskers outhit the Bulldogs .406 to .133. 

Set 2: After Nebraska went up 4-1, Gonzaga came back for a 6-5 lead. A Malloy kill on an overdig put the Huskers back up 8-7. Another Malloy kill and a pair by Albrecht pushed the Huskers to a 13-9 lead. An ace by Sydney Townsend made it 15-10, and back-to-back kills by Holman and an ace by Hunter made it 20-12. After a Gonzaga timeout, Nebraska finished off the final five points to conclude the set on a 9-0 run, capped by a smash by Foecke. The Huskers hit .400 and got five kills and two blocks from Holman in the set. 

Set 3: NU went on a 5-0 run to take an 11-5 lead with Albrecht serving. She started it with an ace and then Foecke blasted two kills, along with an Amber Rolfzen block. After Gonzaga briefly ended the run, Foecke struck for two more kills to help NU to a 15-7 lead. Nebraska pulled away down the stretch for the 25-11 win and the sweep. 

Up Next: The Huskers finish non-conference action in the final match of the Ameritas Players Challenge when they face Creighton Saturday at 8 p.m. The match will be televised on NET and streamed at BTN2GO.com. The match will also air on Husker Sports Network affiliates, including 107.3 FM in Lincoln and 105.9 FM in Omaha.