Huskers Stifle USC, Notch Sixth Ranked Win

LINCOLN, Neb. - The No. 2 Nebraska volleyball team swept No. 20 USC 25-18, 25-22, 25-16 on Sunday night in front of 8,689 fans at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. 

Nebraska (12-1, 2-0 Big Ten) outhit USC (9-3, 1-1 Big Ten) .245 to .137. The Huskers - who won their 33rd straight home match - had advantages in kills (41-31), aces (4-1), digs (47-35) and blocks (5-2.5). The Trojans ranked third nationally in blocks entering the match but had a season-low 2.5 against the Huskers. 

Harper Murray led NU with 12 kills, a pair of aces and six digs. Nine of Murray's 12 kills came in the second set when Nebraska rallied from down 17-14 to win 25-22. 

Merritt Beason posted 11 kills and nine digs with one ace and two blocks, and Andi Jackson totaled seven kills. Lindsay Krause had four kills and two blocks, and Rebekah Allick had three kills and three blocks. 

Bergen Reilly finished with 33 assists and eight digs, while Lexi Rodriguez had a match-high 13 digs. Olivia Mauch added six digs. 

Former Husker Ally Batenhorst had 13 kills to lead USC in her return to the Devaney Center. ]

Set 1: Nebraska had six kills on its first eight swings to take a 13-8 lead. After USC cut it to 16-12, Jackson posted three kills and a block, Reilly added one, and Murray served an ace during an 8-0 Husker run that made it 24-12. NU struggled to close out the set, allowing USC to go on a 6-0 run, before finishing the job, 25-18. 

Set 2: USC went ahead 10-8 after a 4-1 run. Two kills by Murray kept NU close, down 14-13. USC built the lead to 17-14, but a kill by Krause and USC hitting error brought the Huskers back within one. A kill by Beason and back-to-back kills by Murray put the Huskers in front, 19-18. After a USC timeout, Beason terminated a kill and the Huskers won a challenge to go up 21-18 with Mauch serving the 5-0 run. Beason and Murray tacked on kills to earn set point at 24-21. A service error gave NU the 25-22 win. 

Set 3: NU rallied from down 7-6 to go up 9-7 after a block by Krause and another block by Allick and Beason. Kills by Beason, Allick and Jackson helped the Huskers to a 14-9 lead, and Murray put the Big Red up 15-10 at the media timeout. After the break, Beason connected from the back row and Reilly won a battle at the net to make it 17-10 Huskers and force a USC timeout. Reilly and Murray added kills after the timeout, and an ace by Murray helped the Huskers claim a 21-11 lead. The Huskers closed out the sweep, 25-16. 

Up Next: The Huskers travel to Illinois for a 6 p.m. match on Thursday on FS1 and the Huskers Radio Network.