Huskers Host Minnesota
The
No. 4 Nebraska volleyball team will host the No. 19 Minnesota Gophers
on Wednesday, Nov. 16 at the NU Coliseum at 7 p.m. The match will air
live on BTN.
The Huskers (21-3, 14-2) went 1-1 over the weekend, sweeping Indiana 3-0, but falling to No. 10 Purdue 3-0 the following night.
Minnesota
and Nebraska have met 31 times, with NU holding a 27-4 record over the
Gophers. The last time the two teams met was on Oct. 15 when Nebraska
posted a comeback 3-2 win over Minnesota (28-30, 19-25, 25-10, 25-12,
15-11).
Fans will be able to see the match live on
BTN with Kevin Kugler calling the action and Megan Bower adding
analysis. It can also be viewed on BTN2Go.
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 Gophers
Location: Minneapolis, Minn.
Enrollment: 51,721
Nickname: Golden Gophers
Colors: Maroon and Gold
Interim Head Coach: Laura Bush (Illinois, ‘90)
Record at School: First Year
Overall Record: 100-164 (9 years)
Asst. Coaches: Alfee Raft, Chris Tamas
2010 Record: 16-9
2010 Big Ten Record: 14-6
2010 Postseason: NCAA Regional Semifinalist
2010 Final Ranking: 10th
Letterwinners R/L: 10/2
Starters R/L: 6/1+1
Series Record: Nebraska leads, 27-4
Last Meeting: NU won, 3-2 (10/15/11)
Last NU Win: 10/15/11
Last NU Loss: 10/4/80
Longest NU Winning Streak: 13
Current NU Winning Streak: 5
Two sets: 8-2
Three sets: 6-1
Four sets: 8-0
Five sets: 5-1
All-Time Nebraska/Minnesota Series (NU Leads 27-4)
Sept. 30, 1977 T, 15-10, 15-17
Oct. 14, 1978 W, 15-12, 8-15, 15-12
Oct. 3, 1980 W, 15-5, 15-17, 15-11
Sept. 10, 1982 W, 15-10, 15-8
Sept. 11, 1982 W, 15-5, 15-5, 15-11
Sept. 21, 1986 W, 15-10, 15-7, 12-15, 15-6
Dec. 13, 1986 W, 15-9, 15-8, 15-3
Sept. 26, 1987 W, 15-10, 12-15, 16-14, 13-15, 15-8
Dec. 11, 1987 L, 11-15, 12-15, 5-15
Sept. 17, 1988 L, 14-16, 15-8, 1-15, 9-15
Nov. 11, 1989 L, 15-13, 6-15, 15-11, 8-15, 12-15
Dec. 9, 1989 W, 17-15, 15-5, 15-8
Sept. 21, 1990 W, 6-15, 13-15, 15-9, 15-8, 15-8
Oct. 6, 1991 W, 15-7, 15-7, 15-1
Dec. 7, 1991 W, 15-5, 15-8, 15-12
Sept. 11, 1992 L, 7-15, 14-16, 15-3, 12-15
Dec. 10, 1992 L, 10-15, 7-15, 10-15
Nov. 23, 1993 W, 15-4, 15-12, 15-7
Oct. 25, 1994 W, 15-9, 15-6, 15-10
Aug. 30, 2003 W, 30-27, 30-20, 30-20
Sept. 11, 2010 W, 21-25, 21-25, 25-22, 25-14, 16-14
Oct. 15, 2011 W, 28-30, 19-25, 25-10, 25-12, 15-11
Scouting the Minnesota Gophers
• The Gophers are 15-10 on the year, heading into their match-up with the Huskers on Wednesday.
•
Minnesota went 1-1 last weekend, sweeping Michigan State 3-0 on Friday,
Nov. 11. The Gophers then lost to Michigan 3-0 on Saturday, Nov. 12.
•
In the match against the Spartans, Minnesota was led by Ashley Wittman
with 11 kills and 11 digs for her 15th double-double of the season.
Katherine Harms had 10 kills, while Hailey Cowles had seven and a
match-high 17 digs. Kellie McNeil had a match-high 35 assists and a
career-high four aces.
• The Gophers were led by
Harms and Tori Dixon in their match against Michigan, as both had
double digit kills. Harms had a double-double with 13 kills and 12
digs, while Dixon finished the match with 11 kills, nine digs, two
blocks and a service ace. She also had a team-high hitting percentage
of .417.
• Wittman leads Minnesota with 451 kills
on the year and 4.60 per set. Dixon has 267 kills and 2.72 per set,
while Harms has 231 kills and 2.78 per set.
• At setter, Mia Tabberson has 883 assists, averaging 11.77 per set.
•
Defensively, Jessica Granquist leads the team with 441 digs this season
and an average of 4.50 digs per set. Wittman has 279 digs, while
Cowles has 270 digs on the season.
• In the Big
Ten standings, Minnesota ranks eighth in hitting percentage (.228),
third in assists (13.19), 11th in blocks (1.90), fifth in digs (15.39),
10th in opponent hitting percentage (.208), third in kills (13.94) and
seventh in aces (1.10).
• Dixon ranks fourth
(.353) in the Big Ten in hitting percentage, while Ariana Filho is
eighth (.323). Tabberson is first in assists (11.77), and Wittman is
second in kills (4.60). Dixon is also fifth in aces (0.35), while
Granquist is fourth in digs (4.50).
The Last Time Nebraska and Minnesota Met (Oct. 15, 2011)
Minneapolis,
Minn. - The No. 5 Nebraska volleyball team (15-1, 8-0) posted a 3-2
(28-30, 19-25, 25-10, 25-12, 15-11) victory over No. 14 Minnesota at
Williams Arena. In front of 9,334 fans, the Huskers overcame a feisty
Gopher squad in their fifth five-set win of the season.
Gina
Mancuso led NU for the match with 18 kills on 46 attacks. Morgan
Broekhuis and Hannah Werth both had 15 kills, with Werth notching her
second double-double of the weekend with 17 digs. Mancuso also tallied
a double-double as she had 15 digs. Lauren Cook tabbed 45 assists for
NU while Lara Dykstra had a team-high 23 digs.
Nebraska hit .243 for the match while Minnesota hit .111. The Huskers out-blocked the Gophers 17-8 and had 85 team digs.
Big Ten Weekly Awards
(3 honors by 2 players)
Gina Mancuso
Co-Player of the Week (Sept. 26)
Mancuso
averaged 3.7 kills per set with a .319 hitting percentage, along with
1.6 digs and 0.4 blocks per set in the Huskers’ back-to-back wins over
Penn State and Ohio State. She recorded a double-double against Penn
State with 22 kills and 10 digs, marking the fifth double-double of her
career. She also tied her career-high mark for attacks against Penn
State.
Player of the Week (Oct. 23)
Mancuso
posted 4.1 kills, 3.3 digs and 1.0 block per set in Nebraska’s wins
over the Hawkeyes and Fighting Illini. She recorded her 10th
double-double of the season with 15 kills and 14 digs, adding five
blocks and two aces to help the Huskers take down Illinois. She also
notched 14 kills, nine digs and two blocks against Iowa. Her efforts
helped Nebraska earn its first win over a top-ranked opponent since
1990. The honor marked the second conference player-of-the-week award
for Mancuso.
Hannah Werth
Player of the Week (Oct. 17)
Werth
averaged 4.0 kills and 2.9 digs per set and recorded a .385 hitting
percentage in back-to-back wins at Wisconsin and Minnesota. She posted
17 kills on .536 hitting and added 10 digs against the Badgers. Werth
recorded her second double-double of the weekend against the Gophers,
tallying 15 kills and 17 digs while adding six blocks.
The
honor marked the first conference player-of-the-week award for Werth
this season and made her the second Nebraska volleyball player to earn
a Big Ten weekly award.
Scouting the Huskers
• Nebraska is 21-3 in 2011 and enters this weekend’s matches ranked No. 4 in the latest AVCA Coaches Poll.
•
The Huskers are 18-1 this season when holding opponents below .200
hitting. Nebraska is 3-2 when opposing teams hit above .200.
• Nebraska has totaled double-digit blocks in 12 matches this season, including a season-high 18 blocks against Michigan.
•
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 Nov. 6, Nebraska
ranked second in the Big Ten in hitting percentage (.265), seventh in
assists (12.59), third in blocks (2.63), ninth in digs (14.70), second
in opponent hitting percentage (.147), sixth in kills (13.53) and 12th
in aces (0.84).
• Gina Mancuso has 326 kills so far in 2011, averaging 3.62 per set.
•
Mancuso was named the Big Ten Player of the Week on Monday, Oct. 24
after leading the Huskers over previously top-ranked Illinois and the
Co-Big Ten Player of the Week on Monday, Sept. 26 after her stellar
weekend against Penn State and Ohio State.
• Werth was named the Big Ten Player of the Week on Monday, Oct. 17, after solid outings at Wisconsin and Minnesota.
•
Lara Dykstra has 327 digs so far in her freshman campaign, averaging
3.63 per set. She currently ranks third in the all-time freshman digs
record at Nebraska.
• Lauren Cook has totaled 917 assists in 2011, averaging 11.05 per set.
•
Brigette Root made her first career start at setter against Michigan on
Friday, Nov. 4. She notched the first double-double of her career with
25 assists and 11 digs.
• As of Nov. 13, the
Huskers ranked 25th nationally in blocks per set with 2.63. NU was 17th
in hitting percentage at .265. Lauren Cook ranked 31st nationally in
assists per set (11.05) and Hayley Thramer was 38th in blocks per set
(1.23).
• 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.
• 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.
Year Players
2008 Allison McNeal
2009 Gina Mancuso, Hannah Werth, Hayley Thramer, Lauren Cook
2010 Morgan Broekhuis
2011 Lara Dykstra, Taylor Simpson
Tough Tests
With the match against No. 19 Minnesota on Wednesday, Nebraska will take on its 13th top-25 team this season.
Opponent
Result
at No. 15 Colorado State L, 3-2
vs. No. 12 Iowa State W, 3-0
vs. No. 5 Penn State W, 3-2 vs. No. 24 Ohio State W, 3-1
at
No. 11
Michigan
W, 3-0 vs. No. 11
Purdue
W, 3-1 at No. 14 Minnesota W, 3-2
vs.
No. 1
Illinois
W, 3-1
at No. 23 Ohio
State
W, 3-1 at No. 8 Penn
State
L, 3-1 vs. No. 23
Michigan
W, 3-1
at No. 10
Purdue
L, 3-0
Cook Reaches 500
With the Huskers’ win over Albany on Sept. 3, Head Coach John Cook tallied his 500th win as a head coach.
First Place
With only two losses in conference play, Nebraska sits in first place in the Big Ten standings, checking in at 14-2.
No Place Like Nebraska
Nebraska
celebrated a streak of 150 consecutive sellouts at the NU Coliseum on
Sept. 8. It is the longest continuing sellout streak across all NCAA
women’s athletics. The Huskers averaged 4,632 fans per home contest
last season. As of Nov. 14, Nebraska ranks second nationally in current
home win streaks with 34.
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 24 matches of her collegiate career, freshman Lara Dykstra
has notched 327 digs of her own and an average of 3.63 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 notched a career-high 10 blocks against Illinois on Oct. 22. She
currently ranks sixth in the Big Ten in blocks, averaging 1.23 per set.
Volleyball Blackshirts
Nebraska
held Iowa to a .000 hitting percentage on Oct. 19, marking the lowest
percentage for a Nebraska opponent this season. The Huskers held Albany
to a .038 hitting percentage for the match, Creighton to a .053 hitting
percentage on Sept. 8, Indiana to a .022 hitting percentage on Oct. 8
and Michigan State to a .026 hitting percentage of Nov. 5.
Producing Double-Doubles
Five
Huskers have combined for 35 double-doubles in 2011, with Mancuso
tallying 10, Broekhuis tabbing four, Root adding one, Werth notching
seven of her own and Cook adding 13.
Gina Mancuso | 2011 (10) | NU Career (10), All (10)
Opponent
(Date)
K
A
D B
New
Mexico State (Aug. 26)
16
0
14 2
Colorado
State (Sept.
2)
24
3
10 1 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 Michigan State
(Sept. 30)
12
1
10 3 Purdue (Oct.
7)
16
0
19 0 Minnesota (Oct.
15)
18
0
15 5 Illinois (Oct.
22)
15
0
14 5
Lauren Cook | 2011 (13) | NU Career (32)
Opponent
(Date)
K
A
D B
New
Mexico State (Aug. 26)
1
51
10 0 New Mexico
(Aug.
27)
0
40
12 1 Colorado State
(Sept.
2)
2
49
12 2 Albany (Sept.
3)
2
34
13 1 Creighton
(Sept.
8)
5
33
13 0 Penn State
(Sept.
21)
1
53
17 2 Ohio State
(Sept.
24)
4
41
14 3
Purdue
(Oct.
7)
0
51
12 1 Wisconsin (Oct.
14)
1
38
11 0
Minnesota
(Oct.
15)
2
45
19 0
Iowa (Oct.
19)
4
32
16 0
Illinois
(Oct.
22)
0
54
13 0 Penn State
(Oct.
29)
1
32
11 0
Hannah Werth | 2011 (7) | NU Career (29), All (29)
Opponent
(Date)
K
A
D B
Colorado
State (Sept.
2)
12
0
15 1 St. Mary’s
(Sept.
9)
10
1
11 1 Wisconsin (Oct.
14)
17
0
10 0 Minnesota (Oct.
15)
15
2
17 6 Illinois (Oct.
22)
14
1
17 0 Ohio State
(Oct.
28)
11
1
13 3 Michigan State
(Nov.
5)
11
0
10 3
Morgan Broekhuis | 2011 (4) | NU Career (4), All (4)
Opponent
(Date)
K
A
D B
Iowa
State (Sept.
17)
11
2
10 4
Penn State
(Sept.
21)
12
4
11 4 Purdue (Oct.
7)
13
2
10 2 Illinois (Oct.
22)
17
2
11 4
Brigette Root | 2011 (1) | NU Career (1), All (1)
Opponent
(Date)
K
A
D B
Michigan
(Nov.
4)
5
35
11 2
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 has notched three
others this season. Her 22 kills at Michigan State on Sept. 30 marked a
career high her.
Mancuso Paving Her Way
Gina
Mancuso has notched 10 double-doubles so far in 2011, most recently
against Illinois on Oct. 22. She tallied 15 kills and 14 digs to lead
NU against the Fighting Illini.
|