How to Watch Nebraska Volleyball vs. No. 16 Minnesota, Indiana: Preview, Breakdown, TV Channel

The No. 2 Huskers aim to strengthen their Big Ten leading record with another ranked matchup, plus a feisty middle-tier conference opponent.

Geoff Exstrom | Nov 13, 2024

Nebraska volleyball players celebrate a point at Ohio State. / Nebraska Athletics

First place never felt so good for the No. 2 Nebraska volleyball team.

Two more conference foes fell to the wayside over the weekend as the Huskers train of dominance didn’t slow down with sweeps over No. 12 Oregon and (RV) Washington over the weekend in NU’s pacific coast trip. Head coach John Cook has been able to find his outside hitter rotation as sophomore superstar Harper Murray and 2022 Big Ten Player of the Year Taylor Landfair has been leading the charge as of late with both players combining for 49 kills on a .408 hitting percentage with only nine errors in the two matches.

Combined with No. 7 Wisconsin’s dismantling of No. 3 Penn State in a sweep at the UW Fieldhouse has officially given Nebraska lone star status at the top of the Big Ten Standings heading into the final six matches.

The Huskers’ titanic Nov. 29 battle at the Nittany Lions doesn't look quite as daunting as before, but that doesn’t mean the Big Ten race slows down. Up next for NU is a ranked Minnesota squad followed by an always pesky Indiana team.

Here’s all you need to know for Nebraska’s return to Lincoln.

How to Follow Along

Matchup: No. 2 Nebraska (24-1, 14-0 B1G) vs. No. 14 Minnesota (16-8, 9-5 B1G)

When: Thursday, November 14

Where: Bob Devaney Sports Center, Lincoln, NE

Time: 8 p.m. CST

Watch: Big Ten Network

Listen: Huskers Radio Network and Affiliates

Dec 9, 2016; Lincoln, NE, USA; Washington Huskies head coach Keegan Cook shakes hands with Carly DeHoog (12) as she comes off the court against the Arizona Wildcats at Bob Devaney Sports Center. Washington won the match 3-0. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Thorson-Imagn Images / Bruce Thorson-Imagn Images

No. 16 Minnesota Scout

Head Coach: Keegan Cook | 2nd Season | 33-21 (.611) at Minnesota; 231-77 (.750) Career HC | Previous HC at Washington for eight seasons, amassing a 198-56 record | 1x Final Four (‘20), 3x Elite Eights (‘15,’16,’19), 2x Sweet 16s (‘18,’21), 4x Pac-12 Championships (‘15,’16,’20,’21) | 3x AVCA Pacific North Region Coach OTY, 2020 Pac-12 Coach OTY.

2023 Record: 17-13 (12-8 B1G, 5th) | 2x First Team All-Big Ten, 2x Second Team All-Big Ten | 3-0 loss to Creighton in Round of 32.

All-Time Series: Nebraska Leads 38-12 (2023 last matchup, NU 3-1)

Fun Fact: Nebraska is only 4-5 against Minnesota since 2018, but have won three of the last four matches including both contests in 2023. In the 12 wins the Gophers have over NU, eight of those have come since 2015.

Key Additions: Kate Thibault, DS / L, Soph. (Oregon) | Alex Acevedo, OH, R-Fr. (Oregon).

Key Departures: Kylie Murr, L (Eligibility) | Taylor Landfair, OH / OPP, Sr. (Nebraska) | Arica Davis, MB, Sr. (High Point).

Outlook: Keegan Cook is in the midst of his second season with Minnesota looking to make much more of an impact than he did in his debut season after taking over for program legend Hugh McCutcheon, who stepped down at the end of the 2022 season to move up in the Gopher Athletic Department.

Leaving Washington, where he led the Huskies to a Final Four in 2020, Cook has Minnesota in a better position record wise than 2023, but is one of many schools jockeying for a top five finish in the conference, which is what Cook accomplished in year one. Kylie Murr was a past Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year who spent her final season with the Gophers and is now playing in the pros. Landfair left for Nebraska over the offseason, but based on her numbers, it was a never a great system fit.

The roster is mostly unchanged from a season ago with the only major additions being a pair of players transferring from Oregon in DS sub Kate Thibault and depth hitter Alex Acevedo.

The Gophers throw out a trio of returning attackers to lead the offense with opposite Julia Hanson (3.73 K/S), outside Lydia Grote (2.87 K/S) and Mckenna Wucherer (2.53 K/S).

All-conference setter Melani Shaffmaster is back for her final season of college volleyball. The 6-3 do-it-all distributor is averaging 9.02 assists per set in 24 matches this season, which would be her second-worst mark of her career. Although, she’s attacking more with 0.93 kills per set, 2.73 digs per set, 52 blocks and 21 aces.

Sitting behind Murr in 2023, Turkish libero Zeynep Palabiyik is averaging 3.69 digs per set in her first season starting. Thibault will see action as well as a defensive specialist. She’s averaging 1.70 digs per set off the bench.

Minnesota’s best attribute is at the net with its blocking as it ranks third in total team blocks (250) and fourth in blocks per set (2.78). Graduate student Phoebe Awoleye is in her second season in Minneapolis and on track for a career campaign. She’s tied for second in the Big Ten with 127 blocks, which is on pace to blow past her 141 from a season ago. Her blocks per set, however, is second in the league with 1.49. She’s much more limited offensively, averaging only 0.99 kills per set on a .289 hitting percentage, but that’s where sophomore Calissa Minatee comes in. She has a 1.60 kills per set mark on a .325 clip with 81 blocks. Grote is the third-leading blocker with 64.

It’s clear that Cook didn’t want to dive heavily into the transfer portal with his big class of returners, which has proven to have mixed results so far. The Gophers had a chance to put itself in the driver’s seat for a shot at fourth in the conference standings, but back-to-back losses to Oregon and Washington has them on the wrong foot. While this team has good experience and impact playmakers around the court, the Huskers should roll in a sweep in their return home to Lincoln.

How to Follow Along

Matchup: No. 2 Nebraska (24-1, 14-0 B1G) vs. Indiana (12-12, 5-9 B1G)

When: Saturday, November 16

Where: Bob Devaney Sports Center, Lincoln, NE

Time: 7:30 p.m. CST

Watch: Big Ten Network

Listen: Huskers Radio Network and Affiliates

Indiana defensive specialist Emma Segal (14) high-fives teammates after being subbed off Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024, during the NCAA women’s volleyball match against Purdue at Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, Ind. Purdue won 3-0. / Alex Martin/Journal and Courier / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Indiana Scout

Head Coach: Steve Aird | 7th Season | 94-111 (.459) at Indiana; 149-185 (.446) Career Record | Spent four seasons (2014-2017) at Maryland before going to Bloomington | 2x National Champion assistant at Penn State under Russ Rose | Previous assistant stops at Cincinnati and Auburn.

2023 Record: 21-12 (11-9 B1G, T-6th) | AVCA Honorable Mention, 1x First Team All-Big Ten, 2x Second Team All-Big Ten, 1x All-Freshman Team | Did not qualify for the postseason.

All-Time Series: Nebraska leads 23-1 (2023 last matchup, Nebraska won 3–1)

Fun Fact: Nebraska’s only loss to Indiana came in the school’s first-ever meeting on Oct. 14, 1978 on a neutral court when the Hossiers won 15-12, 15-10. Since then, the Huskers have won 23-straight against IU which includes sweeps in 17 of those victories. However, Indiana has pushed NU to four sets in two of the last three meetings.

Key Additions: Delaynie Maple, DS, Gr. (USC Beach) | Madi Sell, MB, Jr. (Marquette) | Emma Segal, DS, Fr. (Recruit) | Sade Ilawole, S, Fr. (Recruit) |

Key Departures: Grae Gosnell, OH / DS, Gr. (USC) | Savannah Kjolhede, MB, Gr. (Arizona State) | Kaley Rammelsberg, MB (Eligibility) | Isa Lopez, L (Eligibility).

Outlook: Indiana improved for the third-straight year while recording its best season under head coach Steve Aird in 2023, finishing with a 21-12 overall record and a tie for sixth place in the conference. The Hoosiers narrowly missed out on an NCAA Tournament berth, but returned the core of that group in 2024.

IU was affected by the transfer portal chaos saying goodbye to Grae Gosnell (USC) and leading blocker Savannah Kjolhede (117 TB) to Arizona State. Kaley Rammelsberg, who also started in the middle, graduated as well as defensive specialist Isa Lopez.

Juniors Candela Alonso-Corcelles and Avry Tatum combine for a fearsome duo for Indiana. Alonso-Corcelles is leading the team in kills and kills per set for the second-straight season, but has seen her totals jump with 3.58 kills per set this season along with 1.94 digs per set, 38 blocks and 20 aces. Tatum isn’t too far behind with 3.42 kills per set combined with 40 blocks and 24 aces. Second outside hitter starter Mady Saris has 2.27 kills per set so far this season and is third on the team with 207 points.

All three hitters receive the luxury of getting sets from All-Big Ten setter Camryn Haworth, who was an AVCA All-American Honorable Mention last season. She’s continued that excellent form in her senior campaign, with 9.96 assists per set and 42 aces, which is fourth in the conference. She’s also totaled 76 kills (0.90 K/S) on the season with 44 blocks.

Sophomore libero Gary Ramsey has built off her Second Team All-Big Ten debut last season and has become one of the top liberos in the country. Her 4.20 digs per set is second in the conference. She had double-digit digs in all but one match this season including a season-high 24 against UC Davis in September.

The Hoosiers had to replace both of its starting middles this season and Aird dipped into the portal to grab Marquette transfer Madi Sell to be its anchor. She’s averaging 1.21 kills per set, but on a .274 clip with a team-high 77 blocks. True sophomore Ava Vickers also starts and has hit better with a .309 clip with 1.19 kills per set and 56 blocks.

Of all the past existing Big Ten members, Indiana is one of those teams who will suffer the most from the conference’s expansion out west. A Hoosier program on the rise over the past couple of seasons, the new blood of volleyball rich programs in USC, UCLA, Washington and Oregon will make the inroads tougher for IU. While the jump serving of Indiana has proven to be difficult in the past for NU, it shouldn’t be enough to avoid a sweep.

GEOFF EXSTROM

How to Watch Nebraska Volleyball vs. No. 16 Minnesota, Indiana: Preview, Breakdown, TV Channel

Geoff Exstrom | Nov 13, 2024

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