Nebraska Volleyball Cruises in First-Round Sweep of Florida A&M

The Huskers allow a record low in points in the first set of a dominating first-round showing against the Rattlers.

Enrique Alvarez-Clary | Dec 6, 2024

Nebraska middle blocker Andi Jackson (left) and outside hitter Harper Murray block a Florida A&M attack. / Nebraska Athletics

Absolute domination.

No. 2 Nebraska (30-2, 19-1 B1G) swept Florida A&M (27-7, 16-0 SWAC) Friday night in Lincoln, 25-3, 25-9, 25-17. This was just the second match ever between the two schools, with the Rattlers pulling a stunning upset in 2004.

Nebraska's dominance was record-setting, as NU managed the fewest points allowed in a set (3) and match (29) in the rally-scoring era.

Nebraska volleyball outside hitter Taylor Landfair (left) and middle blocker Andi Jackson (right) celebrate a point.

Nebraska outside hitter Taylor Landfair (left) and middle blocker Andi Jackson celebrate a point against Florida A&M. / Nebraska Athletics

The Huskers more than doubled the Rattlers in kills, 43 to 16. To repay the favor, Florida A&M committed 20 errors to Nebraska's nine. The Huskers out-assisted (43-14), aced (6-1), dug (45-30) and blocked (6-5) the Rattlers in a match to remember.

Setter Bergen Reilly guided the Nebraska offense to a blistering .391 hitting percentage with her 32 assists, and she collected another double-double with 12 digs. The Nebraska defense figured out the tricky 6-2 offense of the Rattlers and held them to a negative .043 hitting percentage.

Harper Murray led the way with a match-high 12 kills on just 25 swings, good for a .440 hitting percentage. She was followed by Andi Jackson, who added eight kills on .538 hitting and three blocks.

Nebraska middle blocker Leyla Blackwell attacks against Florida A&M in the first round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament. / Nebraska Athletics

Leyla Blackwell finished with five kills and two blocks after she entered in the second set for Rebekah Allick. Allick went 3-for-3 before exiting.

Lexi Rodriguez continued on her path to become the Huskers' all-time leader in digs with 15 in the match. If Nebraska makes it all the way to the NCAA championship, the senior captain would need to average 12.2 digs per match in order to pass Justine Wong-Orantes for the record.

Nebraska will next face Miami (FL) in the second round. The Hurricanes swept South Dakota State in Friday's opening match at the Devaney Center, 25-17, 25-23, 25-15. First serve Saturday is set for 7 p.m. CST on ESPN+.

Box score

Nebraska Athletics Set Synopses

Set 1: The Huskers came out firing to take a 12-1 lead. Allick had two kills and a block, Mauch served an ace, and Murray tallied two kills. Beason had a kill and an ace, and Murray added another kill before combining with Jackson for a block to make it 17-3. Two straight errors by the Rattlers preceded a back-row kill by Murray that made it 20-3. Jackson had two kills, and Murray closed the set with two kills as NU ended the set on a 12-0 run. The final score of 25-3 set a school record for fewest points allowed in a non-fifth set in the rally-scoring era.

Set 2: Landfair had two early kills, and Leyla Blackwell and Murray took the Huskers to a 5-2 lead with kills. Beason served another ace, and Jackson had three kills and two blocks to put the Huskers in front 14-4. Reilly capped a 7-0 run with back-to-back kills that made it 16-4. The Huskers finished the set on an 8-1 run with kills by Landfair, Murray and Blackwell and back-to-back aces by Mauch to finish out the set, 25-9.

Set 3: NU went ahead 9-5 after another ace by Mauch and a Blackwell kill. The Huskers extended the lead to 18-11 after a block by Blackwell and Beason and another Blackwell kill. Two straight kills by Beason made it 20-13, and the Huskers closed out the sweep with a 25-17 win with Lindsay Krause recording back-to-back kills for the final two points.

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Published Dec 6, 2024|Modified Dec 6, 2024

ENRIQUE ALVAREZ-CLARY

Enrique Alvarez-Clary, better known as Rico, is the Assistant Program Director at 93.7 The Ticket in Lincoln, Nebraska as well as the Executive Producer for the Supernovas Radio Network which broadcasts every Omaha Supernovas match during the inaugural season of the Professional Volleyball Federation. A native of Nebraska, Rico first graduated from the prestigious Bellevue West High School and went on to graduate from the University of Nebraska-Kearney where he also competed in Track & Field. Being behind the scenes for so long, Enrique has shifted into a more on-air role co-hosting the "Happy Hour" and lending his voice to many other shows on 93.7. Enrique focuses his coverage of Nebraska on football, volleyball, mens & womens basketball, softball, and track and field. When Enrique isn't covering Huskers Athletics you can find him hanging out with his wife Rachael and their two children Elliot (daughter) and Kade (son). Rico can be reached at rique2688@gmail.com or on Twitter/X @RadioRicoAC