December 10, 2016

----------------------------- 
            1   2   3 
Washington 16  10  21 
NEBRASKA   25  25  25 
----------------------------- 

Lincoln, Neb. — The top-seeded Nebraska volleyball team became the first team to advance to the NCAA Semifinals, as the Huskers were dominant in a three-set sweep of Pac-12 Champion Washington, the No. 7 national seed, on Saturday in front of 8,355 fans inside the Bob Devaney Sports Center.

Nebraska limited Washington to just 26 points in the first two set, taking the opener 25-16 before winning the first nine rallies of set two en route to a 25-10 victory. The third set was tighter, but Andie Malloy's 15th kill on the Huskers' third match point wrapped up the 25-21 victory. The Huskers limited Washington to just 47 total points, the second-fewest points allowed in an NCAA Regional Final in the rally-scoring era, which dates back to 2001.

With the win, the Huskers tied a school record with their 10th consecutive postseason victory and kept their hopes alive for back-to-back national titles. Nebraska (31-2) will face either Texas or Creighton on Thursday in Columbus, Ohio, with a berth in the national championship match on the line. Washington, which lost to Nebraska in the regional final for the second straight year, saw its season end with a 29-5 record.

The Huskers hit an impressive .437 in the match, led by Malloy's 15 kills and 10 kills on 19 swings from senior Kadie Rolfzen, the NCAA Lincoln Regional Most Outstanding Player. Sophomore Mikaela Foecke added nine kills and was strong at the service line, recording two aces while serving several long runs. Senior Amber Rolfzen put down five kills on six error-free swings while recording a match-high four blocks. Leading the dominant offensive performance was junior setter Kelly Hunter, who totaled 36 kills and added three kills and six digs. Senior Justine Wong-Orantes tallied 13 digs for the Huskers.

Crissy Jones paced Washington with nine kills, but the Huskies were held to a season-low 26 kills and a season-low .088 attack percentage. Courtney Schwan added seven kills, while Kara Bajema and Tia Scambray chipped in five kills apiece.

Set 1: Nebraska bolted out to a 4-1 lead with a Holman kill and a Foecke ace. Malloy pounded a trio of kills as the Huskers went up 8-5. A Kadie Rolfzen shot down the line after a string of great defensive plays by both teams made it 13-8, and a pair of Washington errors and a Kadie Rolfzen kill had the Huskers up 16-8 and in control. The Huskers remained up by eight, 22-14, after a rip by Albrecht, and they finished off the 25-16 win on a kill by Malloy, her sixth of the set. Nebraska hit a blistering .467 and held Washington to .097. The Huskers had a distinct edge in defense with a 17-7 digs advantage.

Set 2: The Huskers were dominant, taking a 9-0 lead on Foecke's serve. Holman and Malloy each had a pair of kills during the run, while Washington made a few miscues with the Huskers pounding away at them. A Kadie Rolfzen kill and Wong-Orantes ace put the Huskers up 11-1. Hunter even joined in the action by taking a swing from the right side and tooling the block for a kill and a 14-3 lead. After Washington got within 16-9, Foecke got a kill, Holman and Kadie Rolfzen combined for consecutive blocks and then recorded back-to-back kills for a 21-9 lead. The Huskers resumed their dominance with a kill and ace by Foecke, a block by Holman and Kadie Rolfzen and a Malloy kill to end the set at 25-10. The Huskers hit .565 and held UW to -.080 hitting. The Huskers again outdug Washington, 12-5, and had four blocks to Washington's one.

Set 3: Nebraska took its first lead of the set, 6-5, after a Washington hit long, and Albrecht served an ace for a 7-5 lead. The Huskers' tough serve continued to give Washington problems, as Sydney Townsend served the fifth ace for the Big Red for a 9-8 lead. Washington went back ahead 10-9 wth an ace of its own, but Foecke terminated to even the set. Malloy and Amber Rolfzen added kills before a Washington error made it 16-14 Huskers. Malloy and Hunter followed with swings for kills and an 18-14 lead, forcing a Washington timeout. Hunter and Amber Rolfzen teamed up for a block after the timeout to continue the 5-0 run and build the lead to 19-14. Another block by that pair, and an Amber Rolfzen kill made it 22-16. A tip kill by Holman gave the Huskers a 23-18 edge, and Foecke swung the Huskers match point at 24-19.

Up Next: Nebraska will make its 13th appearance in the NCAA Semifinal next Thursday in Columbus, Ohio. The Huskers will face the winner of Texas-Creighton at a to-be-announced time.

NCAA Lincoln All-Region Team Penina Snuka, Arizona Kelly Hunter, Nebraska Andie Malloy, Nebraska Kadie Rolfzen, Nebraska Simone Lee, Penn State Ali Frantti, Penn State Crissy Jones, Washington
Most Outstanding Player: Kadie Rolfzen, Nebraska

Nebraska Post-Match Notes

Washington Post-Match Notes