Nebraska and Creighton met on a volleyball court five months ago. 

However, any direct correlation between that match and the renewal of the in-state rivalry on Wednesday night at Pinnacle Bank Arena will be minimal. The match is scheduled to start at 6 p.m. and will be broadcast on BTN. 

No. 20 Creighton has added several players to its roster, including setter Katie Dalton, who started the first seven matches of the season. Even though the top-ranked Huskers had their full roster together, most players only played in two sets and the starting lineup that they’ve used for most of the fall never appeared together. 

NU coach Dani Busboom Kelly said she won’t even bother to rewatch that match in preparation for this week’s game. 

“They’re completely different,” she said Saturday night following the Georgia Tech match. “I haven’t looked at them so maybe not completely, but spring is one thing. It’s a whole different thing in the fall.”

Creighton (5-4) owns wins over then-No. 9 Purdue and No. 20 USC in the opening weekend, but enters the rivalry match with more uncertainty. 

Dalton did not appear in the Jays’ last two matches, losses to No. 5 Louisville and Rice. CU ran a two-setter offense featuring freshman Rayna Christianson and senior Ivy Leuck. Even though the Bluejays have lost their last two matches, Busboom Kelly said they are due to play well. 

The Jays have relied upon Trinity Shadd-Ceres and middle blocker Ayden Ames, who have both earned weekly Big East honors this season. Shadd-Ceres, a transfer from Wisconsin, leads CU with 3.24 kills per set. Ames, a Texas transfer, is putting up 2.05 kills per set with a .326 hitting percentage and 1.05 blocks per set. 

“This is a good team with some really great players who can take over a game and cause a lot of problems,” Busboom Kelly said. “We are expecting to get their best, like we always do. I feel like they probably learned a lot. So they’re probably going to be figuring it out this week and be ready to go.”

Although the Huskers hold a 24-0 all-time advantage in the series, the Bluejays have claimed at least one set in every match in the past decade except 2021. The last two meetings have gone five sets, with NU prevailing 15-10 in 2024 and 15-9 in 2025. 

“We will be very fired up for Creighton because they’re a great team,” Busboom Kelly said. “Every year I feel like they go four or five. They are always battles, and then to be in PBA is always really fun for us.”

Skyler Pierce said she enjoys it when they get a chance to play in the 15,500-seat Pinnacle Bank Arena. The Huskers played two matches in the venue to start the 2025 season as part of the AVCA First Serve Showcase. NU also played its Red-White scrimmage at the primary home of the school’s basketball teams. 

“We’ve had a couple of games in PBA, so I think we’re a little more used to it now,” the junior outside hitter said. “Especially with it being Nebraska’s rival, I think it’ll be a really cool atmosphere for both teams.”

The Huskers feature two native Nebraskans on their roster: libero Olivia Mauch from Bennington and Lincoln Lutheran graduate Keri Leimbach. At the same time, Creighton has three home-state players: Lueck (Omaha Skutt), middle blocker Nora Wurtz (Douglas County West) and opposite Ashlyn Paymal (Omaha Westside).

Leimbach said she couldn’t attend any NU-CU matches in high school because she was busy with her season. She got a close-up view last year during her redshirt season with the Huskers. 

“Whenever Creighton and Nebraska play, it’s always like a really good game, and it’s just like a really good rivalry,” Leimbach said. “It just shows how strong volleyball is in Nebraska, and it’s just really cool to be homegrown and be a part of it.” 

After their first attempt to play was suspended at Wrigley Field because of a slick court, Nebraska and Missouri will now meet on Wednesday, Sept. 23, in John Cook Arena. 

Despite playing 18 points in Chicago, this match will start over at 0-0 in the first set. It is scheduled to start at 6 p.m. and be televised by BTN. 

Tickets for the match will be added to the 2026 season ticket package at no additional charge. No additional tickets will be sold. 

Teraya Sigler struggled in the first set against Georgia Tech. The sophomore outside hitter recorded just one kill on five swings with three hitting errors.

Late in the set, Busboom Kelly substituted Pierce in for her. Sigler joined the bench, and she was greeted by her teammates, who comforted her and told her to keep her head up. Sigler made a brief appearance in the second set to play the back row for Pierce, but otherwise spent most of the next two sets on the bench. 

Her day wasn’t done, though. Sigler entered the match in the fourth set for Harper Murray with the Huskers trailing 8-7. The Scottsdale, Arizona, native tallied four kills on five swings as the NU ended the match on a 17-4 run. 

Busboom Kelly wanted to give Sigler another shot after her early struggles. She said you can observe and learn things from the bench that you might not see on the court. Busboom Kelly tried to build Sigler’s confidence by reinserting her into the match. 

“I think that’s a good challenge because a lot of times when you pull somebody, especially a great player, you might end up needing them again later in that match,” she said. “(We want her to be) developing that mental capacity to be able to be on the bench, see some things and come back in and execute.”