Nebraska Can't Overcome Humidity, as Match at Wrigley Field is Suspended

CHICAGO — A volleyball match between Nebraska and Missouri was scheduled to happen at Wrigley Field Sunday night. 

After three points and a lot of slipping because of condensation, the match turned into an all-hands-on-deck mopping spectacle before a dance party broke out as Justin Bieber, Garth Brooks and Icona Pop blasted from the speakers. 

After a 15-minute delay and the removal of all the logo stickers from the floor, action resumed, and they replayed the third point. Nebraska raced out to a 9-3 lead, but the play wasn’t sharp. 

The action continued briefly, but with the Huskers leading 11-7, another lengthy delay happened. (Another dance party broke out, led by Ryan Hunter and others) Eventually, officials took a 15-minute break as the teams retreated to the locker room. 

At 10:34 p.m., Big Ten officials suspended the match, saying court conditions did not allow play to continue. They said they would not reschedule the match at Wrigley Field, and they would announce a continuation or cancellation later. 

“This obviously did not go as anybody wanted it to or planned,” NU coach Dani Busboom Kelly said. “It was on its way to being a very, very epic moment for our sport, and unfortunately, the weather didn’t cooperate. I’m really thankful for everybody who went out on a limb and invested a lot of money and time and manpower to do something pretty special for our sport.”

That sent the crowd of 43,067 — one of the largest ever at Wrigley and second biggest to ever watch a volleyball match — home, many let down and frustrated that they didn’t get to witness the match. 

Busboom Kelly said her players were also disappointed that the match was called, but relieved because they feared getting hurt. However, they felt bad that they couldn’t entertain everyone in the stands with a full volleyball match.

“We all have a soft spot for anybody who paid money to travel here, paid for the tickets, probably bought gear, bought concession items,” she said. “That’s a lot of investment for a lot of people, so you want to put on a show for them and do your best, and we take a lot of pride in doing that.”

Despite the delays, the players were willing to wait out the conditions to see if they would improve and willing to do whatever it took, including getting on their hands and knees and towel off the court. 

“We go get things done,” Missouri coach Dawn Sullivan said. “That’s just who we are. We wanted to play here. We wanted to play for all these incredible fans, and we’re willing to do whatever it takes to get that done. But that just wasn’t going to happen.”

Earlier in the night, No. 3 Kentucky defeated No. 13 Penn State 25-23, 25-21, 23-25, 25-15. The match mostly resembled a normal game, but in the press conference, the players said the weather affected them. 

Kentucky outside hitter Brooklyn DeLeye said they dealt with the sun during warm-ups, but eventually it went down and the wind picked up. Late in the match, condensation started to collect on the court, and their footing became spotty. 

“As the match went on, it started getting really slippery out there, just from the heat, the condensation,” DeLeye said. “It’s just also just a cool thing that we were able to play in it, but there were definitely factors that were challenging.”

Busboom Kelly and Sullivan said they talked to their counterparts from the earlier match, and they warned them about the conditions. Busboom Kelly said that even before they took the court, NU simplified the offense and cut out slide attacks to be safe, but the humidity didn’t let up.

Even with the limited attack, the Huskers still wanted to play and were in high spirits. 

“They were handling it great, but towards the end, when people were falling and when they started feeling unsafe jumping, that’s when it got to the point of — they can deal with little slips and falls when they were diving, but when they were jumping, that’s when it gets scary.”

Sullivan said the breaking point came when her players said they couldn’t even jump when serving. 

“It’s not worth the health of our athletes, and we want to make sure they’re always taken care of,” she said.

After the suspension, all four of Nebraska’s seniors addressed the crowd and thanked them for turning out in big numbers. Before leaving the field, the Huskers started an impromptu sing-along of Kelly Clarkson’s song “Since You’ve Been Gone” from Pitch Perfect. 

Sullivan said the energy in the stadium was unreal. They tried to practice outdoors in the spring and fall to prepare for the event, but ran into the same condensation issue. In the end, she was still grateful to be part of the event. 

“We get to play in Wrigley Field, and you get to look around, you see those lights,” she said. “I’m just proud of my team, the way they showed up, and the way they’re going to continue to compete this year.”

Busboom Kelly said the match at Wrigley Field, which the Big Ten ran, was a “first-class event” up until it was canceled. She enjoyed the opportunity to raise the sport’s profile, but hopes future big events are played in domes or larger arenas. 

“There’s a reason why our sport’s indoor, and there’s a lot of amazing indoor arenas or football fields indoor or baseball fields that have domes,” she said. “You saw us play one this year, an exhibition. I think there’s opportunities to do some incredible things for volleyball. I do not think outdoor is what we should be doing.”