Without Jackson, Nebraska Still Sweeps DePaul in front of Record Crowd

CHICAGO — Nebraska was down an All-American middle blocker and only let its most productive player get one set of action, but it didn’t matter much. 

The top-ranked Huskers hit a season-high .434 with just seven hitting errors during a 25-19, 25-13, 25-15 sweep over DePaul Friday afternoon in front of a school-record crowd of 8,786 at WinTrust Arena. 

Nebraska (4-0) was without All-American middle blocker Andi Jackson, who suffered an ankle injury against South Dakota State on Wednesday. She participated in the Huskers’ serve-and-pass practice earlier in the day, but they held her out of the match. 

NU coach Dani Busboom Kelly said they wanted to give Jackson some rest because the Huskers opened the season with seven matches over 11 days in four different states. 

“We want to get everybody some rest when we can, and so it’s like, why would we push Andi when we’re looking for a game to rest her anyways?” she said. “Ankles could be a little finicky, but she seemed to be fine. She was jumping today in practice. We’ll see on Sunday, but it’s just not worth it this early in the season to push her more than she needs to be.”

Sophomore Kenna Cogill earned her first career start and made the most of the opportunity. The Gilbert, Ariz. native said she was a little nervous to start, but quickly settled into the flow of the match. She was at her best at the end of the second set when she recorded a kill and two blocks during a 5-1 run to close it out. 

Cogill finished the match with four kills and seven blocks. The 6-foot-4 middle blocker said she was most proud of her blocking performance, as she’s been working on the skill since she arrived in Lincoln. | Nebraska Athletics

“There were definitely some jitters in the beginning,” she said. “Whenever that died down, it was more fun just getting to show off what our team has been working on the past couple months.”

Meanwhile, Teraya Sigler only played one set, but recorded eight kills on her 10 swings and added two blocks. However, she gave way to her teammates after the first set. 

Busboom Kelly might have been tempted to alter their game plan of giving her a couple of sets off to rest as well, but stuck with it and benched Sigler after a hot start. 

“I told her she has to be perfect. I mean, we need 10-for-10, not 8-for-10,” Busboom Kelly joked afterward. “We had a plan on Wednesday, a plan tonight, and we didn’t want to deviate from that. Rest is good too. I told her she was only going to play set one, and it was great to see her make the most of it.”

Sigler’s evening got off to a rough start as she was targeted on the first two serves, which led to DePaul points, including an ace. She eventually settled in and began terminating nearly every shot she hit — from the left pin, right pin and back row. Sigler ended the set with a sharp 4-to-4 shot from the left pin that landed well in front of the 10-foot line.

“It was just, how can I help my team in the best that I possibly can?” Sigler said. “I think that’s my mindset for most sets too. And I think, especially when you’re in a big arena, we’re all just settling into it. Nerves are high. After my first couple points passing, I was like, ‘Man, I feel really amped right now.’ To be able to back my team up however they needed to, and Bergen did such a good job. Liv did. Everyone did such a good job of just supporting each other in that, and just settling into our game.”

She wasn’t the only one who was attacking at a high rate. The Huskers posted a .607 hitting percentage in the first set. Bergen Reilly contributed 13 assists before giving way to sophomore Campbell Flynn late in the set. Overall, the Huskers recorded 18 kills on 28 attacks and just one error in the set. 

Flynn, who was making her season debut, carried the offense the rest of the way. She finished with 16 assists, two kills, two aces and eight digs. Busboom Kelly called her the player of the match. Even though she hadn’t appeared in any action before, she would be given a long runway to run the offense. She said Flynn has made strides in floor defense and blocking and is setting better than ever. 

“It’s just awesome to see her get out there and get an opportunity and show our team what a great leader is,” Busboom Kelly said. “She is somebody who knows that they’re not going to start, probably maybe not at all this year, but to go in and make the most of our opportunity and be super confident.”

Outside hitter Harper Murray and libero Oliva Mauch were the only regular starters who played all three sets. Murray led the Huskers with 11 kills while Mauch posted a match-high 11 digs. 

The rest of the bench also posted solid numbers during their time on the court. Opposite Ryan Hunter recorded five kills on seven swings, and Skyler Pierce finished with three kills, an ace and two blocks. 

The starters made the most of their time as well. Manaia Ogbechie put up four kills on six swings with two blocks, and Virginia Adriano recorded kills on her only two swings.

DePaul (4-1) finished with a .060 hitting percentage. Kendal Timme led the Blue Demons with 12 kills. 

Nebraska helped another school set an arena record, as the crowd was the largest ever to watch a volleyball match in Illinois. The record will stand for a couple of days until the Huskers play a pair of matches at Wrigley Field on Sunday. 

“It’s pretty unreal, and a lot of these places, it’s a little bit of a pinch-wing moment,” Busboom Kelly said. “Hopefully some of the people that are here tonight will come back and watch more games. Hats off to DePaul. They did everything they could to make this first class with the TaraFlex and WinTrust Arena. It was a really awesome venue, and the attendance record reflected the work that they did.”