Husker Streak Ends in Loss to Wisconsin, 3-0

The No. 6 Nebraska volleyball team saw its 10-match win streak come to an end Wednesday night, falling 3-0 (26-24, 25-19, 25-23) to No. 3 Wisconsin at the Devaney Center. The Huskers are now 16-4 (10-1 Big Ten), while the Badgers improve to 18-1 (10-1).
 
Madi Kubik, Lindsay Krause and Lauren Stivrins all finished with nine kills on the night to lead Nebraska. Kubik added six digs and two blocks, Krause had three blocks, and Stivrins had two more.
 
Kayla Caffey finished with eight kills and a match-high five blocks.
 
Nicklin Hames registered her fifth straight double-double and 13th of the season with 32 assists and 14 digs. Lexi Rodriguez (11) and Keonilei Akana (10) both had double-figure dig nights.
 
Wisconsin was led by 12 kills on .647 hitting from Anna Smrek and 11 more from Dana Rettke. Sydney Hilley had 37 assists and 16 digs, and Lauren Barnes finished with a match-high 20 digs. Devyn Robinson had five blocks.
 
The Badgers hit .229 to Nebraska’s .148 and had a narrow blocking advantage, 9-8.
 
Set 1
UW took a 5-1 lead to open the match. Down 12-6, the Huskers stormed back as Caffey and Krause combined for two kills and a block, and coupled with two Badger attack errors, the 5-1 run cut it to 13-11. NU locked it at 15-all on a Stivrins kill and two more UW attack errors, prompting a Badger timeout.
 
The Big Red built to an 18-16 lead, and Hames extended it with a kill to make it 19-17. UW responded with a block and two kills to regain the lead, 20-19, before an Akana kill from the back row tied it once more.
 
NU and UW continued to trade points up to a 24-24 tie, but the Badgers pulled away with a Grace Loberg kill and a Husker setting error to claim it, 26-24.
 
Seven different NU players registered a kill as the Huskers outhit Wisconsin .255 to .212 in the set with four kills from Ally Batenhorst. Smrek had five kills on six swings for UW.
 
Set 2
Three Stivrins kills kept NU in it early as the set drew to a 7-7 tie. UW assumed its largest lead at 18-13 before the Husker block went to work, with two blocks from Caffey/Krause and Caffey/Hames and a solo stuff by Batenhorst cutting it to 18-16 before a Badger timeout. After kills from Julia Orzol and Rettke, the Huskers took their own timeout, trailing 21-17. A Caffey kill and a Stivrins/Krause block twice staved off set point, but Smrek closed it out with a kill for UW, 25-19.
 
Set 3
After UW went up 7-5, the Huskers rallied with a 6-0 run bolstered by two kills and a solo block from Caffey. UW, hitting -.231 to start, had just one kill with four attack errors before the first timeout as Nebraska led 11-7.
 
NU held on to its lead until back-to-back kills from Smrek and Orzol tied it at 17-17. A 4-0 run then gave UW a 21-18 edge. Kills from Caffey, Krause and Stivrins all got the Huskers within two multiple times, but a Rettke kill brought it to match point at 24-21. Following a Badger service error, Stivrins put down another kill to pull NU within one at 24-23. The Badgers called for a timeout, and a Husker attack error gave them the set, 25-23.
 
Up Next
Nebraska faces its third straight ranked opponent with a visit to No. 11 Minnesota this Saturday, Oct. 30. First serve is set for 7 p.m. at Maturi Pavilion in Minneapolis, Minn. The match will be televised on Big Ten Network and streamed via its digital extension on the FOX Sports app, with Larry Punteney and Audrey Flaugh on the call. John Baylor and Lauren Cook West will also have the radio call on Huskers Radio Network.