• The Nebraska volleyball team plays its only spring match of the season when it heads to Grand Island to face Kansas on Saturday at 5 p.m. at the Heartland Events Center.
• Saturday’s match will be televised statewide on Nebraska Public Media. A free live stream will be available to watch at NebraskaPublicMedia.org.
• The Huskers Radio Network will carry the match on network affiliates, Huskers.com and the Huskers app. Matt Coatney will fill in for John Baylor on play-by-play on Saturday, while former Husker All-American Lauren Cook West will provide color commentary. Pre-match coverage will begin at 4:30 p.m.
• Tickets for Saturday’s match went on sale on March 10 and approximately 6,000 tickets were sold out within 10 minutes. Nebraska last played in Grand Island in the 2015 spring season, sweeping Kansas State in front of a crowd of 6,006 at the Heartland Events Center. NU also played in Grand Island in 2011, topping Wichita State 3-2 in front of a packed house of 5,522.
• After the match, the Husker players will sign autographs in the arena for approximately one hour.
ABOUT THE HUSKERS
• Nebraska is coming off a 26-8 season (15-4 Big Ten) and an NCAA runner-up finish. Entering the NCAA Tournament with a 21-7 record and a lineup featuring four freshmen in the rotation, the 10th-seeded Huskers peaked at the right time, knocking off the No. 2 Texas Longhorns on their way to an NCAA Semifinals appearance. After a 3-1 win over No. 3 Pittsburgh, NU got a third chance against Big Ten champion Wisconsin in the NCAA Final. The match went to five sets, where the Huskers fell behind 7-0. A furious rally pulled the Huskers to within 14-12, but ultimately Wisconsin edged NU for the crown.
• Three Huskers earned AVCA All-America honors, led by Nebraska’s second-ever AVCA National Freshman of the Year in libero Lexi Rodriguez, who was also the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and an AVCA first-team All-American. Rodriguez averaged 4.33 digs per set and posted a Nebraska freshman record for digs in a season with 524.
• Madi Kubik had a breakout junior campaign in 2021, earning third-team AVCA All-America honors and first-team All-Big Ten. Kubik had a team-high 3.49 kills per set to go with 2.11 digs per set. She ranked third in Big Ten matches in kills per set (4.11).
• Middle blocker Kayla Caffey was recognized as an AVCA second-team All-American in 2021 for the first time in her career. Caffey averaged 2.41 kills and 1.11 blocks per set while hitting a team-high .363 last season. In Big Ten play, Caffey’s .376 hitting percentage ranked fourth in the conference.
• The Huskers reached the NCAA Championship match for the fourth time in seven years, the most finals appearances by any program since 2015.
OPPONENT PREVIEW: KANSAS
• Kansas is coming off an NCAA Regional Semifinal appearance last season. The Jayhawks upset No. 19 Oregon (3-0) and No. 20 Creighton (3-1) before bowing out of the NCAA Tournament to No. 3 Pittsburgh (0-3).
• Kansas finished the year 18-12 and went 8-8 in the Big 12 Conference, finishing in a tie for third.
• Caroline Bien was the Big 12 Freshman of the Year last fall. Bien averaged 2.95 kills per set and 2.42 digs in her first year at KU. The outside hitter was named to the All-Big 12 First Team.
• The Jayhawks added Florida graduate transfer middle blocker Lauren Dooley in January. Dooley played in 22 matches for the Gators in 2021 and had 86 kills and 77 blocks while hitting .436. Dooley was the SEC Defensive Player of the Week three weeks in a row in her junior season in 2020-21 and led the SEC in blocks with 1.40 per set.
• Former Husker Anezka Szabo is a senior right-side hitter for the Jayhawks. Szabo averaged 1.41 kills and 1.01 blocks for Kansas in 2021.
SERIES HISTORY
• Nebraska is 87-0-1 all-time against Kansas. The last time the teams met was in the 2015 NCAA Semifinal in Omaha, where the Huskers prevailed 3-1 en route to winning the NCAA Championship.
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