The No. 9 Nebraska volleyball team fell 3-0 (25-27, 21-25, 23-25) to No. 7 Ohio State Saturday night at the Covelli Center. The Huskers are now 17-6 (11-3 Big Ten) on the year, while the Buckeyes improve to 19-5 (9-5).
Madi Kubik led all players with 18 kills on .400 hitting, adding seven digs, two blocks and a service ace.
Lexi Sun had seven kills and four blocks. Lauren Stivrins finished with a match-high seven blocks alongside three kills.
As a team, the Huskers hit .203 to Ohio State’s .230. OSU had the advantage in digs (58-50) and assists (41-35), and NU outblocked the Buckeyes 11-9. The two teams had two aces apiece.
Ohio State was led by 15 kills on a .500 night from Rylee Rader. Gabby Gonzalez (10 kills, 10 digs) and Mac Podraza (39 assists, 10 digs) each had a double-double, and Kylie Murr had a match-leading 16 digs. Emily Londot and Arica Davis finished with six blocks each.
Set 1
After the Buckeyes took an early lead, two short 4-0 runs helped NU inch within one. The Huskers finally regained the lead on a Kayla Caffey kill that made it 15-14.
The set tied again at 17-all, but the Huskers scored on four straight — with two OSU errors and kills from Stivrins and Knuckles spotting them a 21-17 advantage. After reaching set point at 24-22 on a Stivrins/Sun block, the Buckeyes outscored NU 5-1 down the stretch to take it 27-25.
NU outblocked OSU 6-3, including four from Stivrins and three from Sun. Kubik had six kills at a .353 clip to pace NU, which hit .204 as a team. Mia Grunze had six for OSU, which came in at .204 as a team.
Set 2
After trailing early, the Huskers knotted it five times up to 13-13. Five early serving miscues proved costly, and OSU gained a 17-13 edge. NU twice got within two, but a Davis kill and a Davis/Londot block gave OSU a four-point lead once more as the Huskers took a timeout.
Caffey and Krause teamed up for a block out of the break, and kills from Caffey and Kubik trimmed it to 22-20 and prompted a Buckeye timeout. Two Gonzalez kills and an NU attack error finished the game at 25-21 and gave OSU a two-set lead.
Kubik, hitting .429, had accounted for 13 kills after the first two sets. NU hit .243 in game two.
Set 3
Ohio State got the first two points of the set before NU took the lead on a Callie Schwarzenbach kill. It was part of a 5-1 run for the Huskers, who led 5-3 before a 6-0 run put the Buckeyes back on top. The Big Red worked back to a 10-10 tie with the help of two kills an ace from Kubik, as well as a Sun/Stivrins stop. Kills from Stivrins and Sun put NU in front 13-11.
The Husker lead swelled to 19-16 on a Kubik/Stivrins block before OSU called for a timeout. The Buckeyes then managed to tie at 21-21 after a service error and an attack error by the Huskers. NU and OSU traded the next four points before a Rader kill brought it to set point and forced a Husker timeout. Rader terminated a final time to cap it, 25-23.
OSU hit .306 in the set while holding NU to .167.
Noting Tonight’s Match
-Tonight was Nebraska’s fifth of five straight matches against ranked foes.
–Madi Kubik has led the Huskers in kills in 14 consecutive matches.
–Keonilei Akana had double-figure digs for the fourth straight match.
-Nebraska still leads the all-time series with Ohio State 17-9, including 11-6 in the John Cook era.
-Tonight was only OSU’s second win over the Huskers in Columbus. NU had previously won the last three, and tonight’s contest was its first trip to Columbus since 2018.
Up Next
Nebraska welcomes Maryland on Friday, Nov. 12, with first serve set for 6 p.m. at the Devaney Center. The match will be televised in a statewide broadcast on Nebraska Public Media, and John Baylor and Lauren Cook West will have the radio call on Huskers Radio Network.
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