Huskers Set for Annual Red-White Scrimmage

The Nebraska volleyball team will hold its annual Red-White Scrimmage this Saturday, Aug. 21 at the Bob Devaney Sports Center, with first serve set for 6 p.m. The scrimmage is open to the public, and a limited number of $10 tickets are available for purchase online at Huskers.com/tickets or by phone at (800) 8-BIG-RED. Four hundred fans will receive a 2021 volleyball season poster Saturday at the Devaney Center.

The scrimmage will be broadcast live on Big Ten Network+ and Huskers Radio Network with John Baylor and Lauren Cook West on the call. Baylor is in his 28th season handling play-by-play duties for the Husker volleyball program, and West, a former All-America setter at NU, will provide color commentary. Huskers Radio Network will carry the match on HRN radio affiliates, including 107.3 FM in Lincoln and AM 590 in Omaha. A live audio stream will be provided at Huskers.com and the Huskers app.

2020-21 at a Glance

Nebraska capped the 2020-21 season with an overall record of 16-3 (14-2 Big Ten) and reached an NCAA Regional Final for the ninth straight year, which marks the longest Elite Eight streak in the nation. NU’s NCAA Regional Final appearance was its 30th overall, which is the most in NCAA history.

Nicklin Hames, Lauren Stivrins and Lexi Sun all picked up AVCA All-America honors, and the trio plus Madi Kubik earned AVCA All-North Region recognition. Hames, Stivrins and Sun also earned first-team All-Big Ten plaudits.

All-Americans Headline Husker Returners

The Huskers return three AVCA All-Americans in Nicklin Hames, Lauren Stivrins and Lexi Sun. Hames, a second-team honoree at setter last season, averaged a Big Ten-leading 10.91 assists per set while guiding NU to a .270 team hitting percentage.

Sun, a two-time All-America pick at outside hitter, averaged a team-leading 3.64 kills per set and 2.21 digs per set in 2020-21 . She announced on May 19 her decision to return for a fifth season of eligibility, which the NCAA granted to student-athletes due to COVID-19 interruptions.

Stivrins, a three-time All-America middle blocker, averaged 3.19 kills per set and 1.03 blocks per set. She had a team-best .468 hitting percentage, which led the Big Ten, ranked third nationally and was the second-best single-season mark in school history. Stivrins announced her return for a sixth season on Aug. 6.

Additionally, outside hitter Madi Kubik received AVCA All-America honorable mention for the second straight season after averaging 2.85 kills and 2.38 digs per set as a sophomore.

NU also counts returning letterwinners in libero Kenzie Knuckles, middle blocker Kayla Caffey, setter Anni Evans, defensive specialist Keonilei Akana, middle blocker Kalynn Meyer and middle blocker Callie Schwarzenbach.

New Faces at Nebraska

Nebraska welcomes six newcomers in the 2021 signing class, which was ranked No. 1 by PrepVolleyball.com last November. All six were ranked in the top 70 recruits nationally. Five were counted in the top 16 and four were in the top 10, while each of the top three signed to become Huskers.

The freshman class includes outside hitter Ally Batenhorst (Houston, Texas), middle blocker Rylee Gray (Elkhorn, Neb.), outside hitter Lindsay Krause (Papillion, Neb.), outside hitter Whitney Lauenstein (Waverly, Neb.), setter Kennedi Orr (Eagan, Minn.) and defensive specialist/libero Lexi Rodriguez (Sterling, Ill.).

Batenhorst, the No. 3 overall prospect and No. 2 outside hitter, was the 2020-21 Gatorade National Player of the Year in May. She joined Gina Mancuso (2009), Mikaela Foecke (2015) and Lexi Sun (2017) as Huskers previously named Gatorade National Player of the Year. Batenhorst led Seven Lakes High School to a Texas Class 6A state championship last fall.

Gray, the No. 70 overall recruit, helped Elkhorn South High School to four state tournament appearances. A three-time all-state pick, she helped her team to the 2020 Class A state title.

Krause was the No. 2 overall recruit and the No. 1 outside hitter in the 2021 class. She was a member of the 2021 U.S. team at the U20 World Championships and a gold medalist with Team USA at the 2019 U18 World Championships. Krause was the 2020 Nebraska Gatorade Player of the Year, a four-time state champion and a four-time all-state pick at Skutt Catholic High School.  

Lauenstein was tabbed the No. 16 recruit in the 2021 class and the No. 2 recruit in the state of Nebraska. She helped Waverly High School to three state tournaments and was a three-time all-state honoree.

Rodriguez joined Batenhorst and Krause on the 2021 U.S. U20 World Championship Team and was named the No. 10 overall recruit and No. 1 libero/defensive specialist in the 2021 class. Rodriguez also won a gold medal with Team USA at the 2019 U18 Worlds. Averaging 7.2 digs per set at Sterling High School, she was the 2020 Illinois Gatorade Player of the Year and a two-time state champion.

Orr, the No. 1 overall recruit in the 2021 class, was a six-year varsity player at Eagan High School in Eagan, Minn., where she won two state titles and added three runner-up finishes. She was a gold medalist with Team USA at the 2019 U18 World Championships, where she was honored as Best Setter. Orr was the 2019 Minnesota Gatorade Player of the Year.

AVCA Hall of Fame Head Coach John Cook in 22nd Season at Nebraska

• Nebraska head coach John Cook enters his 22nd season as the Nebraska volleyball head coach in 2021. He has led the Huskers to four national championships, nine final fours, 12 conference championships and 19 top-10 final rankings since 2000.

• Cook owns 765 career wins and is one of the all-time winningest coaches in NCAA history. Since taking over the program in 2000, Cook has led the Huskers to a nation-leading .878 win percentage in that time (604-84).

• Under Cook, the Huskers have tallied 60 AVCA All-Americans and 20 CoSIDA Academic All-Americans, both among the best in the nation. He is a two-time AVCA National Coach of the Year, earning the prestigious honor in 2000 and 2005, and a seven-time conference coach of the year, including Big Ten Coach of the Year in 2016 and 2017, his first and second Big Ten honors with the Huskers in their Big Ten era (2011-present).

• Cook is one of only four active coaches – and one of six all-time – to be a two-time AVCA National Coach of the Year and was honored in 2008 by USA Volleyball, receiving its All-Time Great Coach Award.

• Cook was inducted into the AVCA Hall of Fame in 2017, joining former Husker volleyball coach Terry Pettit in the hall.

• Cook became the ninth active Division I head coach to reach 700 career wins in 2018.

Up Next

Nebraska opens the 2021 season by playing host to the Husker Invitational, Aug. 27-28, at the Devaney Center. The Huskers make their debut Friday vs. Tulsa at 11 a.m., followed by an evening match with Colgate at 6:30 p.m. and a Saturday finale with Kansas State at 4 p.m.