Huskers Start Homestand Saturday With Hawkeyes

The No. 12 Nebraska volleyball team (7-3, 1-0 Big Ten) begins a three-match homestand with Iowa (2-9, 0-1) this Saturday, Sept. 25. First serve is set for 2 p.m. at the Devaney Center. The match will be televised on Nebraska Public Media and streamed on Big Ten Network+ with Larry Punteney on play-by-play and Kathi Wieskamp providing color commentary.
 
This week’s action will be carried on Huskers Radio Network with the NU radio team of John Baylor and Lauren Cook West. 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 for the sixth straight year.
 
Huskers Radio Network will carry the matches on HRN radio affiliates, including 107.3 FM in Lincoln and AM 590 in Omaha. A live audio stream will be available at Huskers.com and on the Huskers app.
 
Quick Hits
• The Huskers’ conference-opening win at Northwestern Wednesday night improves them to 10-1 all-time in Big Ten openers. They have won eight straight openers dating back to 2013.
• Nebraska has gone at least 3-0 to start Big Ten play every season since 2013.
• NU opened 2021 with a six-match win streak, then dropped three straight to No. 20 Utah (Sept. 11), No. 16 Stanford (Sept. 14) and No. 5 Louisville (Sept. 18) before rebounding with Wednesday’s win at Northwestern.
• Nebraska held a streak of 60 straight weeks in the top of the AVCA poll before moving to 12th this week. The last time the Huskers ranked outside the top 10 was Sept. 18, 2017, when they were 14th.
• In the last 30 years, NU has had three straight losses only four times. The last time NU dropped three consecutive non-conference matches was Sept. 14-21, 1991.
• The Huskers played four straight top-20 opponents in an 11-day span this month with No. 19 Creighton (Sept. 8), No. 20 Utah (Sept. 11), No. 16 Stanford (Sept. 14) and No. 5 Louisville (Sept. 18).
• Five of NU’s six freshmen have seen the court so far this year. The Huskers started four — Ally Batenhorst, Lindsay Krause, Whitney Lauenstein and Lexi Rodriguez — Sept. 14 at No. 16 Stanford.
 
Scouting the Iowa Hawkeyes
Iowa is 2-9 (0-1 Big Ten) on the season after a 3-2 loss to Illinois Wednesday night — their third straight defeat. Courtney Buzzerio registered a match-high 24 kills, and two Hawkeyes had 20-dig nights: Maddie Slagle (24) and Mari Hinkle (20). Addie VanderWeide added 10 kills and 19 digs for a double-double. Buzzerio’s 4.68 kills per set rank second in the conference and 14th nationally.
 
Iowa finished 4-16 last spring, and Buzzerio was a first-team All-Big Ten selection.
 
Vicki Brown is in her third season at the helm with a record of 16-46 and a career mark of 20-73 over her four years as a head coach.
 
Noting the Series
In the history of Nebraska-Iowa matchups, the Huskers have been dominant in the series. They lead 33-0 all-time, including 20-0 in the John Cook era and 17-0 when the match is set in Lincoln. NU has swept four of the last five outings and 18 of the 20 meetings as members of the Big Ten.
 
The most recent Nebraska-Iowa contest was March 20, 2021 at the Devaney Center, with the Huskers sweeping the Hawkeyes for the second time that week. Nebraska hit .397 while holding Iowa to .013, and John Cook secured his 600th win at NU. The Huskers got 12 kills both from Jazz Sweet (.733) and Lexi Sun (.526).
 
Up Next
Nebraska continues its homestand at the Devaney Center, playing host to Michigan on Friday, Oct. 1 at 6 p.m. and Michigan State on Sunday, Oct. 3 at 3 p.m. Both matches will be televised on Big Ten Network and streamed on the FOX Sports app, and John Baylor and Lauren Cook West will have the radio call on Huskers Radio Network.