Huskers open tournament with sweep of Virginia
Print
digg it!
Facebook
del.icio.us
Seed Newsvine
Fark It
Reddit
By TODD HENRICHS / Lincoln Journal Star
The fans’ greeting for former NU assistant Lee Maes was incredibly moving, as was the vast array of shots from the Huskers’ Tara Mueller.
The junior outside hitter, who played for Maes on a USA Volleyball youth team at age 13, put on an impressive show for her one-time mentor. Mueller scored 14 kills on .583 hitting as fifth-ranked Nebraska swept Maes’ young Virginia team 25-20, 25-11, 25-16 to open the Ameritas Players Challenge at the NU Coliseum.
“I thought we had a pretty good game plan for each player, but it comes down to execution,” Maes said. “Her ability to hit every single shot in the book makes her very, very difficult to defend.”
Related Link(s):
At least UCLA's young lineup now knows what it's like to go past three sets.
The No. 8 Bruins, who swept opponents in their first five victories and were swept at Hawaii, worked a little overtime to defeat BYU 25-16, 25-11, 23-25, 25-15 to open the Ameritas Players Challenge.
Dicey McGraw had 17 kills to lead the Bruins, who owned some pretty impressive edges in the final statistics despite dropping a set. UCLA had 63 kills to 29 for BYU and 87 digs to 42 for the Cougars. BYU, however, came up with 16 blocks.
"We had a couple of let-ups," UCLA setter Lauren Cook said.
The daughter of NU coach John Cook said she was a bit amped up for her return to the NU Coliseum, where she had led Pius X teams to two of their three most-recent state titles.
Cook had four kills and 14 digs while Kaitlin Sather added 12 kills for the Bruins. Kayla Walker had 15 kills, more than half of BYU's total.
NATIONAL TEAM NEWS: Former Huskers Nancy Metcalf and Jordan Larson were named to the 12-person U.S. roster for this week’s Final Four International Cup that began Wednesday in Lima, Peru.
Larson, however, was replaced on the roster by Jane Collymore after returning to Nebraska to attend to family matters. Larson practiced with the Huskers on Monday.
The national team earned a four-set win over Peru on Thursday. Metcalf had five points in the victory. The U.S. team faces the Dominican Republic today in its final round-robin match before Saturday’s semifinals.
AROUND THE NATION: A sprinkling of some of the big matches ahead this weekend: No. 17 Kentucky at No. 21 Kansas State, No. 10 Stanford at No. 6 Hawaii, and No. 3 Washington vs. No. 9 Minnesota and No. 4 Florida. Both Washington matches are at the Tampa Twice tournament in Florida, site of this year’s final four.
-- Todd Henrichs
In hopes of making his Nebraska team more difficult to defend, coach John Cook unveiled a lineup that had Gina Mancuso rotating into the back row for right-side starter Lindsey Licht, a role previously held by defensive specialist Megan Pendergast.
With both touted freshmen on the court — Hannah Werth started opposite Mueller at outside hitter — Cook said he’s closer to his goal of getting Nebraska’s best players on the court.
“Gina and Hannah are too good to have one of them sitting out,” Cook said. “Gina, we feel, is our best back-row attacker … and we want to get more firepower in the back row. It’s all about trying to score points.”
Werth and Licht each added nine kills for 6-1 Nebraska, but it was again the Huskers’ defense that dominated, limiting Virginia to 22 kills and .031 hitting.
Jordan Wilberger had six blocks, and Kayla Banwarth and Sydney Anderson both reached double figures in digs. NU has held opponents to .076 hitting since dropping the season opener. On Thursday, the Huskers hit .308.
“Stats don’t lie,” Cook said. “We’re not going to be an overpowering offensive team. We’re going to have to win with serve and pass and defense.”
And teamwork, Mueller said. Despite being Nebraska’s workhorse over the last five matches (4.0 kills per set, .364), Mueller downplays her role in alone trying to fill the shoes of All-American Jordan Larson.
“My role would be to be a consistent leader and not allow myself to play with my emotions and make errors,” said Mueller, who struggled in NU’s loss to Michigan, offsetting five kills with six errors.
For the first time in her career, Mueller was error-free in a match where she reached double-digit kills . She now has 506 kills as a Husker, all of which can be traced back to her first encounter with Maes, then an assistant at California.
“He was the first person that saw me,” Mueller said. “It was real cool seeing him tonight.”
Maes said the same could be said for his return to Lincoln.
“I’ve always said what makes Nebraska special are the people,” Maes said. “It’s a thrill when you get to be in that environment again.”
Reach Todd Henrichs at 473-7320 or thenrichs@journalstar.com.
Most Commented Volleyball