Courtesy of Husker Athletics
The No. 3 Nebraska volleyball team won its seventh straight match with a 25-14, 26-24, 25-19 sweep at No. 24 Michigan in front of 3,566 at the Crisler Center on Saturday night.
Lexi Rodriguez had a season-high 25 digs in the three-set match to go with a pair of aces to spark the Huskers, who are now 14-1 and 6-0 in the Big Ten. Madi Kubik led the attack with 15 kills on .519 hitting, while Whitney Lauenstein had 10 kills and six blocks.
The Huskers hit .330 and held Michigan, the top hitting team in the Big Ten entering the match, to .184. The Huskers outblocked the Wolverines, 11-2, and had six service aces while yielding none to Michigan.
Ally Batenhorst stepped into the lineup for the Huskers on Saturday night and contributed seven kills and two blocks. Lindsay Krause had six kills without an error for a .353 hitting percentage with three blocks.
The Husker middle blockers were active once again for NU, as Kaitlyn Hord had four kills and seven blocks while hitting .333, and Maggie Mendelson had three kills and four blocks on .300 hitting. Mendelson also served two of the Huskers’ six aces.
Kennedi Orr had 26 assists and six digs, and Anni Evans chipped in 13 assists. Kenzie Knuckles added seven digs.
Kendall Murray had 13 kills to lead the Wolverines (12-4, 3-3 Big Ten).
Set 1: The Huskers got off on the right foot with a block by Hord and Lauenstein, and consecutive kills by Hord, Lauenstein and Kubik preceded an ace by Rodriguez that made it 5-1 Huskers. A solo block by Mendelson put the Huskers up 8-2, and she later added a kill to make it 11-3. Kubik and Lauenstein tacked on kills before a block by Lauenstein and Hord had the Huskers up 15-8. Back-to-back kills by Kubik and a kill by Mendelson and ace by Lauenstein increased NU’s lead to 19-9. The Huskers closed out a 25-14 win in the first set as Batenhorst, Lauenstein and Hord produced kills down the stretch. NU hit .464 and sided out at 92.9 percent.
Set 2: Nebraska led 5-4 after kills by Lauenstein and Kubik, but Michigan recorded a 5-0 run, all via kills, to go up 10-6. Krause finally stopped the run with a kill, and a block by Batenhorst and Hord was followed by a Mendelson ace to cut it to 10-9. But the Wolverines held off the Huskers and went back up by four, 17-13. Kubik terminated her eighth and ninth kills before a Michigan attacking error drew the Huskers within one again, 17-16. This time, the Huskers did tie the match as Kubik connected again to make it 17-17. The senior wasn’t done though, as her 11th kill made it 18-17 Huskers. Michigan took the next two points to go up 19-18, but Krause stepped up with two kills to tie the score at 20-20. Batenhorst added another kill, but Lauenstein and Hord teamed up for a pair of blocks to earn set point at 24-23. The Wolverines held strong at first, but Lauenstein earned another one and Kubik clinched the set with her 12th kill that made it 26-24.
Set 3: The Huskers used a 6-2 run to take an 8-5 lead. Batenhorst had a kill and a triple block with Mendelson and Krause, and Hord and Lauenstein also had a block. After two kills by Lauenstein and a block by Lauenstein and Hord, the Huskers held a 12-9 lead. Mendelson dropped a kill to the floor, and Batenhorst posted her fifth kill before Mendelson’s second ace made it 16-11 Huskers. Michigan put together a 4-1 spurt to get within 17-15, but a kill by Lauenstein and an ace by Rodriguez restored a 20-16 Big Red lead. Batenhorst’s seventh kill made it 23-18, and a Mendelson/Krause block earned match point at 24-19. The Huskers finished their 11th sweep of the season, 25-19.
Up Next: The Huskers are back at home next weekend for two matches before another stretch of three straight road matches. Nebraska will host Penn State on Friday, Oct. 14 at 7:30 p.m. and Northwestern on Sunday, Nov. 16 at 2 p.m.
