KANSAS CITY, Mo. (WMTV) – The Badgers Volleyball team lost to Kentucky Thursday night and failed to advance to the National Championship game on Sunday.

Wisconsin lost to the Wildcats 3-2 in Kansas City.

Kentucky will play Texas A&M on Sunday afternoon for the National Championship.

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LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) – Athletic Director Troy Dannen reflected on another year of Nebraska Athletics, sharing highlights and achievements of the men’s and women’s sports teams and hinting at what’s to come.

In competition, Huskers excelled in multiple sports:

• Nebraska volleyball team just completed a remarkable 33-1 season
• Wrestling finished as the national runner-up as a team and two Husker wrestlers won individual national championships
• Softball made an NCAA Super Regional appearance
• Football earned a second straight bowl berth
• Both basketball teams are undefeated and ranked in the AP Top 25.

This year, student-athletes set a school record with a 3.464 GPA, led the Big Ten Conference with 117 fall Academic All-Conference selections and once again posted a Graduation Success Rate over 90%, among the best in the nation. Dannen said they also made a positive impact in Lincoln and surrounding communities through their volunteer work.

Alcohol and food sales at Husker venues

The start of alcohol sales at all on-campus venues and the addition of new food options resulted in an increase of 75% in total concession revenue compared to last year, Dannen said.

“More than 313,000 alcoholic beverages were served and new food options were added to the menu, resulting in an increase of 75% in total concession revenue compared to last year,” Dannen said.

The introduction of alcohol sales came with concerns about the impact on fan behavior, but Dannen said it remained consistent with the previous five years.

John Cook Arena reseating

The John Cook Arena reseating process planned for 2026 has drawn criticism from longtime season ticket holders.

Dannen said the athletic staff has developed a plan that ensures that season-ticket holders in 2025 will be guaranteed season-tickets next year.

Dannen said 10% of current season-ticket holders did not use their tickets this year but rather sold those tickets through secondary markets. Those tickets, originally purchased for a total of $600,000 by those ticket holders, were then resold for a total of $3.2 million on the secondary market. Ticket use for this purpose is strictly prohibited.

The accounts that resold the entirety of their tickets will be excluded from the ability to purchase season-tickets in 2026, Dannen said.

1890 Nebraska winding down operations

With the implementation of the House settlement, 1890 Nebraska, Husker Athletics’ NIL collective, has begun winding down its operations.

“Hundreds of Husker fans donated millions of dollars over the past 24 months to support NIL for our student-athletes, as the rules at the time permitted,” Dannen said the in the letter.

The House settlement now prohibits much of what 1890 Nebraska provided, but in turn allows the university to share $20.5 million directly with student-athletes as they pay to license their NIL rights.

The five sports primarily supported by the collective include the Nebraska wrestling team, football team, two basketball teams and the volleyball team.

Facility upgrades

Several Nebraska athletic facilities saw enhancements including the completion of the track and field complex, along with new facilities for golf, rifle, swimming and diving and bowling.

In 2026, the athletics department is planning to renovate the softball and baseball clubhouses. Dannen said they are also looking forward to expanding the Devaney Center.

Entertainment

Three shows have been scheduled to take place inside Memorial Stadium next year. Zach Bryan will perform on April 25, the Savannah Bananas on June 13 and The Boys from Oklahoma on Aug. 22.

“Our plan is to continue to utilize our facilities for outside events to bring new events to our spaces and to help drive entertainment options in Lincoln,” Dannen said.

Due to anticipated construction, Nebraska Athletics will hold off on booking events for Memorial Stadium in 2027.

The athletics department is expecting to make two “big announcements on the Husker women’s sports front” early next year that will have a tremendous impact on its female student-athletes.

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Kentucky had all the laughs – or at least almost all of them.

“I’m glad I get to do it almost in my home state,” said Kentucky’s Brooklyn DeLeye, who is from Topeka, Kansas. “I know we’re in Kansas City, Missouri, but who even looks at that.”

Wisconsin had all the heartbreak. One could hear the emotion in Charlie Fuerbringer’s voice in the press conference as she talked about playing with Mimi Colyer being “so fun.” The joy that usually comes with the band’s post-match rendition of “Varsity” was hollow considering the team already left the court.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — As she has been known to do lately during this unbelievable run by the Texas A&M volleyball team, All-America hitter Logan Lednicky lifted 5-foot-7 teammate Ava Underwood Thursday night and hoisted her in the air.

“We’re going to the national championship!” she told Underwood.

“I know,” Underwood replied.

The Aggies survived another marathon postseason set and knocked off No. 1 seed Pittsburgh 29-27, 25-21, 25-20 in the NCAA volleyball tournament’s final four at T-Mobile Center. The win set up an SEC showdown against Kentucky in Sunday’s championship match.

A week ago, Texas A&M was teetering on the brink of elimination and pulled off a reverse sweep of second-seeded Louisville in the Sweet 16. The Aggies followed that up by ending Nebraska’s undefeated season in a five-set nailbiter on Sunday in Lincoln that included a 37-35 fourth-set setback. Lednicky called the Aggies the “grittiest team in volleyball” after that one. The label was tough to dispute Thursday, when they calmly withstood an 8-0 run in the second game against Pitt.

The Aggies have become fan favorites during the NCAA tournament, a sort of Cinderella story, a seemingly overachieving team that got hot at the perfect time and is riding a wave of momentum. But coach Jamie Morrison bristles at the idea that his team has arrived at the title game because of something as fleeting and flukey as momentum.

He says it’s by design.

“I think volleyball is a game of momentum if — this isn’t a sound bite — you have a weak mind,” Morrison said Thursday night. “The thing I talk a lot about in our program is I care less about mistakes and I care more about responses.

“We talk a lot about mental strength and mental fortitude, and the skills that go into that … We started this season talking about who you are as a human being, then in the middle of the season we talked about who you are as a competitor. When you get in these big moments, you get sways of four points, then it’s a game of momentum because you start losing track of who you are.”

The most relevant theme for the Aggies’ success is where they’ve been.

Four seniors — Lednicky, Underwood, Ifenna Cos-Okpalla and Lexi Guinn — went 5-13 in SEC play as freshmen in 2022. Lednicky and Underwood were A&M legacies who dreamed of wearing the maroon and gold, and turning A&M into a volleyball powerhouse. It wasn’t until 2023 when that dream came into focus. When Morrison arrived.

“When he took the job,” Underwood said, “it was not a question in my mind that I was going to stay. I knew that he was the guy that could make this place a great place for volleyball and just for people to go to, and that was something that I wanted to be a part of. It didn’t take much convincing for me.”

“He’s got a lot of buzzwords, but I think the biggest thing is just be yourself. He’s not going to make a bunch of copies of the same type of competitor. He really embraces all of us for the differences that we have, and I think that’s what makes our team so special.”

By 2024, Morrison had the Aggies in the Sweet 16. They ran into second-seeded Wisconsin and lost in five sets, coming within two points of victory. Morrison, who on Thursday was named the 2025 Division I AVCA coach of the year, said this year’s team is reaping the benefits of that experience. Underwood takes it a step further.

“To be honest, I think last year, losing in the tournament, that was the pivotal turning moment for us,” Underwood said.

A few weeks later, the Aggies added Kyndal Stowers to their roster. The sophomore had been medically retired at Baylor after suffering four concussions in a span of eight months. Stowers has been one of the Aggies’ most dominant players, and led the team with 16 kills and hit .433 on Thursday.

She has been a perfect fit. When Stowers smashed a kill to give the Aggies a 13-11 lead in the third game Thursday, she squinted and flashed a knowing smile to her teammates. Texas A&M had taken control.

“I think we just came together as a team,” Stowers said of their rally in the second game that set the tone for the match. “A very similar thing happened when we were playing Nebraska. We were up by quite a bit, and they went on a run. The fourth set, that went forever. We’re like, ‘Hey, we’re not doing that again.

“‘They’re going on a run right now, we’re going to recognize that, props to them for what they’re doing, but we’re going to respond and we’re not going to let that keep happening.'”

It was an uncharacteristically short postseason night for the Aggies. Cos-Okpalla smashed a ball that zipped through the Panthers’ defense in the third game, sealing the victory. After the ball landed and the crowd erupted, Cos-Okpalla casually sauntered back to the center of the court, joining her teammates, who were bouncing around in a circle.

The pro-A&M crowd held up big head cutouts of their favorite players, and Lednicky high-fived children and hoisted a few more teammates in the air.

Neither she, nor the rest of the Aggies, were surprised. They’d been building toward this.

“Honestly, I think [the postseason mentality] has been the same,” Lednicky said. “I know it’s probably like beating a dead horse, but y’all keep hearing, ‘Why not us?’ Literally why not us?

“We are considered the underdog in a lot of these moments just ’cause we haven’t been here before. But we know we have all the right pieces.

“So why not us?”

Emmaus track & field standouts Claudia Walls and Madelyn McCartney are continuing their career next year at the Division I level.

Walls committed to Lehigh. McCartney is headed to the University of Kentucky.

“I chose Lehigh University because it has a great reputation athletically and academically,” Walls said. “The Patriot League is a very good fit for me. I plan on pursuing a degree in engineering. Coach Brooke Astor at Lehigh and I have formed a nice relationship, and I believe she will be instrumental in getting me to new heights.”

Walls is a three-time EPC high jump champion, 2025 District 11 Class 3A high jump champion, a two-time PIAA qualifier in the high jump and a one-time qualifier in the triple jump. She owns the school records in those two jumping events.

“I want to compete at a very high level, including participating in the New Balance Nationals again and Penn Relays,” Walls added, “and medaling at states and breaking the Emmaus long jump record.”

Walls was District 11 and EPC champion last spring in the high jump and finished 18th at the PIAA Championships. She was fourth in the long jump at districts and 22nd at states, plus EPC second, District 11 fourth and PIAA 22nd in the triple jump.

McCartney is a 2025 PIAA Class 3A cross country champion as well as a three-time EPC and District 11 gold medalist. She owns four individual school records between indoor and outdoor track and is part of three school relay records.

“I chose the University of Kentucky because I developed a good rapport with the coaching staff and liked what the school had to offer both athletically and academically,” she said. “I am going to pursue a career in the medical field at Kentucky because of the strong reputation it has in the medical field. I am planning on studying exercise and health sciences.

“My goals for the upcoming season are to have strong indoor and outdoor seasons. In addition, I am looking forward to competing again at New Balance indoor nationals again in March and possibly New Balance outdoor nationals again later in the spring.”

McCartney set EPC meet records last spring in the 1,600 and 3,200. She won EPC titles in those two races as well as the 800. She also was District 11 and PIAA 3A runner-up in the 3,200 plus District 11 champion and PIAA 11th in the 1,600.

Senior writer Tom Housenick can be reached at thousenick@mcall.com

HICKORY, N.C. – Thanks to her contributions both on and off the court, Emmaleigh Allen has been named the South Atlantic Conference Volleyball Scholar Athlete of the Year. 

The honor recognizes a student-athlete’s combined excellence in academics, athletics, service, and leadership. Allen is the first Bear to win this award. 

Allen was an All-SAC Second Team honoree this season, helping the Bears reach the second round of the NCAA Tournament for just the third time in program history. The senior finished the year with 304 digs, 246 kills, 36 service aces, and started all 31 matches, playing in all but two sets. She was named the SAC Offensive Player of the Week on September 29th for her performances against Catawba and Mars Hill. 

The former SAC Freshman of the Year and AVCA Honorable Mention All-American had to persevere these past two years as she missed the entirety of the 2024 season due to injury. Allen didn’t miss a beat this season and was named a team captain by head coach Nicole Barringer.

“Emmaleigh has been a leader for us since she got here. She’s been a leader on the court, in the weight room, and in the classroom. She’s a high achieving individual and is very deserving of this award. We are proud of her and grateful she is a Bear!”

Off the court Allen is just as impressive, holding a 3.95 cumulative GPA in accounting, finance, and management. She was named to the CSC Academic All-District Team in both 2023 and 2025, the only years she was eligible. In 2024 the Wooster, Ohio, native was honored as the Broyhill Family Foundation Scholarship recipient from the Charles M. Snipes College of Business and Economics. She is also involved on campus a tutor and is the vice president of The Hidden Opponent, a club dedicated to mental health advocacy. 

Her commitment to excellence and character has earned high praise from university leadership and her coaching staff, who cite her discipline, leadership, and ability to elevate those around her as hallmarks of her collegiate career.