With their non-conference slate out of the way, the undefeated No. 1 Nebraska volleyball team is set to open Big Ten play on Wednesday.
“I just think from top to bottom, (the Big Ten is) obviously the strongest conference in the country,” Nebraska head coach Dani Busboom Kelly said at Big Ten media days in Chicago on July 28. “You might get by one opponent one night, but then you have another great opponent the next night.”
The Huskers have gone 38-2 in Big Ten Conference games the past two seasons en route to two conference titles. They’ll look to three-peat, and already are proving to be a formidable opponent. In their non-conference schedule, the Huskers have faced off against some of the nation’s best, conquering No. 3 Pitt, No. 6 Stanford, No. 7 Kentucky and No. 18 Creighton.
Nebraska enters this season’s conference slate ranked No. 1 in the nation, sitting at a 10-0 record. They’re joined in the top 25 by five other Big Ten sides.
The highest rated of these is No. 7 Wisconsin, with a 7-1 record, only losing to No. 5 Texas. The Badgers are led by senior outside hitter Mimi Colyer, averaging 5.35 kills per set. Last season, Nebraska swept Wisconsin in each of their three matches, including in the NCAA quarterfinals. This season, the lone matchup between the teams takes place in Madison on Halloween.
Wisconsin is far from the only Big Ten team Nebraska has to worry about.
Last season, No. 13 Penn State had Nebraska’s number, accounting for two of Nebraska’s three losses on the season, including their NCAA Semifinal exit. The Nittany Lions ultimately fell to Louisville, led by Busboom Kelly, in the national championship game.
While the national runners-up lost only two games last season, they’ve been off to a rocky start by last year’s standards. After their top three point leaders graduated, the Nittany Lions have four losses at this point in the season. This year, they’ll square off with the Huskers in the penultimate match of the regular season.
Even though Penn State was the only Big Ten team to best Nebraska last year, they weren’t the only side that gave the Huskers a run for their money.
“Big Ten is really fun, but it can be a lot,” junior outside hitter Harper Murray said after Nebraska’s final non-conference game against Arizona. “It gets hard with traveling, with school, all the things in between. I think we’re in a good place, but we just really have to stay focused, because in moments like that, that’s what’s going to catch up to us in the end in December.”
Checking into the rankings at No. 11, Purdue enters its conference schedule with a 9-1 record, only falling to No. 10 SMU. The Boilermakers pushed Nebraska to five sets last year before falling short 3-2. This year, Purdue will have their chance for revenge on Oct. 12 in West Lafayette.
Minnesota is ranked No. 12, having only lost to No. 9 Texas A&M. The Huskers beat the Golden Gophers 3-1 in 2024, and will face off on Nov. 8 this season. Outside of Minnesota, Purdue, and Penn State, Michigan and Maryland were the only teams to take a game from Nebraska.
UCLA, Indiana and Oregon received votes in the Sept. 14 AVCA poll. Nebraska’s first conference opponent will be Michigan, squaring off with the Wolverines on Wednesday, Sep. 24 at 6:00 p.m. in Lincoln at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.
Despite being one of the toughest conferences to achieve consistent success in, the Huskers have dominated the Big Ten. After their conference success for the past two seasons, Murray says that the Huskers are locked in on a third straight Big Ten title.
“We have to take that seriously,” Murray said.
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