Nebraska volleyball team picks up big conference honors following undefeated run

Quite a few Nebraska volleyball players, and even first-year Huskers head coach Dani Busboom Kelly, took home a haul of Big Ten Volleyball postseason honors that were announced Tuesday.

The conference awarded its Big Ten Player of the Year award to junior setter Bergen Reilly, who also nabbed the Big Ten Setter of the Year honor. This is her third time being named Big Ten Setter of the Year, which is the second time a player has taken home the award three years in a row in conference history after Wisconsin’s Sydney Hilley in 2021.

Reilly is the first setter to win the Big Ten Player of the Year since Minnesota’s Samantha-Swenson in 2018. This is only the second time a Nebraska volleyball player has been selected as the conference’s Player of the Year, following Kelsey Robinson’s selection in 2013.

The junior setter is being favored for the American Volleyball Coaches Association’s Player of the Year Award. Reilly has continued to make the dwindling shortlists for the prestigious award, along with Andi Jackson and Harper Murray.

Big Ten coaches and media selected Busboom Kelly as the conference’s Coach of the Year. This is her first year serving as head coach for the team, but she has a long history as a player and assistant coach for the Big Red. Busboom Kelly, who took Louisville to an NCAA runner-up finish last year, accepted the Huskers head coaching spot after former head coach John Cook announced in January that he was retiring.

The conference also selected Reilly, along with Rebekah Allick, Jackson and Murray, for its All-Big Ten First Team. Reilly, Jackson and Murray were three of nine unanimous selections.

Huskers Laney Choboy and Taylor Landfair were named to the All Big Ten Second Team. Virginia Adriano was named to the All-Freshman Team. Maisie Boesiger took home the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award.

The Huskers are preparing for the start of the NCAA volleyball tournament, which begins later this week. They’ll face Long Island University, which won the Northeast Conference championship, on Friday at the Devaney Center. On Sunday, Nebraska was picked as the No. 1 overall seed following its historic 30-0 season.