Nebraska volleyball has been in the midst of the 2018 season for over a month now, but this week will be the first time they’ve truly hit the road for a match.
It’s odd, but yes, the Nebraska Volleyball team has yet to have a true road game. The Huskers did play an away game a few weeks ago, but it took place in Omaha against the Creighton Blue Jays. Not exactly a true road game considering it’s roughly an hour away and half of the arena were Husker fans.
The Cornhuskers will finally hit the road this weekend though with matches scheduled for Friday and Saturday in the state of Illinois. On Friday, Nebraska will take on Northwestern and Saturday will be the true test, as the Huskers go toe-to-toe with the Fighting Illini of Illinois.
Northwestern is 10-4 on the year, but 0-2 in conference play. While I hate to “look down” on any opponent, the Wildcats should be one of Nebraska’s easier matches this year. That’s assuming Nebraska plays as well as they have been recently.
The real test this weekend will take place against the Fighting Illini, who the Huskers have a date with on Saturday night (and it’ll be televised on Big Ten Network – Hopefully we don’t miss the entire first set for an overtime soccer match like last week).
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Both Nebraska and Illinois are ranked in the top ten in the country. Nebraska is third and Illinois, who have yet to drop a match, is seventh, so it’s going to be a hard fought match between what looks to be two top dogs in the conference. The difference is that Nebraska has proven they can hang with the big dogs while Illinois is an up and comer this year.
Not only is the game against Illinois on the road, but it comes just a day after the Huskers square off against Northwestern. While Nebraska has played games in back to back days (and have even played multiple games in a single day), it’s still not an easy feat. These girls take a beating digging balls and making those kills look easy, so playing in back to back days is exhausting.
The Cornhuskers opened up Big Ten play last weekend and took down the previously undefeated Michigan Wolverines and later knocked off the Michigan State Spartans. Both matches went four sets.
Both of those teams are worthy adversaries, with Michigan being ranked in the top 25 and Michigan State narrowly missing out on the national rankings. With the two wins, Nebraska moved to 11-1 on the year, winning their last 11 matches after dropping their first of the year to the Florida Gators.
Nebraska improved from the service line over the weekend, posting 13 errors against the Wolverines and getting that number down to seven on Sunday. Nebraska is at its best when they’re doing work from the service line and that’s something to continue keeping an eye on this weekend.
Nebraska hasn’t lost a match since August 24th when they hosted Florida. Since then, it’s been (mostly) smooth sailing for the Cornhuskers. This weekend provides the first true test for Nebraska because, let’s face it… It’s easier to win in the confines of the Bob Devaney Sports Center. Nebraska won’t have that luxury this weekend.
Realistically, yes, Nebraska volleyball can win both matches because that’s just what this program does, but Illinois will be tough. They’ve yet to drop a match this year and will be hungry to win that game and show the defending champs that they’re in this to win it.