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for 100th Postseason Win
Foecke | Rolfzen | Wong-Orantes |
----------------------------- 1 2 3 TCU 22 12 16 NEBRASKA 25 25 25 ----------------------------- |
The win was the Huskers' eighth straight postseason victory and marked the 100th NCAA Tournament win in program history. Nebraska became just the second program in NCAA history to reach the 100-win milestone, while the Huskers advanced to an NCAA Regional for the 32nd time, the most in NCAA history. Nebraska improved to 29-2 on the season, and the Huskers' quest for back-to-back national championships will continue on Friday when the Huskers face Penn State for the third time this season. Game times for Friday's regional semifinals at the Devaney Center have not yet been announced.
Senior Kadie Rolfzen paced the Huskers in the sweep of the Horned Frogs with an all-around effort befitting of her status as a three-time All-American. Rolfzen finished with a match-high 14 kills on only 30 swings while hitting .400. She also added seven blocks, four digs and two assists. Sophomore Mikaela Foecke added 10 kills on 28 swings, while senior libero Justine Wong-Orantes broke one Nebraska postseason record and tied another. Wong-Orantes totaled 24 digs in the match, tying the Husker record for most digs in a three-set NCAA Tournament match. The 24 digs also allowed Wong-Orantes to pass Kayla Banwarth as the Huskers' all-time digs leader in NCAA Tournament matches. Juniors Kelly Hunter and Annika Albrecht added 10 digs apiece and Nebraska blocked TCU 10 times while holding the Horned Frogs to an .056 attack percentage that tied their lowest mark of the season.
Although TCU saw its season come to an end with a 15-13 record, the Horned Frogs matched the best finish in school history by advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Ashley Smith narrowly missed a double-double in her final match, pacing TCU with nine kills while adding 10 digs. Natalie Gower added seven blocks for the Horned Frogs, while Jillian Bergeson tallied a TCU postseason-record 21 digs.
Set 1: Hunter served Nebraska to a 3-0 lead with an ace. After TCU cut it to 3-2, the Huskers put together a 5-0 run to go up 8-2, which included a pair of kills by Kadie Rolfzen. The spurt became 9-1 after the Huskers made it 12-3 with another kill by Kadie Rolfzen and one from Andie Malloy. The Horned Frogs strung together some successful attacks to get within 15-9, but the Huskers scored seven of the next 11 points, as kills by Foecke and Amber Rolfzen put NU up 22-13. However, TCU closed the gap to 23-20 with a 7-1 run, three of which came via blocks. After Foecke earned set point for the Huskers with a kill, Sarita Mikals got a kill for TCU and the Huskers committed another error to let TCU within two at 24-22. The Huskers won 25-22 after a TCU block on Kadie Rolfzen's swing ricocheted off her face and over the net for a kill. The teams combined for 17 attacking errors in the set, with the Huskers holding a narrow .082 to .064 hitting advantage. Wong-Orantes had 14 digs alone in set one.
Set 2: A long rally that ended with a Malloy kill, followed by a TCU error put the Huskers up 5-1. Holman and Kadie Rolfzen combined for a block, and Rolfzen followed with her seventh kill for an 11-6 lead. With a 12-8 lead, Nebraska completely took over the set behind the serve of Wong-Orantes. The Huskers went on an 11-0 run to grab a 23-8 lead. A Briana Holman kill, followed by a block by the Rolfzen twins started the run. Wong-Orantes served an ace to make it 17-8, and the Huskers tallied blocks on three consecutive rallies to go up 21-8, two of which came from Amber Rolfzen and two from Kadie Rolfzen. Kills by Kadie Rolfzen and Amber Rolfzen gave Nebraska set point at 24-9, and the Huskers eventually won 25-12 on a TCU service error. The Huskers hit .233 and were even better defensively in set two with five blocks to hold TCU to -.027 hitting.
Set 3: Nebraska asserted itself early once again, jumping out to a 4-0 lead with a block and two kills by Kadie Rolfzen and an ace by Hunter. The Horned Frogs rallied to tie the set at 5-5, then waged a sideout battle with the Huskers. A kill by Hunter put the Huskers in front 10-9, and Foecke blasted a pair of kills before a block by Hunter and Holman made it 13-9 Huskers. With Sydney Townsend still serving the run, Hunter and Foecke found the floor once again, followed by Holman after an outstanding defensive effort by the Huskers, and they led 16-9 after the 7-0 run. A block by Malloy and Amber Rolfzen gave NU match point at 24-15, and the Huskers clinched a berth in the regional at 25-16 on a Malloy kill.
Up Next: Nebraska will host a regional in Lincoln next Friday and Saturday for the first time since 2013. The Huskers will face 16th-seeded Penn State on Friday. A start time and broadcast information will be announced on Sunday. The other teams in the regional will be Arizona and the winner of Washington-Kentucky.
Nebraska Post-Match Notes
TCU Post-Match Notes (loss)