Make it 43 straight sets. The No. 1 Nebraska volleyball team earned its 14th straight sweep with a 25-11, 25-15, 25-14 thrashing of Illinois Thursday at John Cook Arena. The Cornhuskers haven’t lost a set since Sept. 16 vs. Creighton.
Andi Jackson was perfect for Nebraska, leading NU with nine kills on nine attacks. She also added four blocks. Victoria Adriano and Harper Murray both contributed eight kills. Bergen Reilly not only had 29 set assists, but also led the team with five blocks. The Fighting Illini were led by Taylor DeBoer with eight kills. The Huskers dominated Illinois, outhitting them .488-.095, outblocking them 5-4 and outserving them four aces to none.
Nebraska immediately dashed out to a 5-0 lead in the first set, with Murray and Adriano notching two kills each. The lead grew to 8-1, then 11-3. An 8-2 run took the set to 23-9. The teams traded points the last four rallies, and the Huskers easily wrapped up set one.
The Illini briefly led in the second set, 4-2. But four straight Nebraska points gave NU a 6-4 lead. A stretch of seven Husker points in nine rallies opened the lead to 16-10. Illinois cut the lead to 20-15, but five straight Nebraska points finished off set two.
Early in set three, the Illini held a 4-3 lead. The Huskers ran six straight points to build a 9-4 advantage. Nebraska gradually pulled away from there, finishing the match by winning four of the last five points.
The Huskers are now set to head to Minnesota for a match Saturday at 2:30 p.m. Pregame coverage begins at 1:30 p.m on B-107.3. The match at the Gophers begins a three-match roadtrip for NU, before the Huskers close the regular season with three of the final four matches at home.