University of Washington
Nebraska
Dawgs Are Elite With Heart Stopping Upset Of Huskers
December 10, 2010 | Volleyball
Dec. 10, 2010
SEATTLE - The Husky volleyball team is one match away from the Final Four, as Washington toppled second-seeded Nebraska in four sets tonight in an absolute classic at Hec Ed Pavilion. A season-high 5,624 fans crowded in to create a raucous atmosphere, and the Dawgs matched the intensity every bit in pulling off a 25-16, 20-25, 25-21, 29-27 win to propel them into the Elite Eight.
The Huskies (24-8) will now face seventh-seeded California on Saturday night at 8:30 p.m. in Hec Ed in the Regional Final with a spot in the Final Four at stake. Washington is the only unseeded team remaining among the final eight teams. Cal dispatched 10th-seeded Minnesota in the day's first match, in three sets that were all decided by two points.
Senior Becky Perry took the final swing on a set from her senior teammate Jenna Hagglund. Two years ago, Perry and the Huskies endured a heartbreaking defeat on their home court to many of these same Cornhuskers, as Nebraska erased a 2-0 deficit and large fifth set deficit to knock UW out in the 2008 Elite Eight. Washington earned a measure of revenge on Perry's 18th kill, which sizzled down the left sideline for the final Husky point. But UW knows it's still a win away from its first Final Four since 2006.
"I thought, start to finish, it was a good match," said 10th-year Head Coach Jim McLaughlin, who has now taken Washington to the Elite Eight on six occasions. "(Nebraska) is a great program, a great team. We had to play very well to beat them. The difference, I thought, I'll review the film, my thoughts right now are the serves, serves received, and who hit in transition. Just creating opportunities and finishing those opportunities. We did a really good job of that at the end of all the games."
Perry's 18 kills were matched by fellow All-Pac-10 senior Kindra Carlson. Junior All-Region middle Bianca Rowland was deadly, putting down 10 kills at a .438 clip while adding eight blocks. Hagglund handed out 48 assists and redshirt freshman libero Jenna Orlandini's 27 digs led a UW defense that held Nebraska to just .173 for the night on offense while UW hit .238. Hannah Werth led the Cornhuskers with 16 kills.
"They're a great team. They did dig a ton of balls," said Hagglund. "When teams do that, we just say, `Let's just keep hitting our shots.' We'll wear them down eventually. And that's the key, holding our composure and attacking them as best we can. We can't control what they're doing on that side of the net."
Nebraska took the first two points of the match, but Bianca Rowland put UW on the board with a swing out of the middle. UW took its first lead on a block assist by Hagglund and Rowland on a Delano middle swing for a 4-3 advantage. Carlson's second kill on the right side made it 8-7 Dawgs. Both teams missed some serves early, dealing perhaps with some early jitters in front of the huge crowd. But Carlson got her serve dialed in, painting the back line for an ace that NU misjudged, and then hitting the sideline on the next serve for back-to-back aces. A Husker error led to a timeout with UW up 12-8.
Arguably the acrobatic play of the year came on the first point out of the break, as Hagglund dove to bump it up to Carlson in the back row, and the senior took a swing and hit a line drove over and down to fire up the crowd again. Nebraska cut the lead to three, but a 3-0 Husky run forced Nebraska to take its last timeout. Two NU errors were followed by a Perry roundhouse off the block and out for the 17-11 advantage. Perry began to heat up late in the set, getting a pair of kills from the left and right side. A huge Carlson kill from the right side capped another three-point Husky rally for a 23-14 lead. At set point, Kylin Muñoz got her second kill off the block and out deep for the 25-16 victory. Hagglund kept Nebraska off-balance with 13 assists, and Carlson was deadly with six kills on seven swings.
The Huskies got the crowd right back into it with a roof from Rowland and Muñoz on the left side on the first point. The next rally, Rowland slid over to the right with Carlson and rejected another Husker swing. Carlson then pounded down an overpass on the following point for a 3-0 lead. Holford made a great bump set across the court to Perry who ripped it down the line for a 7-3 advantage. Perry then took a tough set and sent another missile to the floor for an 8-3 edge that force a Husker timeout. A huge block from Muñoz and Rowland on the left made it 13-8. Carlson picked up her ninth kill and then Barfield banged down an overpass for a 16-12 advantage. A couple UW service errors kept the Husker hopes alive and Nebraska finally got its first block to make it 18-15. An NU kill out of the middle cut the lead to two and UW took its first timeout of the night.
Washington couldn't shake out of the run as Nebraska finally hit its stride. They ran off six more points to take a 22-18 lead before Mueller finally served one into the net. All told it was a painful nine point run in which UW made some uncharacteristic errors coupled with some solid Husker defense. Rowland got a kill in the middle to make it 23-20, but Nebraska took the final two points to snatch the set away, 25-20. Perry hit .500 for the set with four kills, but Nebraska wound up outhitting UW in the set, .281-.250.
After the intermission, Perry started things off with a kill and an ace, and the teams were even through the first 10 points at 5-all. Nebraska creeped out to a three point lead, but UW rallied to tie it up at 10-10. Barfield started the run with a kill from on high in the middle, then Carlson swooped in from the right, and Perry put an ace right down in the middle of the Husker `D'. Nebraska knocked one long on the next point and took timeout with UW back up 11-10. The Huskers looked to make a run but a block from Barfield and Muñoz put a stop to that and tied it at 12. Rowland got rolling with a pair of high-speed kills straight to the floor, the latter of which knotted it at 15-all.
Perry sprinted back deep to save a wayward dig, and the lengthy rally was eventually capped by a huge right side kill from Carlson. Then Rowland and Carlson rejected Wilberger for a 19-18 Husky lead and Nebraska took its last timeout. Out of the break, the tough Dunaway serve led to an overpass and Rowland crushed it back down. A Carlson laser made it 21-19 but Werth rolled in a kill to cut it back to one. Nebraska then donated serve, and hit their next swing wide to make it 23-20. Mueller then went big on the left side, but Rowland and Hagglund were bigger, sending the ball back and down for set point at 24-20. A frantic rally on the next point finally ended in a Husker point to save one, but UW got the on-point pass and once again Rowland was there to slam it home for the 25-21 victory and a 2-1 set lead. Rowland was the weapon of choice for Hagglund in the third, hammering home five kills on six swings, hitting .833.
Muñoz rolled in a kill and then got the most of a block on the left to tie it up at three early. Nebraska then ran off three-straight to force a Husky timeout at 6-3. Washington responded with three right back to tie. Carlson had a kill followed by Perry pulverizing an overpass, and Holford serving up an ace. But Nebraska went back to work with another 3-0 run to lead 9-6. Perry trimmed it back to one with a finish just off the Husker fingertips. Two Nebraska miscues shaved the lead down to 11-10 and the Huskers called their first timeout. Washington tied it back up for the first time at 13-all, as Rowland rejected the Werth attack for the roof. Nebraska pushed back out to a two-point lead, and then the teams traded sideouts back and forth, clutch kills coming from all three UW outsides to keep UW in contact. UW tied it back up once again at 17-all as Perry put one through the block and down to cap a wild rally. But the Dawgs missed their next serve and exhaled, and a Husker block trickled down for a 19-17 lead and the Dawgs called time.
Perry's big swing out of the break was almost saved but not quite over and then Perry set Carlson on the next rally to tie it again at 19. Washington couldn't quite pull ahead however as Mueller got the sideout. The Huskies tied it again at 20 and 21 but couldn't grab the lead. Carlson was set on the pipe for a huge kill to tie it up 22-22. Perry then swooped in after a great Orlandini dig and put it off the Husker defense and out to finally move UW up 23-22 and force Nebraska's last timeout. But on the heels of another Husker block and a kill from Lindsey Licht, Nebraska held set point at 24-23. They gave it up with a service error, and then a Licht swing went wide and it was match point Huskies. Mueller got the side out to save one, but Rowland earned another with a shot out of the middle. Perry had a swing to end it on the left but it sailed wide, with UW looking for another tip but not getting it. Then it swung back in Nebraska's favor for a second set point at 27-26. Carlson hit one to the back line, and the official's flag went right down, to the dismay of the Huskers bench. Tied up again, Carlson earned Washington a second match point, cleaning up with a big swing close to net. With the crowd on its feet, Perry had another look at match point, and this time she connected, rifling it down the line for a 29-27 win and setting off pandemonium in Hec Ed.
Washington will be going hard after its fourth Final Four appearance tomorrow night at Hec Ed, taking on the Pac-10 co-Champions from Cal at 8:30 p.m. in a match that will be televised on ESPNU.
