Nebraska Volleyball: Huskers vs. Lousiana Monroe Warhawks

It was an up and down start to the season.

Think of hitting percentage in volleyball as about equivalent to batting average in baseball. Above .250 is good. The difference being in volleyball, hitting percentage can be negative. The formula is: (Kills-errors)/attempts. If the number of errors is greater than kills, the hitting percentage will be negative.

The Huskers hit .222 overall against Louisiana-Monroe. Given all the new players and the new offensive system, that’s good. Kelsey Robinson returned from the scare in the scrimmage to hit .500 on 12 attempts with only one error. She threw in 5 aces to go with her fantastic hitting.

Cecilia Hall hit a remarkable .667 on nine attempts. She put 7 balls away for kills. Amber Rolfzen added eight kills for the Huskers.

It was, however, an up and down match. The Huskers hit a respectable .333 in the first set, but hit an even .000 for set number two. They came back from the break between sets two and three to hit .407 in the final set.

The sweep of the Louisiana-Monroe (25-11, 25-21, 25-4) set a record for fewest points allowed in the rally scoring era, with the Warhawks being held to 36 total points. Overall, ULM hit -.132 with their best set being the second where they hit -.029. They were held without a kill in the third set.

When the Husker offense struggled, the defense stepped up. The Huskers out-dug the Warhawks 18-12 in the second, allowing the Big Red to escape with a close win.

Overall, it gives the Huskers a lot be excited about, but a lot to build on. In the first match in the 6-2, the setters each recorded 14 assists (a set that results in a kill), so it appears there is little to no drop off between the setters. The Huskers did what was expected, and had a chance to work out some kinks.

This will be an exciting season in the Devaney Center.