LINCOLN, Neb. - The No. 8 Nebraska volleyball celebrated its 250th consecutive regular-season sellout in a big way with a thrilling 3-2 win over No. 7 Penn State in front of a crowd of 8,434 on Friday night at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.
The Huskers (17-6, 8-5 Big Ten) beat a top-10 opponent for the first time in their last six tries after a dominant 15-8 win in the decisive fifth set. Penn State held the upperhand in the match after a 27-25 comeback win in set one and a 25-21 win in set three after the Huskers took set two, 25-19. Needing to win the fourth set to force a game five for the third straight time in the series, the Huskers did so with a 25-18 win. In set five, Lexi Sun, who had a match-high 16 kills, came up with six kills on nine swings to spark the Huskers past the Nittany Lions (18-5, 9-4 Big Ten) for NU's eighth win in the last nine meetings between the teams.
Both teams were stellar defensively, as Nebraska held a .179 to .114 edge in hitting. The mark was a season low for Penn State. The Huskers had 20 blocks, their most since 2006, and their 104 digs were their most in a match since 2004.
Mikaela Foecke had 15 kills and career highs in digs (29) and blocks (six), while Sun had 14 digs to go with her 16 kills. Lauren Stivrins had the first double-double of her career with 13 kills and a career-high 10 blocks. She also hit .522 for the match. Jazz Sweet had seven kills and five blocks, and Callie Schwarzenbach had six kills and nine blocks. Nicklin Hames provided 46 assists and 17 digs. Libero Kenzie Maloney led the Huskers with 23 digs, and Megan Miller contributed 14, matching her career high.
Taylor Leath had 16 kills and 15 digs for Penn State. Kaitlyn Hord had 15 kills and six blocks.