The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Nebraska
No. 13 Texas falls to No. 3 Nebraska, 3-1
10.02.2010 | Volleyball
Oct. 2, 2010
LINCOLN, Neb. -- The short-handed No. 13 Texas Volleyball team played hard, but came up short Saturday afternoon as it fell to No. 3 Nebraska, 3-1 in front of a raucous crowd at the NU Coliseum. The 20-25, 25-20, 19-25, 25-20 loss dropped the Longhorns to 8-5 on the year and 3-2 in Big 12 play, while the Huskers solidified their hold on first place in the conference and moved to 14-1 overall and 6-0 in league action.
Junior middle blocker Rachael Adams headlined the Texas effort with 15 kills on .429 hitting, while senior All-America outside hitter Juliann Faucette added 14 kills and eight digs. Junior outside hitter Amber Roberson joined them in double-figures with 13 kills and freshman libero Sarah Palmer steadied the defense with 15 digs.
Texas and Nebraska battled back-and-forth in the early going of the first set with Faucette's third kill of the match tying the frame at eight. The Huskers took their first two-point lead at the 10-8 mark and widened the lead to 15-11 on a kill by Hannah Werth. Nebraska used a 3-0 run capped by a Brooke Delano kill to widen the margin to 21-15 and fought off a Faucette led UT rally to clinch the set, 25-20.
In the second set, three quick kills by Adams helped the Longhorns leap out to a 5-2 lead. Texas maintained its lead, but the Huskers rallied to tie the score at 12 before UT went on a 5-1 run fueled by a block and a kill from senior middle blocker Jennifer Doris to take a 17-13 edge. The Cornhuskers trimmed the Horns' advantage to two at the 18-16 mark, but a 4-2 Texas run keyed by kills from Faucette and Adams stretched the UT lead to 22-18. Adams and Faucette each added a kill down the stretch and a kill by sophomore opposite hitter Sha'Dare McNeal lifted the Horns to a 25-20 set victory.
Nebraska came out swinging in the third stanza, taking advantage of three Texas miscues and a kill and a block from Lindsey Licht to take an 8-1 lead. Two more UT errors paced a 3-0 NU run that widened the gap to 15-6. Texas answered with a 6-1 rally highlighted by two kills and a service ace by Faucette to close the score to 16-12. A 4-1 Huskers run pushed their lead to 20-13, but the Horns did not give up, fighting back to pull within five at the 22-17 mark. Nebraska's Lauren Cook forced set point with a kill that put NU ahead, 24-17 and the Huskers closed the door 25-19 on a kill by Licht.
Texas fell behind early again in the fourth set as Licht paced a 6-2 set-opening run to give the Huskers a quick edge. The Horns used a kill and an ace by McNeal as well as a kill by freshman setter Hannah Allison to shrink the lead to 8-7. Nebraska responded with a 4-1 run paced by two UT errors to take a 15-10 edge and extended the lead with a 3-0 run fueled by two more Texas miscues that pushed the margin to 21-14. Texas fired back with kills by Doris, Faucette and Allison to trim the Huskers advantage to 22-18, but it wasn't enough as Nebraska closed out the set, 25-20 on a kill by Tara Mueller.
Texas returns to action on Wednesday, Oct. 6 when it plays host to Colorado. First serve is set for 6:30 p.m. Central.
POST-MATCH NOTES
- Texas' loss to Nebraska marked its first loss to the Huskers in its last five tries and dropped the Horns to 16-30 all-time against NU.
- Rachael Adams led the Horns in kills with 15, marking the fifth time in the last six matches she has led all UT players.
- The Longhorns dropped the first set despite out-hitting the Huskers .257-to-.231. In the set, Texas was marred by six service errors, while Juliann Faucette contributed six kills on seven swings.
- Rachael Adams headlined Texas' attack in the second set, connecting for six of its 19 kills and helping the Horns to a .412 team attack mark.
- In the third set, Roberson highlighted Texas late rally with five kills, but it wasn't enough to overcome the Huskers early 8-1 lead.
