No. 2 Nebraska took down No. 1 Wisconsin in five sets 25-22, 17-25, 20-25, 26-24, 15-13 in front of a Devaney Center record crowd to earn of the biggest wins in program history. It also snapped the Huskers' 10-game losing streak to the Badgers that dates back to 2017.
Inside Nebraska's Geoff Exstrom gives his three quick thoughts after a huge rivalry win for NU.
The match lived up to the hype
It was your classic bloody, back-and-forth, body blow after body blow contest you'd expect from a No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup. The first three sets weren't particularly close with Nebraska using its speed in the first while Wisconsin settled in to overpower NU in the second and third.
The fourth set is where the real action picked up. Nebraska was ahead at an arm's length for most, but Wisconsin came back to take a 21-18. But the Huskers were scrappy and pulled out a 26-24 win to force the critical fifth set.
The fifth set was fitting with Nebraska taking a 14-13 lead. Wisconsin appeared to tie the match on a kill, but John Cook challenged for a net violation. He was right. The call was reversed and Nebraska earned its first win over Wisconsin since 2017.
The Wisconsin block took over
Set two was a huge turning point in the match. The Badgers set the tone early in the set as Devyn Robinson and Big Ten block leader Carter Booth combined for back-to-back stuffs. That was an indication of what was to come as Wisconsin rebounded from a dreadful first set.
The Badgers totaled 12 blocks in the set second alone with Booth recording six and Kansas transfer CC Crawford totaling five. 6-foot-9 Anna Smrek showed flashes of her dominant play with a few blocks and a couple of unblock able kills. Nebraska adjusted in the later sets which led to the fifth-set decider.
What are the implications?
This isn't the end of the season for either team. It was pretty clear that Nebraska and Wisconsin represent the top-two teams in the nation with others a tier below. If each team can play at a consistent level — which his always a question — there's no reason not to think that the next matchup between these two on November 24 might decide the Big Ten title. Penn State could play spoiler for either, but they were swept by Nebraska in their first meeting.
Nebraska is now in the driver's seat for the Big Ten title if they win out. Again, the mission doesn't change for either team. This is only one of a possibly three-game series between these two teams. In fact, at season's end we'll probably look upon this match as the one that had the lowest stakes.
What's next?
Nebraska gets six days off as they get a longer rest before coming back to the Devaney Center next weekend when they host Maryland on Friday, October 27 at 7 p.m. NU follows up with a 7 p.m. match versus Rutgers on Saturday at home.
