Youth is served as freshmen continue to sparkle for top-ranked Nebraska
Nebraska’s Bergen Reilly, left, and Bekka Allick block Pitt’s Valeria Vazquez Gomez/@Andy Wenstrand
By Joey Johnson for VolleyballMag.com
TAMPA — When the season began, top-ranked Nebraska featured five freshmen, most of whom were expected to play key roles.
“I feel like that (being doubted) is understandable with five freshmen coming in,’’ said one them, outside hitter Harper Murray.. “I can see why people feel that way, but I think that’s what drives all of us. We want to prove people wrong. It doesn’t matter how old we are.’’
She was right.
Nebraska’s freshmen showed up big Thursday night in the NCAA Tournament’s national semifinals as the Huskers swept Pittsburgh Panthers 25-20, 25-23, 25-17 in Amalie Arena.
Murray showed up most significantly, registering a team-high 13 kills, hitting .273 on a night when percentrages were low for both teams. That included back-to-back kills that pulled Nebraska to the deciding point in the second set. She also contributed five digs and two block assists.
Meanwhile, setter Bergen Reilly had 31 assists and three digs, while middle blocker Andi Jackson had five kills and three block assists.
“I think they’re all super competitors,’’ said Nebraska coach John Cook, whose team improved to 33-1. “That’s their super power. They’re competitors. The bigger the stage, the bigger the match, the harder they compete.’’
Harper, from Ann Arbor, Michigan, wears No. 27 in honor of her late father, Vada, a former Michigan football player who died of cancer in 2011.
On January 2, 1988, Vada Harper played in Michigan’s Hall of Fame Bowl victory against the Alabama Crimson Tide at the old Tampa Stadium — about 10 miles from the site where his daughter will play on Sunday for a national championship.
Harper, while elated with her contribution against Pitt, said she’s laser focused on the ultimate goal — winning the national championship before an ABC-TV audience. It’s heady stuff for any player — let alone a freshman — but Harper said she’s ready for the challenge.
“Our captains and all our upperclassmen, they have been through this before (freshman season),’’ Harper said. “I think our team does a great job of learning on each other. No one on this team has made us feel like freshmen when we’re struggling.
“All of the older girls do an amazing job of keeping us on track. I was just telling Coach about it. All the captains, all the girls, we trust each other. We’re there for each other. At the end of the day, that’s what keeps us going. We’re playing for each other. It’s pure love.’’
Before the match, Cook said he thinks more freshmen are prepared to immediately contribute in college volleyball because of the rise of elite club teams, including many in small towns.
He recalled going to Sioux Falls, South Dakota, to help a newly christened club with a clinic. Reilly, who was probably then in the third grade, emerged all these years later as a player good enough to be recruited by Nebraska.
“You watch club volleyball now and there’s not just one or two teams that are dominating,’’ Cook said. “There are great teams all across the country. That’s where I would give the credit. It has really helped players transition to college.’’
And certainly those freshmen played a big part in Nebraska’s journey to this point.
“I think all of team — and our whole team — knows what we’re going for here,’’ Cook said. “It’s not easy to get into this position. It’s not easy to get a sweep in the national semifinals. But now we’re in this position and we need to be ready to play a great match on Sunday.”
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