Nebraska volleyball didn’t just handle UCLA on Thursday night. The Huskers flattened a surging opponent and kept right on rolling, moving to 20-0 for the 10th time in program history with a 25-19, 25-11, 25-16 sweep.
UCLA came in riding a six-match winning streak, and that run included a victory over Penn State last week. None of that mattered once Nebraska got going. The Huskers controlled the match from start to finish, hit .380 as a team, and held the Bruins to .036.
Andi Jackson was a force in every phase. She finished with 11 kills, six blocks, and a .625 hitting percentage.
Bergen Reilly added another line that looked more like a stat sheet from a video game: 39 assists, 10 digs, four blocks, and three kills. It was the 48th double-double of her career.
With the win, Nebraska stretched its regular-season winning streak to 51 straight matches. And there were a few clear lessons from yet another dominant night.
Jackson is close to a milestone that says a lot about how good she’s been. She now needs only 13 more kills to become the fourth player in program history with 1,000 kills and 400 blocks. Even with only nine conference matches in the books, she looks like she’s playing at a level that’s hard to top.
The same goes for Nebraska’s defense, which continues to make life miserable for opponents. Jackson is part of that, of course, but so is Olivia Mauch at libero and the rest of the defensive group.
Nebraska kept balls off the floor all night, and the numbers backed it up. The Huskers had 49 kills and just 11 errors, while UCLA managed only 25 kills and 21 errors across three sets.
Reilly may not be the favorite for National Player of the Year, but the case for Big Ten Player of the Year is strong. She’s not only steering the offense, she’s also second on the team in digs and fourth in blocks.
Add in just one serve-receive error all season and 14 service aces, and it’s clear she’s filling every lane on the floor. Harper Murray and Jackson deserve recognition, too, but right now Reilly looks like Nebraska’s best player.
Elsewhere in Nebraska athletics, the Huskers’ second-half football predictions have them finishing 9-3. There’s also a look back at seven things learned through the first seven games.
Nebraska women’s basketball will open its 2026-27 season with an exhibition against Wayne State on Friday, Oct. 23 at 6 p.m. CT at Pinnacle Bank Arena. The game begins the team’s push for a fourth straight NCAA Tournament appearance.
In Other News...
Nebraska Just Got An Uncomfortable Reminder About Local QB Talent
Friday night gave Nebraska fans a jarring reminder that the states quarterback pipeline is still producing plenty of big-time talent. In a matchup between Omaha Westside and Millard South, Missouri commit Braylen Warren came out on top with a 41-17 win over Nebraska commit Trae Taylor, and the game quickly became more than just another high school result. For the Cornhuskers, it was a local spotlight game with two of the regions most closely watched quarterbacks on the same field, and Warren had the better night.
Taylors rough second half made the ending sting even more, with three interceptions helping swing the game in Westsides favor. For Nebraska, the result serves as an uncomfortable reminder that in-state recruiting battles are never straightforward, even when the Huskers are in the mix for one of their own. For both quarterbacks, the film will matter as much as the final score, and this one adds a little more scrutiny to a rivalry between two highly regarded prospects with their recruiting reputations on the line. [Read more 🡒]
Nebraska May Be Overlooking Another In-State Star Again
Tay Tay Jenkins has put together the kind of high school rsum that should be hard to ignore in Nebraska, piling up more than 5,000 career rushing yards while adding 73 touchdowns for Omaha Westside. He has also shown enough as a receiver to make himself more than just a traditional backfield threat, a combination that usually attracts plenty of attention from major college programs.
For now, though, the scholarship list remains surprisingly thin, with South Dakota standing as the lone notable offer. Interest from other schools is said to be picking up, and his coach expects an FBS program to come through before national signing day, which would fit the pattern Nebraska fans know all too well when an in-state talent starts to draw notice a little later than expected. [Read more 🡒]
Westside Just Turned Nebraskas Class A Playoff Race Upside Down
Omaha Westside closed the regular season in emphatic fashion Friday night, rolling past Millard South 41-17 to cap an undefeated run and shake up Nebraskas Class A playoff picture. The matchup had the feel of a measuring stick game, and Westside answered it with a statement performance behind Missouri commit Braylen Warren, who accounted for five touchdowns as the Warriors controlled the game from start to finish.
The win also brought an end to Millard Souths 33-game winning streak, a streak that had defined the Class A landscape. Westsides defense added to the damage by intercepting quarterback Trae Taylor three times, and now the Warriors head into the state playoffs looking every bit like a top contender with momentum, confidence and a result that has already changed the conversation. [Read more 🡒]