Oxley, Huskers Down Wildcats

Manhattan, Kan. - The 13th-ranked Huskers showed they were not ready to relinquish their Big 12 volleyball title any time soon, handing No. 15 Kansas State a 15-9, 15-10, 15-6 loss in front of a capacity crowd of 5,122 at Ahearn Fieldhouse in Manhattan, Kan., Saturday night. Kansas State entered the match tied for the Big 12 lead, while the Huskers were in third. The win moved Nebraska into a tie for second with the Wildcats.

Nebraska used one of its best performances of the season to avenge an upset loss to the Wildcats in Lincoln on Sept. 22, when KSU defeated Nebraska for the first time in 59 tries.

Nebraska used a .370 hitting percentage, and a balanced offense to roll past the Wildcats. All-American Nancy Meendering led the way, but junior Angie Oxley chipped in 11 kills in one of her best offensive outputs on the year. The two also keyed the defensive effort, combining for 21 digs.

"I thought we played a great match -- maybe one of our best in terms as an all-around team," Head Coach Terry Pettit said. "I felt after the loss to Texas, we would either step up or step down, and we stepped up. I am very impressed by the resiliency of this team."

Kansas State's Dawn Cady, who pounded a school record 37 kills in the first meeting against the Huskers, was held to just 14. Nebraska also used a 13-5 block advantage to surge past the Wildcats.

Nebraska was impressive early, breaking a 4-4 tie by rolling to an 11-2 run to close out the game. Oxley gave the Huskers one of best single-game performances of the year, pouring in seven kills on 14 attacks in the first frame for a .429 percentage. As a team, Nebraska hit .375 in the game, while holding KSU to .167 hitting. Oxley also led NU defensively with six kills.

In a wild second game, the Huskers overcame five ties and a 10-9 deficit to surge past the Wildcats by scoring six unanswered points to close out the match. K-State jumped out to an early 4-2 lead, but Nebraska returned with four straight points to take a 6-4 lead. KSU managed to tie the game at three more times before taking a 10-9 lead on a kill from Wegner. But the Wildcats allowed a Husker overpass to drop for a point, tying the match at 10. Nebraska then scored five straight points to seal the game. The Huskers used six kills from Meendering and four from sophomore Jenny Kropp to win the second game. The Huskers continued their hot hitting with a .362 mark in the game, while KSU countered with a .209 percentage.

Nebraska jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the third game, only to have KSU score four consecutive points before taking a 5-3 lead. Nebraska bounced right back, however, to score six straight points on four KSU hitting errors and a pair of Meendering kills.