NU travels to OU before Rare Meet at Devaney Center

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Nebraska Probable Starters

No.	Name	Cl.	Pos.	Ht.	kpg	pct.	dpg	bpg
1	Greichaly Cepero	So.	S	6-2	1.67	.340	1.97	1.30
2	Angie Oxley	Sr.	RS	6-0	1.79	.303	2.63	0.96
3	Amber Holmquist	So.	MB	6-4	2.97	.408	0.34	1.83
9	Laura Pilakowski	So.	OH	6-1	4.12	.363	2.49	0.72
17	Jenny Kropp	Jr.	MB	6-2	2.56	.358	1.25	1.73
25	Kim Behrends	Sr.	OH	6-0	a2.18	.254	2.28	0.64

Lincoln -- The top-ranked Nebraska volleyball team will look to sweep its fourth Big 12 Conference series this season when it travels to Norman, Okla., Wednesday to face the Sooners (6-14 overall and 1-11 in the league) in a 7 p.m. match at the OU Field House.

Saturday, the Huskers (21-0, 13-0) return home to play host to Colorado (10-9, 6-6) in a rare match at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. First serve for the match has been moved to 7:30 p.m. because of the 2:30 kickoff for the Nebraska football team's game against Kansas. The Huskers, who usually play at the 4,200-seat Nebraska Coliseum, have traditionally drawn some of the largest crowds in the nation when playing at the Devaney Center. The 1995 Nebraska-Colorado match at Devaney drew a school-record 11,529 fans, a mark that ranks third in NCAA history.

The Sooners and Buffaloes will face a Nebraska team that continues to stifle opponents at the net. The Huskers, who are out-blocking their opponents 274.5-83.0, lead the Big 12 and the nation with 4.04 blocks per game. NU is on pace to break its own Big 12 record of 3.93 blocks per game set in 1998.

Three Huskers rank among the Big 12's top four in blocks per game in league matches only. Junior middle blocker Jenny Kropp is first with 1.92 blocks per game, sophomore middle blocker Amber Holmquist is second with 1.90 blocks per game, and sophomore setter Greichaly Cepero is fourth with 1.45 blocks per game.

Offensively, sophomore outside hitter Laura Pilakowski has continued to play a big role for NU, posting 4.12 kills per game on a .363 hitting efficiency. Eight Huskers are hitting .297 or better under Cepero, the only player in the Big 12 to rank among the league's top 10 in hitting efficiency, assists and blocks per game.

Nebraska, ranked No. 1 in the AVCA/USA Today Coaches poll for eight straight weeks, is coming off 3-0 wins over No. 25 Missouri in Columbia and Kansas. The Huskers are 6-0 against ranked opponents this season and have swept 17 of their 21 opponents, including 11 of their 13 league foes. The Huskers have dropped just two games in Big 12 play in 2000.

A Look at Oklahoma
Oklahoma finshed the first month of the season with a .500 record, but October has not been kind to the Sooners. OU has lost its last eight and has fallen to 6-14 overall and 1-11 in the Big 12 Conference. Oklahoma's lone league win was a five-game victory over Iowa State Sept. 27.

The Sooners have struggled offensively, posting a .196 hitting percentage on the season. OU's opponents have combined for a .254 hitting efficiency.

Senior middle blocker Cathy Cook, the 1999 Big 12 Newcomer of the Year, and senior outside hitter Maria Holmgren have been bright spots for OU. Cook is among the Big 12 leaders in kills per game with 4.57 while hitting .333. Holmgren averages 3.02 kills per game.

Nebraska, led by seven kills from senior outside hitter Kim Behrends, defeated Oklahoma 15-5, 15-4, 15-3 Sept. 23 in Lincoln. The Huskers are 53-6 all-time against OU, and their last loss to the Sooners was Sept. 10, 1997.

A Look at Colorado
Colorado has won three of its last four matches to improve to 10-9 overall and 6-6 in the Big 12 Conference. Two of their three October losses have been on the road, including 3-0 defeats at Kansas State and Missouri. The Buffaloes are coming off back-to-back wins over Kansas and Oklahoma at home, and CU faces second-place Texas A&M Wednesday night in Boulder.

The Buffaloes feature a diverse offense with six players averaging 2.16 kills per game or more. Sonja Nielsen has led the way with 3.65 kills per game and Monique Gerlach adds 3.03 kills per game. Under sophomore setter Elizabeth Gower, the Buffaloes are averaging 17.28 kills per game.

Nebraska defeated CU 15-5, 15-6, 15-9 Sept. 27 in Boulder. The Huskers were led by sophomore outside hitter Laura Pilakowski, who totaled 13 kills, and senior right side hitter Angie Oxley, who posted a double-double with 11 kills and 12 digs.

Husker assistant coach Staci Wolfe was an all-Big Eight Conference selection 1994 for the Buffaloes. She finished her career at Colorado as the school record holder for career service aces with 174.

NU-CU match scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at Devaney
Nebraska's Nov. 4 match against Colorado has been moved from 7 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. and will be played at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. The Huskers, who usually play at the 4,200-seat Nebraska Coliseum, have traditionally drawn some of the largest crowds in the nation when playing at Devaney.

The Nebraska-Colorado series has provided several highlights when played at the Devaney Center. The 1995 Nebraska-Colorado match at Devaney drew a school-record 11,529 fans, a mark that ranks third in NCAA history.

NU owns a 30-5 all-time series advantage over Colorado, but on Oct. 8, 1997, the last time the Huskers faced CU at the Devaney Center, NU dropped a five-game decision to the Buffaloes.

The Huskers also played at Devaney in 1999, drawing a season-high 8,279 fans -- the Huskers' third-largest crowd in school history -- in a sweep of Baylor.

The Nebraska ticket office has already sold 7,043 tickets for this year's match at Devaney, and over 5,000 general admission tickets remain. The tickets are $4 each and can be purchased by calling the Nebraska ticket office at 1-800-8BIGRED.

Cepero living up to preseason hype
After being voted the preseason co-Big 12 Player of the Year before ever starting a match as Nebraska's setter, Greichaly Cepero had something to prove. And through the Huskers' 21 matches in 2000, Cepero has lived up to the hype.

In the Oct. 30 Big 12 statistics, Cepero was the only player in the Big 12 to rank among the league's top 10 in hitting percentage (fifth, .358), assists (ninth, 11.74) and blocks per game (fourth, 1.45) in conference matches. Cepero, who is also the only setter in the league who has earned Big 12 Volleyball Athlete-of-the-Week honors, leads the Huskers with three double-doubles and two triple-doubles.

Through NU's 21 matches this season, Cepero has averaged 11.22 assists per game, 1.97 digs per game, 1.30 blocks per game and 1.67 kills per game on .340 hitting.

Cepero has guided the Huskers to a .337 hitting percentage, a mark that ranks first in the Big 12 and first nationally. In its 13 league matches, NU has hit an even more impressive .340. Eight of the 10 Huskers who have attempted kills this season are hitting .297 or better under the direction of Cepero.

NU ranks first nationally in hitting percentage
The Huskers ranked first in the nation with a .340 hitting percentage in the Oct. 22 NCAA statistics. The mark includes their first 21 matches. Nebraska currently ranks first in the Big 12 Conference with a .337 efficiency, and the Huskers are on track to break the school's single-season mark of .331 set in 1986. In its 13 league matches this season, Nebraska has hit .340 while holding its opponents to a .108 percentage.

As a team, the Huskers have hit .300 or higher in 16 of their 21 matches under the direction of first-year setter Greichaly Cepero. Their most impressive statistical offensive showing came against Creighton Oct. 3 when NU posted a .567 hitting percentage, their best mark in at least seven years. Nebraska has hit .485 or higher three times and .433 or higher five times already this season. Nebraska hit .400 or higher only two times in 1999.

For the season, eight of the 10 NU players who have attempted a kill are hitting .297 or higher, and the Huskers are dominating the Big 12 statistics in conference matches only, as four players rank among the top 10 in hitting percentage. Sophomore middle blocker Amber Holmquist ranked first with a .440 hitting percentage. Junior middle blocker Jenny Kropp was third (.383), Cepero was fifth (.358) and sophomore outside hitter Laura Pilakowski was ninth (.340).

Nebraska nation's top blocking team
In the NCAA statistics released Oct. 16, Nebraska ranked No. 1 in the nation in team blocking with 3.90 per game. Sophomore middle blocker Amber Holmquist leads the nation with 1.85 blocks per game, and junior middle blocker Jenny Kropp ranks fourth nationally with 1.72 blocks per game.

The Huskers also lead the Big 12 in blocking, averaging 4.18 blocks per game in league matches. NU will likely break its own conference record of 3.83 blocks per game in a single season set in 1998. Kropp ranks first in league matches (1.92), Holmquist is second (1.73) and sophomore setter Greichaly Cepero ranks fourth (1.45 bpg). Nebraska, which has led the conference in blocking three of the past four years, is out-blocking its opponents 274.5 to 83.0 this season.

Huskers break conference blocking record
Nebraska staged its own block party at Texas Oct. 22, breaking two NU school records and two Big 12 Conference records for block assists.

The Huskers set a new NU record for block assists in a single match with 46, smashing the 9-year-old record of 41 set in 1991 against UCLA. The total also broke the Big 12 record for blocks in a four-game match. The previous mark of 42 was set by both Texas A&M and Kansas State in 1998.

With 16 total blocks against Texas, sophomore middle blocker Amber Holmquist broke the Big 12 Conference and the Nebraska record for total blocks in a single match. The previous record of 15 was held by former NU middle blocker Tonia Tauke, who accomplished the feat against Michigan State in 1996.

For the week of Oct. 16, the Huskers averaged an amazing 6.00 blocks per game in wins over Kansas State and Texas. Holmquist averaged 3.29 blocks per game for the week

Behrends starting to peak
In her first season as a starter, Kim Behrends has produced solid numbers, ranking fourthon the team in kills per game (2.18) and third on the team in digs per game (2.28). But it has been the during the Big 12 Conference season when the senior outside hitter has done most of her damage.

In league matches only, Behrends ranks first among Huskers and third in Big 12 matches only with 0.43 service aces per game. Behrends has 17 service aces in her last 12 matches after posting just three aces in NU's first nine matches of 2000. Oct. 28 against Kansas, Behrends posted a career-best five service aces. It was also the most service aces by any Husker in a single match this season.

The Chappel, Neb., native's offensive numbers are also up in Big 12 play, where she has produced a slightly higher 2.30 kills per game and has hit .276. Behrends has hit over .333 or higher in three of her last seven matches. Behrends has led Nebraska in kills during their last two matches, posting a career-best 14 at Missouri Oct. 25.

Holmquist high on NCAA, Big 12 charts
With impressive all-around play at the net in recent weeks, sophomore middle blocker Amber Holmquist rose to first in the nation in blocking and seventh in hitting percentage in the Oct. 23 NCAA statistcs. The Houston, Texas, native is also the only Big 12 Conference player to rank first in two league categories in all matches this season. She is first in blocking and first in hitting percentage.

Holmquist currently owns a .408 hitting percentage for the season and is hitting .440 in Big 12 matches. If Holmquist continues at her current pace, she will end the year ranked second all-time in hitting percentage on the NU single-season charts.

Holmquist hit .500 or higher in 11 matches this season, and she has hit .600 or higher six times. She has led Nebraska in blocks in 13 matches and kills in 11 matches. Holmquist, who broke a Big 12 record with 16 total blocks at Texas Oct. 22, is one of three Huskers who have earned Big 12 Conference Player of the Week honors this season. The others are her sophomore classmates, setter Greichaly Cepero and outside hitter Laura Pilakowski.

Pilakowski pounding NU opponents
After playing just nine games in 1999, sophomore outside hitter Laura Pilakowski has emerged as a go-to player for the Huskers in 2000.

Through Nebraska's first 21matches, Pilakowski leads the Huskers with 4.12 kills per game on .363 hitting. She ranks seventh in the conference in hitting percentage and eighth in kills per game. Pilakowski has posted the Huskers' top five kill totals this season with 25 against Colorado State, 20 against UCLA and Texas and 18 at Texas Tech, and she has led Nebraska in kills in 11 matches.

Pilakowski's heroics have not gone unnoticed by others this season. The Big 12 Conference honored the Columbus (Neb.) High graduate with its first volleyball athlete-of-the-week honor. Pilakowski was also the MVP of the US Bank Tournament and was named to the Notre Dame adidas Invitational all-tournament team.

NU remains No. 1 in AVCA/USA Today Coaches Poll
For the fifth straight week, Nebraska was voted No. 1 in the AVCA/USA Today Coaches Poll. The 19-0 Huskers received 52 first-place votes after 3-0 wins over Missouri and Kansas last week

Second-place Hawaii earned eight first-place votes and 1,448 points. USC was third with 1,361 points. Arizona and Wisconsin rounded out the top five. Colorado State, which lost to BYU last week, fell from third to sixth.

Six of the teams on NU's 2000 schedule are ranked, including Big 12 foes Missouri (No. 24) and Texas A&M (No. 21).

The Huskers were voted the nation's No. 1 team for the first time in 2000 in the Sept. 11 poll. The poll marked the first time since 1995 that NU has held the top spot.

The Huskers moved into the No. 1 ranking on the strength of their successful weekend in South Bend. NU first posted sweeps of then-No. 22 Notre Dame Sept. 8 and then-No. 16 Michigan State Sept. 9. In the adidas Invitational title match Sept. 10, Nebraska knocked off previously third-ranked UCLA, 12-15, 15-11, 13-15, 15-1, 15-10.

Nebraska has produced an overall 56-2 mark when holding the nation's top spot. The Huskers are 13-0 in 2000, and were 27-0 at No. 1 in 1995, 9-1 in 1994 and 5-1 in 1990. Nebraska's only losses while ranked No. 1 were to Pacific in 1990 and Penn State in 1994.