1995 NCAA Champions

Related:
THE 1995 NEBRASKA VOLLEYBALL HIGHLIGHT TAPE.
THE 1995 NEBRASKA VOLLEYBALL HIGHLIGHT TAPE.

Mission Accomplished
Nebraska entered the season with one goal in mind, win the national championship. Led by a talented trio of seniors, the Huskers capped their championship run by hammering Texas 3-1 in the title match. After three previous trips to the NCAA Championships, the Huskers’ incredible drive and focus fueled them to their first national title.

Semifinals
In the first match, Nebraska countered a 10-15 loss in game one, by winning the second and third games, 15-8. Michigan State responded to NU’s challenge, winning the fourth game, 15-9. In the fifth and decisive game, with the score deadlocked at 7-7, NU scored four-straight points, forging to an 11-7 lead. The Spartans added one more point, but the Huskers prevailed, 15-8. Allison Weston led the Husker charge, recording a team-high 30 kills.

Final
In the finals, Texas jumped to an early 12-4 lead in game one, but the Huskers rallied to make it close, losing 10-15. Although they lost the first game, the Huskers gained momentum, playing solidly at the end of the game. NU cruised to wins in games two and three, thumping the Longhorns, 15-2 and 15-7. Game four swayed back and forth, but the Huskers persevered, sealing NU’s first national title with a 16-14 victory. Billie Winsett and Kate Crnich led the way, posting 25 kills each. Crnich’s 25 kills were a career high, hitting .500 for the match.

Highlighting the 1995 Season

• After losing its second match of the season to then-No. 1 Stanford, NU reeled off 31 consecutive matches to claim the NCAA title. An amazing 28 of Nebraska’s 32 victories were 3-0 wins.
• Not only did Nebraska claim its first-ever national championship, the Huskers posted school records for wins and winning percentage that would stand until the 2000 season. Nebraska finished with its best season ever at 32-1 (.970), bettering the .969 percentage it posted in 1994 (31-1). NU also matched the then-school record for wins, equalling the 1990 squad’s record total of 32.
• Allison Weston shattered Eileen Shannon’s Husker school record for career kills (1,521), finishing her career with 1,778.
• Nebraska bettered its own NCAA record for single-match home attendance, as 11,529 cheered the Huskers to a 3-0 win over Colorado, Oct. 21, at the Devaney Center. NU set the previous record of 11,032, Sept. 14, 1991, also at the Devaney Center. The mark would stand until the 2000 season.

Quoting Coach Terry Pettit
“We certainly should be strong. We have great senior leadership in Allison Weston, Billie Winsett and Christy Johnson. We were 31-1 last season (1994) and I think we’re going to be better this year.” – Pettit before the 1995 season