Huskers Roll Over Creighton, 3-0

Lincoln ?  Christina Houghtelling posted her second double-double of the spring with 17 kills and 12 digs to lead the Nebraska volleyball team to a 30-15, 30-19, 30-22 win over Creighton Saturday in front of 1,588 fans at the NU Coliseum.

Houghtelling, the 2005 AVCA National Player of the Year, added two blocks and a service ace on .359 hitting, as one of three Huskers to total at least 10 kills in the sweep of the Bluejays. Two-time All-American Sarah Pavan proved her versatility as she nearly recorded a triple-double with 19 kills, eight blocks and eight digs, while Tracy Stalls added 10 kills on .500 hitting, as NU finished the spring with a 2-0 record.

The Huskers also received strong performances from a quartet of freshmen in the victory. Amanda Gates totaled six kills on .444 hitting and 11 blocks, while Rachel Holloway totaled 22 assists and seven digs, helping NU hit .301 as a team. Libero Rachel Schwartz totaled a match-high 15 digs in just two games, while newcomer Kori Cooper also made her Husker debut, recording three kills in limited duty. 

The Huskers executed to near perfection in game one, hitting .615 as a team. Houghtelling did most of the damage with six kills in a 30-15 victory.  The Huskers took control of game one by going a 9-3 surge to take an 11-4 advantage that included kills from four different players, including two from Pavan, who totaled five kills on .714 hitting and four blocks in the opener.

Creighton matched the Huskers early in game two, as the teams were tied at six before Pavan’s kills sparked a decisive 6-2 run. Creighton stayed within four until midway through the game, but with the Huskers up 16-12, a powerful kill from Pavan sparked a 10-5 run that put the Huskers up 26-17. NU went on to win 30-19 to go into the locker room up 2-0.

The Bluejays played their best volleyball in the third game, taking advantage of eight Husker errors after NU totaled just five errors through the first two games. With the Huskers leading 11-10, Stalls led a 10-5 burst to put Nebraska up 21-15. Stalls produced two kills and a dig in the run. Stalls finished with five kills and hit .625 in the finale, which was capped by a kill from Cooper at match point.

At the coaches’ request, there was a fourth game, which did not count in regulation scoring. Nebraska lit up the court as the Huskers silenced the Bluejays to a score of 21-3 before allowing Creighton to come back to within 14 at one point, as the game ended with a final score of 30-14. The Huskers held Creighton to a match-low -.158 hitting, totaling 14 block assists in game four alone with Dani Mancuso leading the pack with five stuffs in game four.

Kelly Goc led Creighton with 13 kills, as the Bluejays dropped to 6-2-1 in the spring season.