Seniors Start Search for Fourth NCAA Trip

Four Nebraska seniors enter the 2014-15 women's basketball season with their sights set on making history. Emily Cady, Tear'a Laudermill, Hailie Sample and Brandi Jeffery shoot to become the first senior class to lead the Huskers to four consecutive NCAA tournaments.

The group, which all joined the Huskers as freshmen in 2011-12 - the same year Nebraska played its first season in the Big Ten Conference - have already left a lasting legacy.

In 2013-14, all four played major roles in leading Nebraska to the Big Ten Tournament title and the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Along the way, Cady and Laudermill earned second-team All-Big Ten honors while Sample added a spot on the Big Ten All-Defensive Team.

In 2012-13, the quartet helped the Huskers to the second NCAA Sweet 16 appearance in school history, while playing for a share of the conference title on the final day of the regular season.

In 2011-12, the fresh-faced Huskers led a resurgent Big Red back to the NCAA Tournament after Nebraska came up short of postseason play in 2010-11. The hard-working, scrappy freshmen helped the Huskers fight their way to the 2012 Big Ten Tournament title game in Indianapolis.

Overall, the seniors have led Nebraska women's basketball to the best three-year stretch in program history, compiling a 75-25 record with three NCAA Tournament trips, a Big Ten Tournament title and four games that they played for at least a share of a conference championship.

They've not only helped the Huskers make a successful transition into a new conference, they helped the Huskers move into a new home at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

"Our seniors have seen a lot and been through a lot in their first three years at Nebraska," Coach Connie Yori said. "It's really kind of remarkable how much our program has changed along with their arrival. Since they've joined our program, we have a new practice facility, a new arena and a new conference. They quite literally have helped us build a new era of women's basketball at Nebraska. Maybe the most exciting thing is that they are not done yet."

Last season, the group powered the Big Red to a 26-7 overall record that included a 12-4 mark and a third-place finish in the Big Ten regular-season standings, just one game back of co-champions Penn State and Michigan State.

After rolling to three impressive wins over Minnesota, No. 19 Michigan State and No. 23 Iowa in the Big Ten Tournament in Indianapolis, the Huskers headed to Los Angeles in hopes of winning two games and returning to play at Pinnacle Bank Arena in the NCAA Sweet 16.

After rolling to a 19-point win over Fresno State, the Huskers were upended by BYU, 80-76, leaving the Big Red one game short of playing the school's first home NCAA Tournament game since 1993.

The taste left by the loss to the Cougars in California was a bitter one for the proud group of 2015 seniors to swallow and has helped motivate them as they enter their final collegiate campaign together.

"We felt like we should have gone a step farther," Cady said. "We kind of pride ourselves on our competitive fire, and that has motivated us since last March. Sure, we've accomplished quite a bit and done some pretty special things together in our first three years at Nebraska, but we have some pretty high expectations for ourselves."

Cady, an undeniable leader on the court throughout her career, averaged 12.7 points and 9.2 rebounds per game as a junior. The 6-2 forward from Seward, Neb., enters her final season with 1,054 points and 787 rebounds. She is in position to become just the fifth Husker in history with 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds in a career.

Not only are Cady and the Huskers hungry to advance to their fourth NCAA Tournament, they want to bring the Big Dance to Lincoln.

Last year, the Huskers ranked No. 19 in the final NCAA RPI, No. 17 in the final USA Today/Coaches Top 25 and No. 13 in the final Associated Press Poll. To bring the tournament's first and second rounds to Pinnacle Bank Arena, the Huskers will need to be a top-16 seed in the 64-team field.

Last season, the Big Red tied a school-record with 16 home wins at the new arena, while ranking eighth nationally with more than 110,000 fans attending women's basketball games throughout the season.

The Huskers are hoping their success at home last season will help translate to even more fans in the stands at Pinnacle Bank Arena in 2014-15. The Huskers know bigger crowds can help build on their already electric homecourt edge and fortify a potential NCAA Tournament bid.

"It would be really cool to get a chance to play an NCAA Tournament game in Lincoln," Cady said. "It would be awesome for our fans and the whole city of Lincoln and state of Nebraska. We were close to doing it last year, and we know we have another chance. The only way to get it done though is by working hard every day and taking each game as they come. The competition at this level is just too good to expect good things to happen for you. We have to make good things happen by working hard and playing smart."

The Huskers also want to put themselves in position to win a Big Ten regular-season championship, a title that has eluded them on the final day of the regular season in both 2013 and 2014.

"We have been really close the last two years, so it would be nice to win one of those," Sample said. "We've been around, so we know how tough it is going to be to put ourselves in that position. We have a pretty good idea how much work it really takes, and we feel like we are preparing ourselves the right way to win."