Volleyball Defeated by Nebraska in B1G Home Opener

EAST LANSING, Mich. – The Michigan State volleyball team was defeated by No. 3-ranked Nebraska on Thursday night 3-0 (25-18, 25-23, 25-9), in front of a season-best crowd at the Breslin Student Events Center. More than 4,000 Spartan faithful were in attendance to see the Spartans play in their Big Ten home opener.

Meeting Nebraska (13-1, 5-0 B1G) for the second time in five matches, the Spartans (10-6, 1-4 B1G) kept the match close through two sets, but ran out of steam in set three to fall to the Cornhuskers. Michigan State pulled out all the stops in set two, falling to the reigning national runner-up's by just two points for the second time this season. Set two featured seven ties as the teams went back-and-forth throughout.

Michigan State was out-hit .358 to .031 overall, peaking in set two when the team hit .171. The Spartans were led in kills by sophomore Aliyah Moore who finished with seven. Moore was closely followed in kills by freshman Maradith O'Gorman (6) and sophomore Julia Bishop (5). Five of O'Gorman's six kills came in the neck-and-neck second set. Bishop led the team with 16 assists while junior Nalani Iosia had a match-high 11 digs to tie Nebraska's Lexi Rodriguez. Sophomore Aubrey O'Gorman (1-1) and freshman Nil Okur (0-2) each finished with a pair of blocks for MSU.

Nebraska was led on offense by a trio of eight-kill performers in Bekka Allick, Madi Kubik and Whitney Lauenstein. Anni Evans led the team with 15 assists followed by 13 helpers for Kennedi Orr. In the middle, Kaitlyn Hord finished with six blocks (0-6).

Quotables
Michigan State volleyball head coach Leah Johnson

"For two sets I would be really proud of that," Johnson said. "We were effectively in control of set two and put a run together there at the end. We stayed tough and kept working hard. This is a team that has to go through these moments. We're going to see similar talent over the next few matches, which forces us to regroup quicker. You can't sulk, you can't dwell, you have to find other ways to score points and rebound."

"I thought our serving was excellent tonight," Johnson said. "I thought we neutralized Nebraska in a lot of ways. That's something that has been progressing for us so I was proud to see that."

Up Next
Michigan State returns to the Breslin Center on Sunday, Oct. 9 for a 2:00 p.m. match against No. 11-ranked Minnesota. The Golden Gophers will face No. 24-ranked Michigan in Ann Arbor on Friday night prior to meeting the Spartans.

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Team Stats

Aliyah Moore

Maradith O'Gorman

Julia Bishop

Nil Okur

Players Mentioned

Julia Bishop

Nalani Iosia

Aliyah Moore

Aubrey O'Gorman

Maradith O'Gorman

Nil Okur

Players Mentioned

Julia Bishop

Nalani Iosia

Aliyah Moore

Aubrey O'Gorman

Maradith O'Gorman

Nil Okur