There was a lot of hand-wringing going on among Husker volleyball fans as the 2008 season was set to kick off.
After losing a host of talent from a team that won a national title, was a runner-up and just missed a third final four appearance in as many years, experts wondered if it would be a rebuilding year in the land of Husker Nation. Coach John Cook said that the season-opening AVCA Showcase at Qwest Center would go a long way toward telling him -- and Husker fans -- what kind of work this team needed to do this year.
Well if the results of that opening weekend are any indicator, maybe the task isn't quite as daunting as it first seemed.
Seventh-ranked Nebraska put the wood to No. 2 Stanford with a three-game sweep, then followed it up with a solid four-game win over fourth-ranked USC to get the year off on the right foot. They finished off the first weekend of the year with a three-game sweep over Oral Roberts at the UNL Coliseum on Labor Day.
On Friday, the Huskers swept Stanford 25-17, 25-19 and 26-24 behind the efforts of sophomore Tara Mueller, who finished with a career-best 15 kills on the night. Lindsey Licht also had a career night with 10 kills in her first college start and Nebraska won its first match over a higher-ranked team since 2000.
Sunday afternoon saw the talents of returning All-American Jordan Larson come to the front as she recorded a match-high 18 kills in Nebraska's 25-27, 25-19, 25-17, 25-18 win over USC. Larson was the lone Husker in double figures in the kills department as Nebraska used a balanced attack to overcome a first-game setback and win the match in dominating fashion.
Nebraska continued its momentum on Monday with an easy win over Oral Roberts. As a result of their efforts, Nebraska leapfrogged from No. 7 to No. 2 in the latest CBS College Sports/AVCA coaches poll released Monday.
The Huskers are back in action this weekend at the Cal Poly Invite, then return home for the Ameritas Classic the following weekend. Nebraska will play LSU on Friday night at the Devaney Center, then return to action Saturday at the UNL Coliseum.
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