No. 3 seed Texas A&M stunned the college volleyball world Sunday in Lincoln, Neb. with a 3-2 victory (25-22, 25-22, 20-25, 35-37, 15-13) over No. 1 overall seed and previously undefeated Nebraska in the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament.
The win puts the Aggies (27-4) into the Final Four for the first time in program history. They will face No. 1 seed Pittsburgh in the national semifinals on Thursday.
Kyndal Stowers and Logan Lednicky led the way for Texas A&M with 25 and 24 kills, respectively. Their performances helped the Aggies to a slight attacking edge, with A&M having 75 kills to Nebraska’s 73. The Aggies thrived at the net though, out blocking the Cornhuskers 30-16. Middle Blocker Morgan Perkins led the way in that respect with eight block assists and one block solo.
Texas A&M survived a comeback attempt from Nebraska (33-1) after winning the first two sets. The Cornhuskers rallied to win the third set and then fought off three Aggie match points in a marathon fourth set to force a decider. In the end, Texas A&M overcame Nebraska’s best effort to win the final set and the match on the Huskers’ home court.
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The huge win comes after the Aggies needed a reverse sweep to beat No. 2 seed Louisville in the Sweet Sixteen.
See full game highlights here:
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Texas A&M routs Jacksonville at home as six Aggies score in double figures
Rylan Griffen scored a season-high 19 points and was hot from deep, making 5 of 6 from 3-point range.
Texas A&M leads college football in alcohol revenue, per report
Texas A&M topped the list with $4,740,922 in revenue generated by 277,156 alcohol units sold.
Find more Texas A&M coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Cale Jacobsen came off the bench to score 13 of his 15 points after halftime and hit the tiebreaking 3-pointer in overtime, and ninth-ranked Nebraska matched its program record for wins in a season with an 84-75 victory over Iowa on Sunday.
Sam Hoiberg, who scored 15 points and had five steals on his senior day, hugged teammate Pryce Sandfort near halfcourt as time ran out and then heaved the ball high into the stands. He and his father, coach Fred Hoiberg, embraced and a short time later the rest of the Huskers came out of the tunnel to salute the sellout crowd at Pinnacle Bank Arena.
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Nebraska (26-5, 15-5 Big Ten) led by 10 points with five minutes left in regulation but missed five of its next seven shots and a couple of late free throws to let the Hawkeyes back in it. Kael Combs scored Iowa’s last eight points of regulation, including a second-chance 3-pointer that tied it 70-all with 2.7 seconds left.
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After Cooper Koch tied it at 75-all in overtime, Jacobsen made a 3 from the corner and the Huskers went on to score the final nine points. The Huskers beat Iowa (20-11, 10-10) for the first time in five meetings and split the season series.
Sandfort, who transferred from Iowa after last season, scored 15 points and Rienk Mast added 14 for the Huskers.
Combs and Koch had 18 points apiece for the Hawkeyes, who committed 19 turnovers.
Up next
Iowa: The Hawkeyes are the No. 9 seed in the Big Ten Tournament and play Oregon or Maryland on Wednesday.
Nebraska: The Huskers are the No. 2 seed and play Friday.
The first Big Ten Conference series of the year for NU ends in a sweep.
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Nebraska baseball pounded Michigan State in Sunday’s series finale at Haymarket Park, 12-2, in seven innings. The Huskers improved to 10-5, while the Spartans fell to 3-11.
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With Sunday’s victory, NU moves to 3-0 in the league.
The Game
The Stats
What’s Next
Nebraska Baseball’s 2026 Schedule
The Game
Down 2-0 in the series, Michigan State needed a spark early to try to salvage at least one win in Lincoln. In the top of the first inning, first baseman Randy Seymour took a 3-1 pitch from Gavin Blachowicz to right center and over the fence.
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But, for the Spartans, that spark was quickly extinguished.
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Nebraska loaded the bases with no outs on a walk, a single, and a single. Case Sanderson then doubled to score them all. He would cross home plate two batters later when Preston Freeman smacked a 1-0 pitch down the left field line for a two-run homer.
Case Sanderson gloves the ball for an out at first base. | Amarillo Mullen
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Already up 5-1, Dylan Carey lifted a two-run home run in the second inning. The Huskers would tack on one run in the third, one in the fourth, two in the fifth, and one more in the sixth. At the end of the game, Nebraska scored in every inning in which it went to the plate.
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Blachowicz sat down 11 batters from the second through fifth innings. A leadoff double in the sixth inning helped Michigan State add one more run to its tally.
In the top of the seventh inning, with a 10-run rule waiting to be enacted, the Spartans got a one-out single before being put down via a fly out and a fielder’s choice to end the game.
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The Stats
Blachowicz pitched the entire 7.0 innings Sunday afternoon. He allowed two earned runs on three hits, walking one and striking out 11.
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The Huskers, who rattled off 11 hits, were aided by five Spartan errors. That helped bring home extra runs, with four of the 12 runs scored being unearned.
The Nebraska baseball dugout looks on against Michigan State at Haymarket Park. | Kenny Larabee, KLIn
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Carey led the way at the plate for the Big Red. The shortstop went 3-for-4 with four RBI, two home runs, and three runs scored.
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Nebraska left seven runners on base, while Michigan State stranded just two.
What’s Next
Nebraska’s nine-game homestand continues with a midweek contest against North Dakota State.
The Bison are 1-14 on the year and coming off a sweep at Vanderbilt. The lone victory was 5-1 over Monmouth at the Stetson Tournament on Feb. 21.
First pitch from Haymarket Park on Wednesday is slated for 6 p.m. CDT. The game will be streamed on B1G+.
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Have a question or comment for Kaleb? Send an email to kalebhenry.huskermax@gmail.com.
GRAND ISLAND, Neb. — Press release courtesy of LOVB Nebraska:
The state of Nebraska once again proved why it’s the Volleyball Capital of the U.S. as a sold-out Heartland Events Center played host to a LOVB Nebraska sweep of LOVB Salt Lake (29-27, 25-16, 25-22) on Saturday night in Grand Island, Nebraska.
Outside hitter Jordan Larson shined once again for Nebraska (5-7), recording her third-straight match with 15+ points. The Hooper, Nebraska, native tallied 14 kills on a season-high .385 hitting efficiency, tacking on 13 digs for her second double-double in three matches.
“I think I’ve always kind of played like this,” said Larson. “You never know when the last could be, and so to me it’s just like how can I continue to leave it all out there. How do I continue to show up and let my body do it? I’m really trying to enjoy this as much as I can.”
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The other half of Nebraska’s dominant outside hitting tandem, Anne Buijs, was close behind Larson, securing 13 points on 13 kills. Opposite hitter Kimberly Drewniok rounded out a trio of Nebraska athletes in the double figures for points and kills, also scoring 13 points on 13 kills.
The true highlight of the match were the fans that filled the Heartland Events Center. Central Nebraska showed up and made it known, creating a tough environment for Salt Lake while continuously energizing the home bench.
“We’re thrilled to be in Grand Island. That’s the best crowd we’ve had all season,” said Nebraska head coach Suzie Fritz.
“You could feel the energy. I think they helped us with a couple points. They really do make a difference and it’s really impactful for us to hear that and be a part of it,” said Larson.
“When Jordan got announced in the starting lineup, I told her I got goosebumps because the fans were just so amazing,” said Drewniok.
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Salt Lake (8-6) continues having midseason struggles, extending its losing streak to five matches and now falling one game back of first place. Outside hitter Claire Hoffman led all athletes on the floor tonight with a match-high 16 points and 15 kills.
“Unfortunately, really frustrated after the match,” said Salt Lake head coach Tama Miyashiro. “We gotta look forward and no one’s feeling sorry for us. We’re going to try to get back to work and fix a couple things.”
LOVB Nebraska will look to continue its hot streak next Thursday, March 12, against LOVB Madison for a 7 p.m. Central first serve at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison, Wisconsin. The contest will stream on ESPN+.
