The agony and the… well, the agony.
When Regionals weekend started, there were five Big Ten teams still in the tournament.
When it was over, there was one.
And it’s probably not the one you think.
Let’s break down this travesty.
Third Round Matches
After a relatively unsurprising first weekend, save for USC’s upset loss in five sets to Cal Poly, the Big Ten looked to be in good shape. But as is the way with tournaments, things got harder in the second weekend. Still, there were some bright spots in the third round.
#1 Nebraska def. #4 Kansas, 3-0
Friday night’s match vs. the Jayhawks seemed to serve up everything the Huskers hoped to see in the tournament – a very good team playing absolutely unstoppable volleyball. Kansas, in spite of some very cool Wonder-Woman looking sleeves, simply had no answer for the Huskers, who put together an annihilation in three sets to the tune of 25-12, 25-11, 25-12. The Huskers hit .450, and the Jayhawks .029. The stats in other areas were equally lopsided:
It was all this writer hoped to see of Nebraska in the tournament. Surely, sailing from here on out would be smooth if they were playing this well…
#3 Purdue def. #2 SMU, 3-1
The Little Team that Could did not have an auspicious start to this one – SMU really took it to the Boilers in the first set in this one, waxing them 25-16. But oh, how the tables turned! Purdue rallied and took the second 25-19, and the third 25-22. But SMU did not go quietly into that good night, and the fourth set brought us bonus volleyball – and a prevailing Purdue, 29-27. This was a really fun match to watch, as both teams were really evenly matched in many statistical categories at the end. The Shondell Train kept on rumbling!
#1 Pitt def. #4 Minnesota, 3-0
The Gophers took a punch in the first set, dropping it 25-16. Pitt is crazy good and has one of the best college players in history in Olivia Babcock, and it was evident throughout this match. Nevertheless, Minnesota was game, and kept the next two sets close, though unfortunately, neither close score included them winning (25-23, 25-22). Still, it was a really good end to a difficult season for Minnesota, who I would say exceeded my expectations.
#1 Texas def. #4 Indiana, 3-0
The Hoosiers’ dream season came to an end with a tough draw, facing always-formidable Texas. I actually thought Indiana played quite well in this match, and though they were swept, every set was pretty close (25-20, 25-22, 25-22). I’m rather fascinated by Indiana’s development this season, and am interested to see if the Big Ten has a lasting new volleyball power. With the apparent fading of Washington and Oregon, there’s certainly some churn happening within the Big Ten right now. It will be fun to see if Indiana can build from this excellent season.
#3 Wisconsin def. #2 Stanford, 3-1
In another dandy of a match, the Badgers seem to have resumed their typical post-season form with a very entertaining few hours against Stanford. Wisconsin came out big and ran Stanford off the court, 25-17, but the Cardinal came back swinging and took the second, 21-25. But after the break, Wisconsin was determined. Through two very tight sets, the Badgers had just a bit more, winning 25-23 and 25-22.
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So that brings us to the fourth round, and boy, was it a doozy for our remaining teams. I do want to note that every match in this round featured #1 vs. #3, not because that’s especially important, but because it is a little interesting. I wonder if that has happened before. And as we will see, it was not a flawless day for the #1 seeds.
#1 Pitt def. #3 Purdue, 3-1
Pitt is, as previously mentioned, pretty freaking good this year. I was worried that Purdue was going to get swept, though I also hoped that Purdue might have one more surprise in their bag. They did not, and Pitt had Olivia Babcock in theirs. Purdue did play well though – they actually finished the match with more blocks and more digs than Pitt, which is fairly impressive, and they battled back from two sets down to take the third. In the end though, Pitt took it in four (25-22, 25-21, 22-25, 25-17).
Purdue has been a crazy good story this year in the Big Ten. After losing so much scoring power to the portal, Dave Shondell admitted earlier this fall that he considered retiring. Instead, he quickly rebuilt a team, and it came together better than literally anyone expected. This was a massive coaching achievement and a great season for the Boilers.
#3 Texas A&M def. #1 Nebraska, 3-2
God, it still hurts to type that. I wanted this so, so, so much this year. And uncharacteristically for me, I was feeling pretty optimistic. I watched nearly every Husker match this year, and this team was focused and GOOD. Like sooooooo good. I really thought they could take out anyone. And, to be fair, I think that on most days, that is still true. I think they would still beat most teams in the country if they played them.
But sometimes, the other team is just better. And on Sunday, A&M was just better. They put together an absolutely ridiculous effort. Because the really frustrating (or comforting? Not sure how I feel about it yet) thing is that Nebraska, for the most part, didn’t play a terrible game of volleyball on Sunday. I’m not sure it was the best I’ve seen, but it’s not like they totally fell apart.
So, what happened? I admit I only watched the first set live – after a cardiac event last Thursday, I thought it might not be wise to take this one in given how the first set went. The standout feature in that one? A&M went on a 10-0 run. 10-0!!! Against Nebraska’s defense!!! It’s so hard to do that, I don’t even know how to describe it. Even with that, the Huskers only lost 25-22. It wasn’t a great way to start, but no need to panic yet.
But the second set was equally unsuccessful. While they didn’t give up ten points in a row, they just couldn’t get breathing room against A&M, and eventually lost 25-22. Uh oh.
I’m not sure what happened in the locker room during the break, but the Huskers, to their credit, came back and started to get off the mat. A 25-20 win in the third felt more like old times, even if the Huskers hadn’t been many positions of late to have to crawl out of such a hole.
The fourth set… oh my, what a doozy. Whatever can be said about Nebraska’s performance on Sunday, it wasn’t a lack of effort that doomed the good guys. 37-35 they won the third. No, I didn’t mistype that. 37-35. What an absolute epic of a set. You like bonus volleyball? You got bonus volleyball in this one.
The climactic fifth set. Would any team have anything left? Whoever lost now was going to have the most crushing of crushing defeats. And… it was Nebraska. 15-13. The smallest of margins. The narrowest of defeats.
What a devastating end to a beautiful, superlative season. 33-1. But my god, that 1.
I’m genuinely so sad they lost – I really thought they’d win it all this year. I wanted it for Rebekah Allick most of all, who showed up SO HARD in this game. If there was any possible way for her to have won this game on her own, she would have done it. Instead, her final home game – and final college game – ended in devastation. Sports are cruel.
That said, I genuinely loved watching them this year. They were a special team, and watching such amazing athletes play like that week in and week out was honestly, a joy. Thank you, my Huskers. <3
#3 Wisconsin def. #1 Texas, 3-1
I did not watch this one, as I was too busy being emotionally devastated/vowing to never watch volleyball again in the aftermath of the above, but it did slightly lift my mood when I heard that Texas had lost. It’s always a mood-lifter when Texas loses, a real balm to the soul. I probably can’t bring myself to cheer for Wisconsin to win it all for reasons I assume are obvious, but I did like seeing them take it to Texas in this round. Final score: 25-22, 25-21, 20-25, 25-19.
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In spite of all my Sunday afternoon vows to watch no more volleyball this year, that’s probably not going to be true. Tonight is the semi-finals, and although I am hosting a movie party with friends to watch the cinematic masterpiece Hot Frosty, I think because this starts so late, I may catch some of Wisconsin vs. Pitt.
And you know I’ll watch that championship. Can’t help myself. 🙂
Category: General Sports
