4:07 am, December 20, 2024
Set 3 is heating up! Nebraska jumped ahead 7-6 after a big Taylor Landfair kill, but Penn State rallied to take an 11-10 lead. A key review and back-to-back kills from Rebekah Allick kept the Huskers in the mix.
4:01 am, December 20, 2024
Tonight’s attendance at the KFC Yum! Center hits 21,726 — the largest crowd ever for an NCAA volleyball semifinal. Historic energy in Louisville!
2️⃣1️⃣7️⃣2️⃣6️⃣ a National Semifinals attendance record! 🥳#NCAAWVB pic.twitter.com/mhgSI7aLFE
— NCAA Women’s Volleyball (@NCAAVolleyball) December 20, 2024
3:48 am, December 20, 2024
Nebraska takes Set 2, 25-18, behind seven blocks in the frame. The Huskers broke away with a 4-1 run and later pushed their lead to 15-8. Andi Jackson was unstoppable, racking up 11 kills on 13 swings (.846) through two sets.
Have no fear @aandijackson is here 💪
📺 ESPN#NCAAWVB x @HuskerVB pic.twitter.com/sHVeSuuVCt
— NCAA Women’s Volleyball (@NCAAVolleyball) December 20, 2024
3:31 am, December 20, 2024
Huskers go on a 4-1 scoring run to force a Penn State timeout. Nebraska leads 11-7 in Set 2 with Andi Jackson continuing her hot streak. She has 8 kills on 10 swings, hitting .800. The Huskers have capitalized on a few Penn State errors, including an attack error from Camryn Hannah.
3:19 am, December 20, 2024
Nebraska takes Set 1, 25-23, with Andi Jackson’s two late kills securing the win. Penn State led late, but Nebraska rallied to close it out. Jackson posted 6 kills, hitting .750 for the set.
3:10 am, December 20, 2024
It’s a back-and-forth battle in the first set as Penn State holds a slim 22-21 lead over Nebraska. The Huskers started strong, building a 12-7 advantage behind a block from Andi Jackson and Harper Murray. Penn State responded with a 4-0 run to close the gap, and since then, it’s been a tight race to 25.
S1 | #PSUVB 22, Nebraska 21@CJurevicius is doing it again… 5 kills, .429 hitting!#WeAre
— Penn State Women’s Volleyball (@PennStateVBALL) December 20, 2024
2:52 am, December 20, 2024
Nebraska jumps out on an early 9-6 advantage over Penn State. An ace from Olivia Mauch and a block from Rebekah Allick helps give Nebraska the advantage in Set 1.
2:38 am, December 20, 2024
🌽 Nebraska
🦁 Penn State
2:15 am, December 20, 2024
The day’s second semifinal between Penn State and Nebraska is set for a 9:42 p.m. ET first serve on ESPN. The winner will play Louisville on Sunday for the national title.
4:30 pm, December 16, 2024
Penn State and Nebraska are set to face off in the semifinals after overcoming tough opponents. The Nittany Lions secured their spot with a thrilling five-set victory over Creighton, clinching the final set 15-7. Meanwhile, Nebraska powered past Wisconsin in a decisive sweep to punch their ticket to this stage.
These Big Ten rivals share a storied history and have nine national runner-up finishes between them.
🦁 Penn State
Semifinal Comeback: The Nittany Lions return to the semifinals for the first time in seven years, having last reached this stage in 2017, where they fell to Nebraska.
Milestone for Schumacher-Cawley: Third-year head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley secured her first NCAA regional final win with the victory over Creighton.
Semifinal Legacy: This marks Penn State’s 14th semifinal appearance in program history.
Championship History: Penn State holds seven NCAA titles, all won under legendary coach Russ Rose. Now, Schumacher-Cawley has the chance to become the first woman to win an NCAA Division I volleyball championship as a head coach.
🌽 Nebraska
Semifinal Regulars: The Cornhuskers make their seventh semifinal appearance in the past 10 seasons and their 18th overall, a testament to their sustained dominance.
Cook’s Dynasty: Head coach John Cook, in his 25th season, has led Nebraska to 12 semifinal appearances and four NCAA titles, making him the only coach in this year’s semifinals with championship experience.
Redemption Arc: Nebraska reached last year’s national championship but fell short. They’ll be hungry to avenge their loss and add to their five NCAA titles.
Past Glory: Nebraska last won the national title in 2017, the same year they defeated Penn State in the semifinals.
4:25 pm, December 16, 2024
Earlier this season (Nov. 29), then-No. 4 Penn State upset then-No. 2 Nebraska, snapping the Cornhuskers’ impressive 25-match win streak with a 3-1 victory (21-25, 25-14, 22-25, 23-25).
Here are the teams’ stats against each other this season:
Penn State had 20 blocks, holding Nebraska to .154 hitting. The Nittany Lions also had 11 more kills, 57-46.
PENN STATE
cATEGORY
Leaders
Kills
Caroline Jurevicius (18), Camryn Hannah (12), Jess Mruzik (10)
Aces
Ava Falduto (1), Gillian Grimes (1), Jess Mruzik (1)
Blocks
Izzy Starck (6), Maggie Mendelson (6), Taylor Trammell (4)
Assists
Izzy Starck (46), Jess Mruzik (5), Gillian Grimes (4)
Digs
Gillian Grimes (12), Izzy Starck (11), Ava Falduto (10), Jess Mruzik (10)
Nebraska had 16 blocks, holding Penn State to .152 hitting.
NEBRASKA
cATEGORY
Leaders
Kills
Harper Murray (13), Andi Jackson (10), Rebekah Allick (8)
Aces
Harper Murray (1)
Blocks
Andi Jackson (8), Rebekah Allick (7), Merritt Beason (5)
Assists
Bergen Reilly (38), Lexi Rodriguez (3), Harper Murray (1), Andi Jackson (1), Rebekah Allick (1)
Digs
Lexi Rodriguez (16), Harper Murray (13), Laney Choboy (9)
2:46 pm, December 16, 2024
Let’s take a look at how each team’s overall season stats compare:
Category
Penn State
Nebraska
Record (Conference)
33-2 (19-1)
33-2 (19-1)
Team Hitting %
.285
.285
Opponent Hitting %
.176
.139
Assists per Set
13.516
13.111
Service Aces/Errors
189/297
149/186
Digs per Set
14.683
15.248
Blocks per Set
2.488
2.791
Top Individual Kills
Jess Mruzik (510)
Harper Murray (391)
Top Individual Assists
Izzy Starck (1372)
Bergen Reilly (1297)
Top Individual Blocks
Maggie Mendelson (140)
Rebekah Allick (146)
2:33 pm, December 16, 2024
Here are the paths Penn State and Nebraska took in the DI women’s volleyball tournament to reach the semifinals:
Penn STate
Round
nebraska
Def. Deleware State, 3-0
First
Def. Florida A&M, 3-0
Def. No. 8 North Carolina, 3-1
Second
Def. No. 8 Miami, 3-0
Def. No. 5 Marquette, 3-1
Regionals
Def. 5 Dayton, 3-1
Def. No. 2 Creighton, 3-2
Regional Final
Def. No. 2 Wisconsin, 3-0
2:01 pm, December 16, 2024
Penn State and Nebraska are set to clash tonight for a spot in the 2024 NCAA DI women’s volleyball national title match, where they’ll face the winner of the Pittsburgh-Louisville semifinal. The championship match is scheduled for Sunday, December 22, in Louisville, KY.
This year marks the first time since 2008 that the top four overall seeds have advanced to the tournament semifinals, setting the stage for a historic showdown.
Here’s all the information needed to watch Penn State vs. Nebraska in the DI women’s volleyball tournament semifinals:
🗓️ Date: Thursday, Dec. 19
⏰ Time: 9:42 p.m. ET
📺 TV: ESPN | Stream
📍Location: KFC Yum! Center | Louisville, Kentucky
📊 Follow: Live scores and stats
We will be live blogging the game here on NCAA.com.