Nebraska Is Ready for the Challenges, Pressure of the Postseason

After learning Nebraska’s postseason path in the NCAA Tournament, Rebekah Allick went line dancing.

The senior middle blocker headed out to Pla Mor Ballroom on Sunday night, “saw my buddies,” and got some much-needed time to relax and recharge before kicking off the final month of her NU campus.

With no practice on Monday, the Huskers all got pedicures before returning to practice on Tuesday and starting what they hope is a three-week journey that ends in a national championship.

NU coach Dani Busboom Kelly said she has given her team Monday off during the first week of the tournament. It helps them recover from a long regular season, take care of their personal lives, and ease the anticipation before the first match starts.

Bergen Reilly said she was grateful for the consecutive days off from practice — they did lift weights on Monday morning — before the Huskers start the NCAA Tournament Friday night against Long Island University at the Deveaney Center.

“That was really fulfilling for a lot of us, and recharged us and got us ready for this new season that we talk about, where everyone’s zero and zero,” the junior setter said. “That’s the main thing, just finding little things throughout your day, whether it’s people going and getting a coffee or whatever it is, just finding anything to kind of keep you going at this point, because it can get hard.”

Nebraska (30-0) enters the postseason as the No. 1 overall seed and prohibitive favorite to win the title.

However, the Huskers aren’t taking that for granted as they look to win their first title since 2017. Throughout the season, they’ve dealt with the pressure of staying undefeated, sustaining their 48-set winning streak and claiming their third straight Big Ten championship.

Rebekah Allick (5) high fives Bergen Reilly. — Rebekah Allick high fives Bergen Reilly after a point. The Huskers are gearing up for a run at the national championship after coming up short the past two seasons. | Amarillo Mullen

Reilly said those accomplishments aren’t their main goal for the season; they are focused on playing for the championship, leaning on the players in their locker room and shutting out the outside noise.

“Now we are to the point where we’re trying to get towards our end goal, but not putting any added pressure on that,” she said. “ We want to go out there, and we want to play our best volleyball every day and every night, and whether that’s in the regular season or in the postseason, we want to do the same thing, and we want to go out and win.”

Even though NU enters the tournament as the only undefeated team in the nation, they aren’t taking anything for granted. They focus on fundamentals during practice, and even when the pressure is cranked up, they react the same way they would at any other point in the season.

During Allick’s interview session on Thursday, she said the Huskers struggled during practice on Wednesday. When Busboom Kelly was asked about that assessment, she was glad to hear that the players recognized their shortcomings and regrouped to end practice on a high note.

“I don’t feel like we have to be humbled or anything,” she said. “This team is very humble, especially for the amount of success we’ve had. I don’t feel like they need to be pumped up. I think our messaging is going to be pretty consistent with what it’s been the whole year.”

𝟏𝐬𝐭 & 𝟐𝐧𝐝 𝐑𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐬
📍 Lincoln, NE
📅 Dec. 5-6

(1) @HuskerVB
🆚@LIU_Volleyball @KStateVB
🆚
(8) @USDVolleyball #NCAAWVB pic.twitter.com/9Z6ZXT4oJm
— NCAA Women's Volleyball (@NCAAVolleyball) November 30, 2025

Allick said the Huskers are used to the pressure that comes with expectations. Allick said she’s been focused on celebrating little events along the way so their season won’t be bust even if they don’t reach their goal of winning the national championship.

“We’re always wanting more, and I feel like to me, that gives me a sense of peace,” she said.

Busboom Kelly said she plans to keep their messaging and strategy consistent during the postseason. She said she’s been impressed by their ability to bounce back quickly, whether that is dropping a set, dealing with an injury, struggling during practice, or an individual player not playing well.

Much like the regular season, the Huskers plan to keep using their depth to their advantage. During the year, Nebraska rotated its lineup from match to match and inserted plenty of substitutes as matches progressed. Laney Choboy and Olivia Mauch have both seen extensive time at libero. Teraya Sigler has played in the front row in place of Taylor Landfair, and Busboom Kelly isn’t afraid to go to the bench when the opportunity presents itself to get playing time for others.

Reilly said the approach gives them a lot of peace of mind. The players don’t feel they’ll be pulled if they make a mistake and know that if someone new enters the match, they are ready to contribute at a high level.

“Dani’s gonna do what it takes to win,” she said. “For me, it’s just so great to know that every position has at least one, maybe two or three people that can come in and do a great job on the court. That just helps myself and a lot of other people to go out there and play super free and know it’s okay to have off nights, because we also have 10 other people on our bench that can go in and just absolutely kill it and win games too.”

NO DOUBT‼️

Congrats to @shayleemyers on her unanimous All-Big 12 First Team Selection!@Big12Conference x #EMAW👌 pic.twitter.com/jLDa4DJIr9
— K-State Volleyball (@KStateVB) December 2, 2025

Nebraska Wildcats

If Kansas State looks quite comfortable in the Devaney Center during its first-round match against No. 8 San Diego, it can thank its trio of native Nebraskans on its roster.

Outside hitter Shaylee Myers, setter Ava LeGrand and middle blocker Brenna Schmidt, all seniors, have played prominent roles for the Wildcats (17-9) this season.

Besides the in-state Huskers (four Nebraska natives) and Creighton (six), Kansas State features the largest contingent of Nebraska high school graduates among the teams playing in the NCAA tournament. In all, 30 players on 17 different teams made the postseason.

Myers was a unanimous all-Big 12 first-team selection, averaging 4.76 kills per set, which is ninth in the nation, and set a school rally-scoring record with a 34-kill performance earlier this season. LeGrand was a second-team all-league honoree and averaged 10.15 assists per set while leading the Wildcats with 29 aces. Schmidt has started 20 matches at middle blocker and tops the team with 1.03 blocks per set.

“I always watched Nebraska volleyball, and it was always a dream to be on the team,” said Schmidt, who is an Elmwood-Murdock graduate. “I’m just happy that I’m playing DI volleyball somewhere. I think it’s special that this journey has brought me back to where it all started.”

Myers, a Lincoln Southwest product, played club volleyball with NU senior Maisie Boesiger. She said she’s glad to be back in her hometown. She said she’s dealt with a lot of ticket requests from family and friends who want to watch her this weekend.

“It’s really exciting to know that we have that many people who want to support us,” she said.

Kansas State has been a frequent postseason visitor to Lincoln since the Huskers joined the Big Ten. This year is the sixth time they have played at Nebraska since 2011. The Wildcats knocked off the Huskers in 2011 in a five-set battle at the NU Coliseum.

This won’t be the first time LeGrand has played in the Devaney Center. She helped lead Papillion-La Vista South to a Class A state championship in 2019 and 2021. She enjoyed being back at the Devaney Center and tried to imagine the stands filled with fans.

LeGrand said she’s proud to be part of the large contingent of Nebraska graduates playing in the NCAA tournament.

“Nebraska is a volleyball state, not just the university, but the state of Nebraska,” she said. “I know a lot of coaches at this university who give back to clubs and coach club teams and high schools. It just says a lot about the culture in the state of Nebraska, and how much they care about this sport.”

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