Nebraska Volleyball Lands Six on Top Returning Big Ten Players List

Nebraska volleyball's preseason recognition continued to roll in to the start of the regular season on Friday.

The Huskers landed six players on Big Ten Network volleyball analyst Emily Ehman's "Top Returning Players" list on Friday, securing spots for Olivia Mauch, Laney Choboy, Rebekah Allick, Harper Murray, Andi Jackson, and Bergen Reilly. The Big Red led the conference on the preseason list with six total selections ahead of Wisconsin's three, while Penn State, Washington, and Minnesota each tied with two.

Nebraska landed the top player overall in Ehman's power ranking as well, with setter Bergen Reilly claiming the top spot as the conference's top returning player. The setter was listed not only as the top returning player, but also the top conference setter ahead of Penn State's Izzy Starck.

Bergen Reilly sets the ball. | Amarillo Mullen

"[Bergen] Reilly stood out because of her consistency and volleyball IQ. Nebraska has had excellent attackers over the past two seasons, but I still don't think they have near the success they've had if they don't have Reilly setting," Ehman said in her social media post Friday morning.

Reilly was named a team captain for the 2025 season on Wednesday, and returns to Nebraska as a two-time Big Ten Setter of the Year. She's also added an AVCA All-American Second Team nod in back-to-back seasons while also being named to the All-Big Ten First Team in her first two seasons in Lincoln. The setter has earned nine Big Ten Setter of the Week honors in her two seasons for Nebraska while also garnering AVCA All-Region honors in back-to-back years. She earned the weekly honor a school record five times in 2024, finishing the season with 1,352 assists, 81 kills, 21 aces, 348 digs, and 62 blocks while posting a team-high 17 double-doubles.

The Husker setter opened her junior season with a hot start, recording a double-double with 40 assists and 10 digs in Nebraska's 3-1 victory Friday night over No. 3 Pittsburgh in the AVCA First Serve at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

Nebraska middle blocker Andi Jackson heads to the serve line during the Red-White Scrimmage on Saturday. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

Middle blocker Andi Jackson was No. 2 on Ehman's returning power rankings, securing the top two spots for Nebraska volleyball on the list. She was the highest-rated middle blocker ahead of Wisconsin's Carter Booth, teammate Rebekah Allick, Washington's Julia Hunt, and Michigan State's Zuzanna Kulig.

"From her freshman to sophomore season, Jackson took some of the biggest leaps that I've seen a player make in a long time. She went from a shaky middle to figuring it out to absolutely dominating in just one year," Ehman posted on social media Thursday.

Jackson was also named a captain for the 2025 season along with Reilly, returning as a unanimous AVCA All-American First Team and All-Big Ten First Team selection in 2024, following up on an All-Big Ten Second Team and Big Ten All-Freshman Team appearance from her first season with Nebraska in 2023. Jackson played in 34 matches and averaged 2.62 kills per set with a .439 hitting percentage in 2024, ranking sixth in the nation and earning the fourth-highest in program history. She added 134 total blocks, averaging 1.18 per set.

Jackson was also named the Big Ten's "Most Likely to Win Player of the Year" nod from her conference peers in a Big Ten Network poll at Big Ten Media Days. The middle blocker was named the MVP of the AVCA First Serve opening match Friday, notching 10 kills and eight blocks while hitting .348 for the Huskers in the win over Pittsburgh.

Nebraska outside hitter Harper Murray leaps up in preparation of a spike during the first set of the Alumni Match on Saturday. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

Nebraska volleyball landed three players inside the top five as outside hitter Harper Murray finished at No. 4 on Ehman's rankings. Murray was the Big Ten's highest-ranked outside ahead of Wisconsin's Mimi Colyer, Minnesota's Julia Hanson, Michigan's Allison Jacobs, UCLA's Cheridyn Leverette, and Washington's Keirstyn Barton.

"There are few players in the country more well-rounded and athletic than Murray," Ehman said in her social media post on Tuesday. "She does every single skill incredibly well."

Murray returns to Nebraska following back-to-back seasons earning nods on the AVCA All-American team, finishing as a Third Team honoree in 2023 and bumping to a Second Team nod in 2024. She has been an AVCA All-Region Team and All-Big Ten First Team member in her first two seasons in Lincoln, and was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year and AVCA Region Freshman of the Year in 2023. Murray led the Huskers in kills in 2024 with 3.40 per set and hit .257 on the season with a team-high 39 service aces. Murray also contributed 2.43 digs per set, finishing 2024 with nine double-doubles.

The Michigan native has had a big week prior to the start of the season, launching a new NIL campaign with Adidas and earning public advertisements across the city of Lincoln leading into the season-opening match on Friday. Murray led Nebraska with a team-high 15 kills Friday night against Pittsburgh.

Rebekah Allick had nine kills to open the season. | Amarillo Mullen

Rebekah Allick earned a top 20 spot in Ehman's preseason rankings at No. 13, placing as the third-highest rated middle blocker behind Jackson and Wisconsin's Carter Booth. Allick finished ahead of Michigan State's Kulig in Ehman's rating.

"Allick has shown so much dominance on both sides of the ball in her last three seasons at Nebraska," Ehman said in a social media post on Aug. 12. "It's going to be so fun to watch what Allick does in her senior season at Nebraska."

Allick returns as one of the veteran leaders from Nebraska's back-to-back national semifinal runs, earning a captain's role after playing in 35 matches in 2024 and putting up 1.82 kills per set on a career-best .357 hitting percentage with a team-best 1.43 blocks per set. She finished her junior season 14th in the country in blocks per set while ending third among Big Ten players. Allick was named the AVCA First Serve Showcase MVP after having season highs with 11 kills, 12 blocks, and a .667 hitting percentage in a 3-1 win over No. 9 Kentucky to open last season. Allick has earned back-to-back All-Big Ten Second Team honors and has received two Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week awards.

Allick opened the season Friday night posting seven blocks for the Huskers against Pittsburgh.

Nebraska DS/Libero Laney Choboy receives a serve. — Nebraska DS/Libero Laney Choboy receives a serve during the third set of the first match of the AVCA First Serve vs. Pittsburgh. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

Rounding out Nebraska's fifth and sixth spots in Ehman's top 20 returning players were liberos Laney Choboy (No. 16) and Olivia Mauch (No. 17). The pair were the second and third-highest rated liberos on the list behind Penn State's Gillian Grimes.

"Statistically, they are nearly identical. Mauch had a slight advantage both passing and defensively that gave her a slight edge in just her freshman season," Ehman said in a social media post last week. "But to me, Choboy has that 'it' factor. She is instant energy on any court you put her on and I think that's something Nebraska really needs with that cool, calm, collected team.

In Mauch's freshman season, the Bennington native played in 36 matches and averaged 1.61 digs per set with 21 service aces and 13 set assists. She played defensive reserve roles behind First-Team All-American Lexi Rodriguez. Choboy has played in 70 matches across her freshman and sophomore seasons with Nebraska, finishing with 1.82 digs per set and 37 set assists in 2023, while ending with 1.53 digs per set and 36 set assists as a sophomore.

The pair added 24 digs combined in Nebraska's four-set victory over Pittsburgh. Choboy recorded a match-high 16 digs while Mauch collected eight. The Huskers held Pittsburgh's Olivia Babcock in check, as the reigning AVCA National Player of the Year finished with a .121 hitting percentage.

THE FULL LIST IS IN 👏 How are we feeling about @emilyehman's Top 20 Returning Players in B1G 🏐? pic.twitter.com/jrwzKOGBjF
— Big Ten Volleyball (@B1GVolleyball) August 22, 2025

No. 1 Nebraska awaits No. 6 Stanford for the Huskers' second contest of the season on Sunday. First serve is set for 2:30 p.m. CDT on ESPN.