The No. 22 Gophers fell 3-0 to No. 1 Nebraska in their hardest game of the season.
The game started with a heavy lead for the Cornhuskers as they quickly got four points before the Gophers could get one. There were moments where the Gophers would close the gap to two points, but Nebraska ran away with the set and won by a 10-point margin, 25-15.
Nebraska took an early lead again in the second set with their biggest gap in points, 10, but the Gophers did not lose hope.
They were able to close that gap, but the set ended in Nebraska’s favor, 25-21.
Gophers redshirt freshman setter Stella Swenson said going into the game, the team recognized that the Cornhuskers were going to have their kills and good plays. She added they were going to try to match that.
“We’re going to find the court, we are going to dig balls, we will play Gopher volleyball and show them what that means,” Swenson said.
There were moments where the team was able to support each other, despite some of the mistakes made.
“There were a lot of times where there was a good pass, and I messed up my set a little bit, but my right side handled it, and got a kill,” Swenson said.
It took until the third set for the Gophers to take a lead. They led 2-3 before the Huskers fought back and won the set and match, 25-20.
Despite the loss, the Gophers led the match in blocks. Minnesota freshman middle blocker Jordan Taylor had the most, and Gophers outside senior Julia Hanson led the match in attacks with a total of 39.
Gophers head coach Keegan Cook said he told the team to own the things they did well.
“We had some big offensive performances and had some big moments of growth. Defensively, we had some things that didn’t go so well; we got beat in a couple ways consistently,” Cook said. “Overall, we’re leaving here motivated.”
The Gophers suffered multiple major season-ending injuries at the start of the season, forcing newer players onto the court.
Swenson said the people who have stepped up have been doing an incredible job.
“I know how difficult it is to come into a big role, so the fact that they did that abruptly is just huge kudos to them because that is not something that everyone can do,” Swenson said. “I think the more we play, the more we grow and the more we connect.
The Gophers have lost their last three matches against ranked opponents, but have a chance to redeem themselves against No. 25 Penn State at home on Nov. 14.
