Harper Murray (27) spikes the ball during the game against the Texas Longhorns at Amalie Arena on Sunday, Dec. 17, 2023 in Tampa, Florida.
Harper Murray (27) spikes the ball during the game against the Texas Longhorns at Amalie Arena on Sunday, Dec. 17, 2023 in Tampa, Florida.
Nebraska volleyball has been close so many times over the past few years. This season, the team has finally built the numbers to match the expectations. As the 2025 postseason approaches, the Huskers enter with one of the strongest statistical profiles in the country, measured by Evollve analytics, and arguably one of the strongest statistical profiles in regular–season history.
To understand how strong this group truly is, Nebraska should be compared to past groups that have achieved this honor. Evollve data goes back to 2019, so the Huskers have been squared up in this exercise against 2024 Penn State, 2022 and 2023 Texas, 2021 Wisconsin, 2020 Kentucky and 2019 Stanford, all national champs.
The result shows a Nebraska team that measures up everywhere and surpasses the best in several key categories.
Nebraska hits .352, which stands as the highest figure in the entire dataset. The six champions averaged .308, and only the 2022 Texas title team came close at .336. Efficiency defines the Huskers’ attack, recording 1,426 kills on 2,993 attempts (47.6% ), recording only 371 attack errors, and they converted nearly 90% of their serve receive swings into points.
That means Nebraska does not rely on chaos to score. It builds organized, repeatable offense, posting 47.53 kills per match with an average of 14.7 kills per set, nearly as much as the 2019 Stanford squad (14.83). The Huskers’ attack conversion rate sits at nearly two points better than previous champions on average, meaning their hits are creating points at a more frequent rate.
Even elite title teams like 2021 Wisconsin often needed long defensive stretches to create opportunities. Nebraska creates its own cushion by scoring more efficiently from start to finish. The last time a team won this decisively at the net, 2019 Stanford was at full force. The Huskers have lost only seven sets all year. Stanford lost 27 during its title season. Texas only lost 14 sets in its 2022 season and Kentucky dropped just six sets in 2020 in the truncated COVID season. That gap shows the kind of control Nebraska holds every night.
On the defensive side, opponents hit .125 when facing Nebraska. The average of the other champions is .155. That is an absolutely incredible gap. The Huskers’ mark topped the NCAA this season, with Hofstra coming up at .134 but failing to make the big dance, losing a battle to auto-bid-winning Campbell in the CAA title game. The next closest Power Four team to Nebraska is Arizona State at 11th, posting a .161 opponent hit percentage.
Nebraska’s defense shows up all over the place. The back-line defense averages
43.73 digs per match, and opponents can barely score on one of every four swings. Even in a transition offense and an out-of-system Husker defense, opponents hit under .130. Evollve ratings confirm how complete the system is, posting a 73.0 receive rating. Past champions averaged 70.10.
Nebraska does not lead the charge in aces or raw power. Teams like Penn State and ‘23 Texas swung harder from the line. But both also averaged more errors per match than Nebraska. The Huskers have posted just under 6.5 service errors a game, and the aces-to-errors ratio (2:3) is better than the average of past winners.
There is control without becoming passive. Nebraska’s serve quality rating sits at 62.2 vs. the past champions’ 60.42 average. The Huskers are also winning 50.4% of service points, the highest amongst the sample. Better serving positions the block. Better passing keeps the offense balanced. Tempo stays in Nebraska’s favor.
In December, when nerves tighten and gyms get loud, that kind of steady execution usually survives longer than risk-driven approaches.
Nebraska enters the postseason with strong numbers, but the bracket will not reward that without focus. The regional includes Louisville, Texas A&M and Kansas, three teams skilled at disrupting rhythm and all with great paths to make it to the second weekend.
Every champion in our sample had a signature trait. Penn State’s last year was how composed they stayed late in games, a la the Final Four reverse sweep against the Huskers. Texas was known for its transition and out-of-system offensive attacks. Wisconsin could block the ball until tomorrow. Kentucky’s ball control was some of the best in recent memory in college volleyball. Stanford had some of the nation’s top players at each position on the floor.
Look at this year’s Nebraska team. Undefeated, only losing seven sets. Their hitting percentage in transition ballooned to over .600% by year’s end. Opponents hit historically low against the Huskers’ defense this season, and that defense helped post the best receiving rating in the NCAA. A little piece of all of those characteristics from past winners has morphed into this 2025 Nebraska squad. Granted, statistics cannot measure nerves or belief, but they do show a profile shared by teams that have already proved capable of winning everything.
There is no certainty in postseason sports. One swing can change everything. But the data suggests something clear: Nebraska does not look like a team hoping to rise to the level of recent champions. The Huskers have already reached that level statistically, and in many areas, surpassed it. More points won. More sets controlled. More balance between strength and consistency.
Fans recognized the feeling behind Kentucky in 2020 and the Texas teams that followed. Nebraska’s numbers indicate a similar moment building in Lincoln. The next step is not about projections. It is about performance under the lights, with a trophy in sight.
The Huskers have given themselves every advantage a team can create before the first whistle. What happens next will decide whether these numbers form the story of a season that ends with a title — or one remembered as a chance waiting to be claimed.
sports@dailynebraskan.com
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