Courtesy Nebraska Athletics
Nobody’s perfect, not even No. 1 Nebraska volleyball. After six sweeps to open the season, the Cornhuskers dropped their first set of 2026 but rallied to defeat Georgia Tech, 24-26, 25-17, 25-18, 25-12 Saturday at John Cook Arena.
Manaia Ogbechie led Nebraska (7-0) with 12 kills and five blocks, while Skyler Pierce added 10 kills. Laney Choboy led the Huskers with three aces. Nebraska outhit the Yellow Jackets, .324-.112, outblocked Tech 8-6 and outserved them eight aces to seven.
But the first set will be the fly, if not the yellow jacket, in the ointment. It was hotly contested with 10 ties. Georgia Tech took control with a run of nine points in 10 rallies, building a 19-13 lead. The Huskers responded by winning seven of eight points to tie the set at 20. After the Yellow Jackets pushed back ahead 24-21, Nebraska won the next three points to tie the set at 24 before a kill and a block by Laura Perugini Bieleski clinched the set for Tech.
Georgia Tech carried the momentum into the second set, winning the first five points and building a 10-4 lead before the switch flipped for Nebraska. The Huskers won eight of the nine rallies to take a 14-12 lead. The Yellow Jackets drew to within 16-15 before Nebraska won nine of the next 11 points to finish the set.
Nebraska dominated set three, bolting out to a 13-5 lead and never leading by fewer than four points the rest of the set. After the Huskers led the fourth set early, Georgia Tech rebounded to lead, 8-7, before Nebraska won 15 of the next 16 points to all but secure the match.
The Huskers now prepare to take on in-state rival Creighton Wednesday at Pinnacle Bank Arena. First serve is slated for 6 p.m., with pregame coverage beginning at 5 p.m. on KLIN and B-107.3.