No. 2 Nebraska women’s volleyball kicked off their 2024 campaign in the American Volleyball Coach’s Association (AVCA) First Serve Showcase against No. 9 Kentucky. The Huskers prevailed, winning in 4 sets against the Wildcats. Airing on ESPN2, the game marked the start of the women’s college volleyball season, and the sport hopes to continue its momentum from last season when a cluster of records were broken.
In a postgame interview with Huskers Illustrated, senior opposite Merrit Beason emphasized that their top-10 win was only the start. “I'm just really excited for us to continue working on the little things so that we can be as good as we can be,” Beason said. The reigning Big 10 Champions have a long season ahead of them from now until December, but they’re looking to avenge last year’s title game defeat while continuing to break barriers in volleyball.
A Record-Breaking Year
2023 was a record-setting year for the women's college volleyball season. Last August, Nebraska set the world record for the largest crowd to watch any women’s sporting event with 92,003 people in Memorial Stadium, the home of Nebraska football.
“I was trying to stay in the moment and present and soak it all in. I was super excited so I just couldn’t hold a serious face and it was crazy emotions,” said current senior Alexis Rodriguez after their record-breaking game. “I think it’s huge for little girls to see a women’s sports and volleyball played on this big of a stage and having so many people invested in it.”
That record-setting mark was an indicator for what was to come in women’s volleyball for the remainder of the 2023 season. At the Final Four in Tampa, Florida, more records were shattered. The National Championship game between Nebraska and Texas was aired on ABC for the first time ever. And the game averaged 1.7 million viewers, a TV viewership record. 51 percent of those viewers were women, which was a 151% increase from the national championship the year before. “The energy is unmatched, and I think people underestimate how much we feed off of that,” said now-senior and Texas Longhorn Madisen Skinner about the crowd in Tampa.
“I think it’s huge for little girls to see a women’s sports and volleyball played on this big of a stage and having so many people invested in it.”
Trending on Social Media
There’s no doubt that social media and NIL has also played a role in volleyball’s boom over the past two years, specifically for the Huskers. Their whole team creates social media content, but the most notable creators include Rodriguez, junior Maisie Boesiger, and sophomores Laney Choboy and Harper Murray. Combined, their following surpasses 600k.
Creating trending content has allowed for more girls to be engaged with women’s volleyball and allows for nontraditional viewers to become drawn to the sport as well. “The more student athletes that do this for the women’s game, then this could have an impact going forward on corporate partnership deals and even media rights deals,” said Patrick Rishe, Washington University’s director of the sports business program.
The Season Ahead
After Nebraska’s Red-White scrimmage on August 24th, Head Coach John Cook acknowledged the goals ahead of the season. The team’s theme plastered all over the locker room is “Race for the Roses,” referencing this year’s Final Four in Louisville, Kentucky, the home of the legendary Kentucky Derby. “It is a 10 week grind. It’s really hard to win, and it’s gonna be even harder this year,” Cook said.
After the Kentucky match, Cook also recognized the gravity of the game. “It's very nerve wracking playing the first match against a top-10 team,” Cook said. “There's so much uncertainty, plus we're playing in the final four venue. The environment was really, really great.”
If the first game of the season airing on ESPN2 and being played at the 2024 Final Four site was any indication, women’s college volleyball looks to shatter barriers once again. The Huskers are looking to return to Louisville, Kentucky in three months for the NCAA Final Four. And they’re hungry for a championship.
