Colorado University Athletics
Buffs Set For Sweet 16 Matchup With Huskers
December 05, 2017 | Volleyball, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — Technically, the Colorado volleyball team has not been in this position in 20 years.
But in many ways, Friday's Sweet 16 noon matchup against NCAA Tournament fifth-seed Nebraska — CU's first trip to the Sweet 16 since 1997 — is nothing new. Rather, it is just the latest in a long line of matches this year against top 25 teams.
When you play in one of the nation's premier conferences, it's what you do.
Already this year, the 24-9 Buffs have faced 11 top 25 teams, with a 6-5 record in those matches. That includes a sweep of No. 18 Baylor (No. 12 NCAA seed) in the second round of last weekend's NCAA play.
Now, the Buffs are doing their best to treat Friday's match against the 28-4 Huskers in Lexington, Ky., as simply another big match that will demand their best effort — something they believe they are ready to deliver.
"We are really excited to be where we are," head coach Jesse Mahoney said. "(But) we didn't really make one of our goals this season. We don't talk in terms like that. We have been talking about getting better in the preseason, getting better in the first half of the Pac-12, getting better in the second half and really peaking for the NCAAs. … We don't look at this as an end result or an end goal. This is just the next match in front of us. We are going to prepare and then go out and play."
In terms of peaking, the Buffs appear to be doing just that. They are 9-3 over their last 12 matches, a streak that includes wins over No. 11 Washington and No. 15 Oregon along with last weekend's win at Baylor.
"Obviously Pac-12 (play) really prepared us for this," said Buffs junior Alexa Smith, a first-team All-Pac-12 selection. "Every match in the Pac-12 is really difficult and really challenging. I think that it really prepared us for teams like Baylor going into that weekend."
But now the Buffs will face one of their toughest opponents of the year in former Big 12 (and Big Eight) rival Nebraska, which tied with Penn State for the Big Ten league title this season. CU faced Penn State early in the season and dropped a 3-0 decision.
"They are very good," Mahoney said. "They have four or five players on their All-Region team, there are multiple future All-Americans on this team, their setter is as good as we have seen this season and we have seen a lot of good ones. They are very well-coached, they are very well-prepared and they play in another premier conference."
While Nebraska has dominated the all-time series, some of CU's biggest wins in program history have come against the Huskers. The Buffs won their first Big Eight tournament championship with a win over NU in 1992, then won the regular season league and tournament titles the following year with another win over the Huskers in the tourney final.
CU also knocked off No. 1-ranked NU in 2006 in Boulder, the Huskers only loss of the season, as they went on to claim a national title.
But for current Buffs, CU's history against Nebraska is just that — history. What is important is what is directly ahead.
"Jesse and the coaching staff tell us to get better by one percent each day and that really puts an emphasis on, 'OK, well I can't control what is going to happen three games from now or what will happen tomorrow, but I can control what will happen right now,'" said CU senior Joslyn Hayes. "I think that is a huge mindset that everyone has and that is what we are focusing on. I think right now everyone is focusing on practice today and how we are going to get better and then when the moment comes that first point in the Nebraska game."
Hayes is one of a handful of Buffs who were around when CU made its last NCAA Tournament appearance in 2014.
Smith also has some NCAA experience — but it came at Purdue as a freshman. A graduate of Lewis-Palmer High School in Monument, she left the state to begin her college career, but transferred back "home" after just one year as a Boilermaker.
"Words can't really describe how this feels, I have dreamed about this growing up," an emotional Smith said. "Just being able to represent this state that so many people have helped me and got me to this place where I have dreamed of, being with these girls and coaches alongside of me, is something that more than words can describe."
But while the excitement of playing in the Sweet 16 is no doubt present, the Buffs believe they are prepared to take the next step in the same manner they have approached the entire season.
"I do know an athlete's mind and competitive nature — when you need to show up, you will show up," Hayes said. "I think the competition level the team has been playing at has come at the right time because we kicked into gear, we knew it was do or die, we know it's win or go home. I think that is exactly what we have been doing, is showing up in big moments."
TOURNAMENT INFO: Friday's match, scheduled to begin at noon, will be streamed live on ESPN3. … This is CU's 19th trip to the NCAA Tournament, with the Buffs holding a 13-18 all-time tourney record. CU has advanced to the Sweet 16 three times previously (1993, 1994 and 1997) … The winner will meet the Kentucky-BYU winner on Saturday. … Links to live statistics can be found at the tournament central page at http://buffs.me/2zP7PiS.
FUND SET FOR FORMER BUFF: Former Colorado player Amber Sutherland, who was severely injured in an auto accident in late November, is set to undergo surgery for a fractured disc in her neck Wednesday. A GoFundMe page has been set up to help support her medical bills: https://www.gofundme.com/sutherlands-family-time-in-need
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
