For the first time in Indiana volleyball history, the Hoosiers hosted a top 15 matchup in Wilkinson Hall. Coded in a different shade of crimson, the No. 1 Nebraska Cornhuskers and their fans had quite the road trip, showing up and showing out in Wilkinson Hall, drawing a sold-out crowd to help propel the Huskers to a perfect 16-0 with a sweep of the No. 15 Hoosiers.
The Cornhuskers are notorious for sold-out crowds and continued to keep the tradition alive in Bloomington. Before this matchup, Indiana was undefeated in Wilkinson Hall but that would change after Nebraska handled them in a sweep. Speaking to Steve Aird after the Wisconsin loss, he said he believes there is winning, and there is learning. Aird has done exactly that.
“We are good. We got beat by a really good volleyball team,” Aird said after the Nebraska game. “What has to change? We have to keep getting better.”
Entering his ninth season with the Hoosiers, he has led a team that has continuously improved, as shown throughout this 2026 season. So far, the Hoosiers are 2-1 in Big Ten play, with two clean sweeps against UCLA and Maryland. This preseason schedule for the Indiana Hoosiers has been sculpted to apply pressure for the Hoosiers. Pressure makes diamonds but takes time. The better the team you play against the better you’ll be. Aird wrapped up his eighth year in Bloomington in 2025 by guiding the Hoosiers to the best season in program history. IU went 25-8 in the 2025 campaign – breaking single-season program records for wins (25), regular-season wins (23) and Big Ten wins (14) in the NCAA era.
The plan is clear for Aird. Volleyball is a game of failure. Without the mistakes there is no game to play. The Indiana Hoosiers are ranked number 15th for a reason and continue to prove that with great fortitude.
With Nebraska’s dominating performance against the 15th-ranked Hoosiers, they are showing the country that they are more than capable of winning their first championship in almost a decade. With head coach Dani Busboom Kelly coming in during the 2024 season, this wouldn’t be the first time she brought a rising team to the top. Busboom spent nine years coaching at the University of Louisville with four ACC Championships, three NCAA Semifinal appearances and two NCAA National Runner-Up finishes.
Coaching teams and building progress comes with time and it shows with both these teams. Noise is a part of the game. When you are playing a program with Nebraska prestige and coaching, it is easy to get caught up in all of the uncontrollables of the match. When competing against a roster of Nebraska’s caliber, it is important to block out all the noise and just focus on what they have put on tape.
“I think every match counts the same,” Aird said postgame. “Whether you sweep someone or lose to someone, it’s binary. That’s a really good team, they’re going to hammer people all year. They haven’t won a title in 10 years, but man they are impressive.”
A number we have been monitoring all season long is the service errors. By the end of this match, Indiana finished with 13 (seven of those in the first set).
“We missed a bunch of serves, but we had to,” Aird said after the Nebraska loss. “We weren’t going to just lob serves to them all night and let them bounce balls all over the gym. Obviously we have to execute better but any of the mis-serves I didn’t care. I wanted to be aggressive and if we missed we missed.”
Aird wanted to be as aggressive as possible in this match to try to set the tone and get the crowd involved early. Unfortunately for the Hoosiers, that was easier said than done. In the first two sets, Nebraska would start with a controlling lead, after that Indiana was left playing catch-up the rest of the match. A good strategy but just a lack of execution which is nothing to linger on if you’re Indiana. Nebraska has more sweeps than set losses this season, you can’t expect everything in your game plan to work against a team that elite.
Ultimately, the Cornhuskers’ consistency is hard to beat. Bergen Reilly had a perfect hitting percentage exiting the first set and led the stats chart in assists against opposing setter Teodora Krickovic, supplying with prominent perfection. Having seniors on your team who have been around the block tends to lead and motivate younger teammates. The Cornhuskers did a great job of showcasing their leadership throughout multiple teammates on their team, such as dynamic senior duo Harper Murray and Andi Jackson.
Sitting in Wilkinson Hall, you could feel the energy radiating off these Cornhuskers.
The Cornhuskers' pressure in Thursday’s matchup gave the Hoosiers a taste of a big-time matchup which will only prepare them more later on in the season. Learning from an undefeated team and transferring the lead back and forth in the beginning of set three showcased just how eager these Hoosiers are to build their momentum from the ground up.
Although Indiana’s undefeated home streak came to an end in Big Ten play, the Hoosiers have an opportunity to turn this loss into a lesson as Big Ten play continues. Nebraska showed what it takes to compete at the highest level, but Indiana has already proven its ability to grow through adversity.
As Aird continues to challenge his team against the nation’s best, the focus shifts to execution, consistency and limiting mistakes when the pressure rises. The Cornhuskers may have left Bloomington with a sweep, but the Hoosiers leave with something just as valuable: a clearer picture of what it takes to compete with the best.
Hoosiers swept by Cornhuskers at home
