Wow, just wow.
- Thread starter SEPATOPTEN
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Could only see highlights, hope I can find a stream to watch today. Both teams deserved to win, Jess Mruzik and Izzy Starck just willed PSU to the win I think. It's especially heartbreaking for Nebraska's seniors because they've been to four final fours but not won. One of the greatest teams ever to not win a championship.
The reverse sweep is really rare. Penn State pulled one off in 2009 in the finals against Texas -- they were down 2-0 and just getting mauled, barely clawed out the 3rd set win, then won the 4th solidly. The 5th set was as close as it could be. It was the greatest volleyball match I've ever seen and sounds like last night's match was in the same class.
The reverse sweep is really rare. Penn State pulled one off in 2009 in the finals against Texas -- they were down 2-0 and just getting mauled, barely clawed out the 3rd set win, then won the 4th solidly. The 5th set was as close as it could be. It was the greatest volleyball match I've ever seen and sounds like last night's match was in the same class.
This is the comeback in the 4th set and then the deciding 5th set. Nebraska was up 21-16 in the 4th and just couldn't close it out.
I watched us lose the 1st 2 sets. I put on the Pens hockey game and fell asleep. When I woke up I turned off the TV and went to bed without checking the WVB score.
Wow. Just Wow some's up my sentiments this morning.
And winning against Nebraska in this fashion does makes it a little bit sweeter.
Nebraska press conference, John Cook was all class. So hard for him but he was all respect for PSU players and Katie Schumacher-Cawley and all she's going through. "I think Penn State is playing very inspired for her."
Lion Backer my sports watching worked out more favorably for me than it did for you. i went to the Pens Game and got back home in time to turn on the 4th set with PSU down.....got to watch live the Pens win in OT and then PSU WVB climb out of the hole and win 4 and 5.
Need Our Football Team to play with such heart!
Refuse To Lose....
That’s what multiple TV screens are for. Also caught the first fair catch free kick in an NFL game since 1976 in the Chargers game. What a night!
One of the greatest comebacks a sports team at Penn State has ever accomplished.. just absolutely epic !!
I look at Nebraskas Coach and he just makes me mad. Of course I am happy PSU won, but damn am I glad that guy lost.
The bottom line for me is that I am beyond pleased with the outcome of both contests!
As I was watching the 1st 2 sets, it just seemed that Nebraska had an answer at every turn and it was going to be very difficult to come back from a 2 set deficit against a high quality opponent.
Another poster provided Cook's comments from his press conference following the game and they were indeed gracious.
Maybe because of his relationship/rivalry with Rose when he was the HC and not wanting to see him celebrate .....
I'm just so pleased that the Lady Lions never lost faith (like I did) and emerged victorious!
I easily had the ability to watch/monitor both games simultaneously. It was a (poor) choice because I had no desire to watch Cook and Nebraska celebrate.
In any sport where a game ending time clock is not a factor, there's always a chance.
Epic win— love the grit, teamwork and team buying in for the love of their coach and her fight. Coach Katie called timeouts at perfect times to stop Nebraska runs and just had that confidence and gentle coaching that made the team perform in the clutch.
We had to scalp 150 dollar tickets on Stubhub to watch PSU- Nebraska Friday in Rec Hall before Maryland game and had to stand in back. What made it great is that Joe Jurevicius was standing in the back too and his daughter Caroline had 18 kills- we went to Nittany Lions Inn Bar to celebrate after and in walks Joe and we all toasted a beer to him and NLI treated him to a victory beer. He is a hell of a nice guy and proud dad. Caroline’s sister is joining team next year. Jess, Izzy, Caroline, Camren and team win for the ages. This should be must watching in future not only for volleyball but team sports and how to believe, deliver in clutch and how to fuel adversity into triumph!
We had to scalp 150 dollar tickets on Stubhub to watch PSU- Nebraska Friday in Rec Hall before Maryland game and had to stand in back. What made it great is that Joe Jurevicius was standing in the back too and his daughter Caroline had 18 kills- we went to Nittany Lions Inn Bar to celebrate after and in walks Joe and we all toasted a beer to him and NLI treated him to a victory beer. He is a hell of a nice guy and proud dad. Caroline’s sister is joining team next year. Jess, Izzy, Caroline, Camren and team win for the ages. This should be must watching in future not only for volleyball but team sports and how to believe, deliver in clutch and how to fuel adversity into triumph!
He has a scowl like Mark Dantonio but seems like a class guy.
Katie definitely held her own against a legend in Cook...future definitely looks bright.
Great game. My MIL fell last night and was being checked out at the ER. My wife was changing the channels on her TV and saw Penn State was on so we started watching when it was 2-0 early in the 3rd set. I had to go get the car when it was 22-19 Nebraska in the 4th set. I turned on the TV and found a stream someone put on Youtube but it didn't show a score. I fast-forwarded to that point to watch the rest of what I figured would be a loss. The time remaining looked too short for a 5th set. I didn't realize the 5th set only goes to 15. Unbelievable effort and poise to be so close to elimination and keep fighting back.
And for anyone who complains that this isn't football related - Caroline Jurevicius (Nebraska transfer, btw) , one of the hitters, is Joe's daughter, so it kind of is.
He certainly didn’t come from the Joe Paterno school of gracious after a difficult loss.
Can you elaborate further regarding comments he made after this particular match. I did not see his press conference video (I'm sorry to say but I don't like his face).
The comments that I have read from him were very complimentary of our team and the gutsy effort that they put forth in pulling out the victory.
As a side note, the HC for Louisville used to be on the staff of Cook and may have even played for Neb.
And then what happened: Updated
NEBRASKA CORNHUSKERS
Postseason match record when up 2-0: 103-1
😀
He did nothing wrong yesterday--people here just hate other coaches that are good
Incredible point at 6-4 in the 5th set, as brilliant a play as you will ever see. Great serve from Harper Murray, Mruzik kind of shanks the pass, Izzy Starck is careening to the sideline to save it and somehow bumps a perfect back set over her shoulders to the middle of the center line. PSU is out of system so they don't even have anyone on the front line and Starck knows this as she's running with her back to the court. It's a high set, absolutely perfect, and it gives Mruzik just enough time to line up and nail it from the back row; she hits it perfectly to the center of the Nebraska D just between the two back row defenders.
Starck and Mruzik (but especially Starck in this play) are incredible players and they bring their best when the match is on the line. What's great about volleyball is you can see the mental toughness and creative brilliance at times like this.
Starck and Mruzik (but especially Starck in this play) are incredible players and they bring their best when the match is on the line. What's great about volleyball is you can see the mental toughness and creative brilliance at times like this.
Agreed--that was a game changing play. Starck was phenomenal--hard to believe she's a freshman
As long as there is no time clock in play to end the competition.
I was watching the Pitt vs Louisville match and you could just feel the Pitt death spiral as the match proceeded.
And I didn't want to watch the same thing happen to us. And I'm grateful that it did not - despite me missing out on the thrilling ending.
My dad actually turned me on to PSUWVB. He loved the Ladies and he was a huge Micha fan.
Micha Hancock is one of the best to ever play IMO
Best server I've seen in the college game which has continued into her career post-Penn State
That's exactly who I thought of as well last night.....
Good of you to point that out. I came out of my chair on that one and I have watched a lot of volleyball.
Yeah I've only seen highlights, but the level of play didn't seem as high as Nebraska/PSU. Floor defense wasn't great from the limited plays I saw. Pitt was kind of disappointing. They may be a little too centered on Babcock (she is an incredible athlete) but when Louisville schemed to stop her, Pitt didn't seem to have a plan B offensively.
Pitt looked to me like a team that was in shock that they couldn't close out the third set and just lost all of their poise in the fourth set because they really hadn't been in that situation all season except for their match against Oregon last week. That match basically was a carbon copy of Louisville's match against Stanford last Saturday. They seem to be a resilient team. However, if their best player is out or diminished, that could be an X factor.
I watched the Pitt vs Louisville match with the volume turned down while doing other tasks so it's it wouldn't be fair to comment specifically on their quality of play. The Pitt WVB team was getting a decent amount of hype from the local Pittsburgh sports media being that they were the number 1 seed for the tournament. They were ranked #1 most of the year and they swept PSU earlier in the year in a match at Pitt.
With the possibility of a Pitt vs PSU National Championship game a legitimate possibility, the Pittsburgh media began talking about PSU's team as well. It'll be interesting to see how much media coverage that PSUWVB receives here locally now that Pitt has been eliminated.
With the College Football Playoff beginning tonight. Our game at noon tomorrow. Plus the Steelers and Ravens at 4:00. Lots of overlapping sporting events occurring this weekend.
I'll be watching on Sunday regardless of the local Pittsburgh media coverage. A great comeback like the one that we had yesterday deserves a fairytale ending.....
My comment was based solely on the after-match handshake which was a drive by from the Nebraska coach. I compare this to Coach Paterno who routinely invited visiting coaches into his home even after high-stakes, hard-fought heartbreaking losses. It seems to me a colleague coach fighting for her life deserves a somewhat warmer congratulations.
Noted women's college volleyball expert Andrew Filiponi from The Fan a few days ago predicted that Pitt and Nebraska would win. His volleyball predictions are as good as all of his other predictions.
He actually handled his after match Press Conference with ultimate Class IMO.. remembered .. he is a Coach and has had these young women now Seniors for 4 years..has to be so hard as he and his players played their guts out.. and.. what a debating loss as they should have closed out the 3rd set.. and he went out of his way to acknowledge Penn State.. LOL
Can you imagine IOWA’s Wrestling Coach.. even with the staggering dominance of our wrestling program.. ever acknowledging Penn State wrestling ?
This team will have even more of the limelight next year when Pat Ewing’s daughter joins the team. Will be cool seeing him in the stands.
John Cook is a great coach. I've not heard him say anything derogatory against Penn State. He was very gracious in the post match press conference. Not sure why the negativity towards him here.
The Penn State - Louisville final will be interesting. Penn State beat them 3-0 early in the season but that was at Rec Hall. This will essentially be a home match for Louisville. Louisville's top outside hitter, Anna De Beer, had to leave the semifinal against Pitt with a high ankle sprain. She is from Louisville - if she is unable to go in the final or at reduced strength, that will be a tough factor for the Cardinals to overcome.
It would be nice if PSU could win this for Katie. Some may remember back in 2022, there was a push to recruit Pitt's Dan Fisher to replace Russ Rose. When that fell through, there was some sentiment that Penn State was "settling" for KSC. Clearly, she has demonstrated she deserved the job. Hopefully, this will be the first of many finals appearances for her at the helm of Penn State.
The Penn State - Louisville final will be interesting. Penn State beat them 3-0 early in the season but that was at Rec Hall. This will essentially be a home match for Louisville. Louisville's top outside hitter, Anna De Beer, had to leave the semifinal against Pitt with a high ankle sprain. She is from Louisville - if she is unable to go in the final or at reduced strength, that will be a tough factor for the Cardinals to overcome.
It would be nice if PSU could win this for Katie. Some may remember back in 2022, there was a push to recruit Pitt's Dan Fisher to replace Russ Rose. When that fell through, there was some sentiment that Penn State was "settling" for KSC. Clearly, she has demonstrated she deserved the job. Hopefully, this will be the first of many finals appearances for her at the helm of Penn State.
