Nebraska interim defensive coordinator Bill Busch spoke to members of the media following Wednesday's practice. He touched on how this week of preparation has gone.

"Today was turnover Wednesday, so turnovers were our heavy theme of today. Yesterday was competition Tuesday, so the guys have been competing," Busch said. "One thing our guys have been doing is practicing at a very high level with effort. We are very happy to be able to get back and be able to get a win last week. It helped a little but being able to get back and have Saturday off from the short week, to help us get ready for what is a huge game for us on Saturday against a ridiculously gifted football team."

He commented on how the positive momentum can help the team moving forward. 

"That's always a positive. There's gonna be a lot of tough situations in this game. The mood is always better after wins. We also know we are in for a monumental battle at their place with a great crowd and great players."

He explained how Malcolm Hartzog has made a big impact in his true freshman season.

"Love Malcolm and how he fought back and did a lot of good things. They got a couple balls on him, everyone knows that. It wasn't like he was in bad coverage, he was in good shape. For a true freshman, he did not give up. He has a lot of fight in him. Malcolm is the kind of guy you want to go to war with any day. He's a real dude and I love coaching him."

He mentioned how the players have been putting the time in during the week.

"They live around here. That's the thing you look for in a football team," Busch said. "Our hallways are packed with players all the time. They get here at 6 o'clock in the morning, and we have guys that are in this building until they leave in the evening. They are always around us, asking questions. We will be in meetings and they'll be poking their heads in and asking questions about certain plays."

The Huskers will once again hit the road when they take on Purdue in West Lafayette, Ind. on Saturday, Oct. 15. Kickoff is at 6:30 p.m. (CT) and will be televised on BTN, with radio coverage provided by Huskers Radio Network.

Takahashi Named Big Ten Golfer of the Week

Nebraska's Miu Takahashi shared Big Ten Women's Golfer-of-the-Week honors on Wednesday, following her championship performance at the Dale McNamara Invitational (Oct. 10-11).

Takahashi won her first career collegiate title with a career-best three-round total of 213 (-3), including a final-round 69 (-3) on the 6,302-yard layout at the Cedar Ridge Country Club in Broken Arrow, Okla.

She helped the Huskers to a runner-up finish in the 13-team event, as Nebraska improved to 35-2 in head-to-head competition through three tournaments this season.

The sophomore from Nasu-machi, Japan, owns a pair of top-10 tournament finishes this season and carries Nebraska's No. 2 individual stroke average (71.78) through nine rounds. 

Takahashi shared the Big Ten weekly honor with Rikke Nordvik from Rutgers, who won her first career tournament title at the Rocket Classic.

2022-23 Big Ten Women's Golfers of the Week
Sept. 15           Kelli Ann Strand, Fr., Nebraska
Sept. 21           Leigha Devine, Sr., Rutgers
Sept. 29           Isabel Sy, Jr., Illinois | Luisamariana Mesones, Fr., Minnesota
Oct. 5              Luisamariana Mesones, Fr., Minnesota
Oct. 12            Miu Takahashi, So., Nebraska | Rikke Nordvik, Jr., Rutgers

Huskers Set to Host Action-Packed Weekend

Lincoln, Neb. - The Nebraska swimming and diving team will host a trio of teams this weekend as it will face Iowa State on Friday, Oct. 15 at 4 p.m. (CT) and Minnesota and South Dakota in a double-dual on Saturday, Oct. 16 at 11 a.m. (CT). 

The Huskers are coming off a well-rounded opening dual win at South Dakota State, where seven different swimmers won individual titles. Lexi Kucera highlighted the night, collecting a pair of victories in the 50 butterfly (26.35) and the 200 freestyle (1:53.88). Madesyn Ronquillio, a senior co-captain, won the 100 backstroke while setting a facility record at the Marshall Center Pool with a 57.59. Making her Husker debut, Gena Jorgenson set the facility record in the 500 freestyle with a 5:04.50 to win the event. Berkeley Livingston and Maia Hall, the largest returning scorers from the 2022 Big Ten Championships, each collected a win of their own in the 1,000 freestyle and 100 breaststroke, respectively. JoJo Randby kicked off her sophomore campaign with a 50 breaststroke victory, while Sarah Barton won the 100 butterfly to complete the Husker wins.

The Cyclones and Huskers have a long history as Friday marks the 48th meeting between the teams. Nebraska has dominated in recent years, owning the series record, 40-6-1, and winning every meeting since 2003. Last year, NU captured 12 of 16 event titles to win, 186-114. The 200 butterfly boosted Nebraska's points as they managed a top-three sweep with Shannon Stott, Livingston and Barton claiming the top spots. All three swimmers are set to lead the Huskers again on Friday.

Nebraska divers will compete for the first time of the season on Friday with Reagan Hinze leading the squad, while Kelsey Clairmont and Ellee Delcamp will make their debuts as Huskers.

Iowa State finished fifth at the Big 12 Championships last season, with 2022-23 returner and Omaha-native, Elizabeth Richardson, garnering First Team All-Big 12 honors. Brinley Horras is another swimmer to watch as she became the first swimmer in Iowa State history to earn All-Big 12 honors in the 200, 500 and 1650 free in the same year.

On Saturday, Nebraska will meet its first Big Ten team of the season, with Minnesota competing in the double-dual. The Gophers posted a strong performance last season, handing the Huskers their only dual loss of the season and going on to finish sixth at the Big Ten Championships and 21st at the NCAA Championships.

Diving powerhouse Joy Zhu returns for Minnesota after placing in the top-three at the Big Ten Championships in the one- and three-meter and going on to post two top-25 finishes at the NCAA Championships.

On the swimming side, notable returners include 2022 Big Ten Champion in the 400 IM, Megan Van Berkom. She also swam to a pair of runner-up finishes in the 200 butterfly and 200 IM, clocking school record times in both. Additionally, Hannah Cornish is set for her sophomore season after swimming to a pair of individual top-ten finishes at conference, while Emma Lezar, who placed in the top-12 in both breaststroke events at the Big Ten Championships is also set to return.

South Dakota will add to the action on Saturday. The Coyotes have finished as runner-up at the Summit League Championships three times in the last four seasons, including a school-record team points at the 2022 conference meet. Stella Fairbanks and Cassie Ketterling headlined the runner-up effort and both are returning for the 2022-23 season. Ketterling swam to both the 100 IM and 400 IM titles, while Fairbanks won the one-meter diving event.

Live results will be available through the Meet Mobile App, with a livestream provided on the Huskers YouTube page.

Huskers Start Season at Motiv Penguin Classic

Struthers, Ohio - The No. 3 Nebraska bowling team will begin the 2022-23 season this weekend, competing at the Motiv Penguin Classic this Friday through Sunday. The tournament is hosted by No. 9 Youngstown State and will take place at Holiday Bowl in Struthers, Ohio.

The teams joining the Huskers include six of the top 25 teams in the nation: No. 6 Arkansas State, No. 9 Youngstown State, No. 13 Duquesne, No. 19 Morgan State, No. 20 Lewis and No. 21 Central Missouri. Aurora, Medialle, Mercyhurst, Walsh, Valparaiso, Saint Francis (Pa.) and Wright State rounds out the 14 teams competing. 

"The team is excited to get back to competition this weekend in Ohio," said Head Coach Paul Klempa. "We have some new faces and an extremely talented group so it will be our first chance to begin the process of gelling as a team. I'm anxious to see how this team will perform in our opening event, and this will be an excellent opportunity to measure where we are and what needs attention going forward." 

The Huskers will be led by captains: Amara Smith Speights, Gwen Maeha and Kendyl Hofmeister. Hofmeister returns to the lineup after earning NTCA All-America honors while averaging a 207.7 in 43 traditional games last season. Fifth-year senior Maeha ended last season averaging a 202.3 over 19 games. Rounding out the captains is Smith Speights who returns for her fourth season after averaging a career-best 196.5 in eight traditional games in 2021-22.

Competition begins Friday morning at 8:35 a.m. (Central) with five sets of five-game Baker matches, followed by five traditional matches on Saturday morning, beginning at 8:25 a.m. (Central). Combined results from Friday and Saturday will determine the seeding for Sunday's bracket-play championship tournament, where each team will play three rounds of traditional matches followed by one best-of-seven Baker matches beginning at 7:25 a.m.(Central).
 
Motiv Penguin Classic Teams Competing
No. 3 Nebraska
No. 6 Arkansas State
No. 9 Youngstown State
No. 13 Duquesne
No. 19 Morgan State
No. 20 Lewis
No. 21 Central Missouri
Aurora
Medialle
Mercyhurst
Saint Francis (PA.)
Valparaiso
Walsh
Wright State

Huskers Wrap Up Day Three at the Newport Beach Invite

Newport Beach, Calif. - The Huskers wrapped up day three of competition at their third and final fall appearance at the Newport Beach Invite on Wednesday.

To start play today, sophomore Anfisa Danilchenko faced Aspen Schuman, a recruit that is ranked 1^st in the nation for the recruiting class of 2026 on the Tennis Recruiting Network and was defeated 6-3, 6-0. Junior Vivien Sandberg played her third match of the tournament against Emmi Kolyszko, winning 6-3, 6-4. Senior Samantha Alicea matched up against Jwany Sherif and fell 6-2, 6-3. Sophomore Lucy Loy, who began the tournament as an on-site alternate, played her first match today against Emily Deming and was defeated 6-1, 6-1. To finish up today's play, sophomore Ana Carmen Zamburek played her second match of the invite and faced Nadia Kojonroj, losing 7-6 (4), 6-2.
 
Sandberg began play on Tuesday. Sandberg faced Schuman and fell 6-4, 6-3. Danilchenko played her second match of the tournament against Arizona's Kayla Wilkins and was defeated 7-5, 6-3. Junior Isabel Adrover Gallego matched up against Brandy Walker, winning in three sets 6-3, 3-6, 6-4. To finish up Tuesday's play, Alicea defeated Parker Fry 6-4, 6-2.

On Monday, Adrover Gallego began play for NU, defeating Lexington Reed, a high school junior that is currently ranked 12^th in the nation, by retirement, 7-6 (6), 5-2. Alicea matched up against Claire Zhang, falling 6-1, 6-1. Danilchenko faced Sandberg, and Sandberg won the match 6-3, 6-1. To wrap up Monday's play, Carmen Zamburek defeated Tianmei Wang, a high school sophomore that is currently ranked 2^nd in the nation 6-2, 6-4.
 
The ladies will continue playing round robin draws until Friday and single elimination draws will take place on Saturday and Sunday.
 
Day 1 Results:
Isabel Adrover Gallego (NEB) def. Lexington Reed 7-6 (6), 5-2, retired
Claire Zhang def. Samantha Alicea (NEB) 6-1, 6-1
Vivien Sandberg (NEB) def. Anfisa Danilchenko (NEB) 6-3, 6-1
Ana Carmen Zamburek (NEB) def. Tianmei Wang 6-2, 6-4
 
Day 2 Results:
Aspen Schuman def. Vivien Sandberg (NEB) 6-3, 6-4
Kayla Wilkins (UA) def. Anfisa Danilchenko (NEB) 7-5, 6-3
Isabel Adrover Gallego (NEB) def. Brandy Walker 6-3, 3-6, 6-4
Samantha Alicea (NEB) def. Parker Fry 6-4, 6-2
 
Day 3 Results:
Aspen Schuman def. Anfisa Danilchenko (NEB) 6-3, 6-0
Vivien Sandberg (NEB) def. Emmi Kolyszko 6-3, 6-4
Jwany Sherif def. Samantha Alicea (NEB) 6-2, 6-3
Emily Deming def. Lucy Loy (NEB) 6-1, 6-1
Nadia Kojonroj def. Ana Carmen Zamburek (NEB) 7-6 (4), 6-2