NEBRASKA vs. ILLINOIS STATE
March 10-12, 2023
Hawks Field | Lincoln, Neb.
 
Friday, March 10 – 4:05 p.m. CT
Pitching: LHP Emmett Olson (1-1, 4.32 ERA) vs. RHP Derek Salata (2-0, 1.72 ERA)
TV/Streaming: B1G+
Radio: Huskers Radio Network – Lincoln (1400 AM), Omaha (590 AM), Huskers.com, Huskers App

Saturday, March 11 – 2:05 p.m. CT
Pitching: RHP Jace Kaminska (2-0, 3.18 ERA) vs. RHP Tyrelle Chadwick (0-1, 8.49 ERA)
TV/Streaming: B1G+
Radio: Huskers Radio Network – Lincoln (1400 AM), Omaha (590 AM), Huskers.com, Huskers App

Sunday, March 12 – 1:05 p.m. CT
Pitching: TBD vs. RHP Thomas Harper (0-0, 8.44 ERA)
TV/Streaming: B1G+
Radio: Huskers Radio Network – Lincoln (1400 AM), Omaha (590 AM), Huskers.com, Huskers App

Nebraska continues its homestand this weekend, welcoming Illinois State to Hawks Field for a three-game series.
 
The series opener is set for 4:05 p.m. on Friday, while first pitch on Saturday is scheduled for 2:05 p.m. The two teams wrap up the series on Sunday in the series finale at 1:05 p.m.
 
All three games can be seen on B1G+. Fans can listen to Greg Sharpe and Ben McLaughlin call action the action on the Huskers Radio Network. The three games can be heard on KLIN (1400 AM) in Lincoln and KXSP (590 AM) in Omaha. Every game this season can be heard for free on Huskers.com and the Official Nebraska Huskers App for both iOS and android devices.

Nebraska vs. Illinois State
• Nebraska is unbeaten against Illinois State, holding a 4-0 all-time record against the Redbirds.
• The Huskers are 2-0 against ISU at Hawks Field, with wins of 10-7 and 12-6 in a midweek series in 2006.
• NU has a pair of victories over the Redbirds in neutral-site games, recording wins in Fresno, Calif., (1994) and Arlington, Texas (2007).

Familiar Faces in the Dugout
• In his second season on the ISU coaching staff, former Husker R.D. Spiehs returns to Lincoln this weekend as the Redbirds' pitching coach.
• Spiehs was a teammate of head coach Will Bolt and was a member of Rob Childress' pitching staff as a three-year starter in 1999-01.
• The former Husker compiled a 21-6 overall record at NU, which ranks eighth all-time in program history for career wins.
• Spiehs was a key member of the NU pitching staff that boasted the lowest ERA in the country in 2000 (3.14), and was Nebraska's starting pitcher for the program's first CWS appearance in 2001.
 
Huskers Ride Rare 11-Game Home Run Streak
• Nebraska enters this weekend's series having homered in 11 consecutive games.
• The 11-game streak ties the 2004 team for the longest streak in program history since 1992.
• NU has totaled 24 homers in the 11-game stretch this season, while the Huskers had 16 homers in the 11-game streak in 2004.
 
Going Streaking
• Brice Matthews reached base in both games against Northern Colorado this week to extend his on-base streak to 15 games, while also holding a seven-game hit streak.
• Josh Caron enters the weekend having reached base safely in 13 straight games, including a 10-game hitting streak.
 
Anderson Continues Hot Stretch at the Plate
• Despite an 0-for-7 start to the season at the plate, Max Anderson is hitting a blistering .489 to lead the Husker offense through 12 games.
• Overall, the Omaha native has seven doubles, a triple, home run and 13 RBI.
• In NU's last five games, Anderson is hitting a scorching .556 (10-for-18) at the plate, while holding a .619 on-base percentage and .944 slugging percentage.
• Anderson enters the weekend with an 11-game hitting streak, including six consecutive games with a double.
 
Flashing the Leather
• Through their first 12 games this season, the Huskers have committed just five errors and rank eighth nationally with a .987 fielding percentage.
 
Extra-Base Hits Fuel NU Offense
• Through its first 12 games, the NU offense is hitting .333 with 36 doubles, three triples, 24 home runs and a .600 slugging percentage.
• It took the Huskers 23 games to reach 36 doubles and 12 more games to reach 24 home runs as a team in 2022.
• In 53 games last season, the Huskers totaled 79 doubles, 51 homers and a .400 slugging percentage.
 
Numbers to Know
4-  Nebraska is one of four teams (NC State, Virginia Tech, Florida) with at least 36 doubles and 24 home runs on the season.
13 – The Husker offense ranks 13th nationally with a batting average of .333 through its first 12 games this season, including eight Huskers hitting above .300 on the year.
9 – The Big Red are scoring nine runs per game this season and have plated 12 or more runs in five games.
5 – With three strikeouts last weekend, Shay Schanaman is five strikeouts away from tying Zach Kroenke for 10th-best in program history with 196 career strikeouts.
2 – The NU offense belted five homers in a game for the second time since 2009 in a 14-3 run-rule win vs. Northern Colorado on Wednesday afternoon.

Clairmont Earns Bid to NCAA Championships

Kelsey Clairmont secured her spot at the 2023 NCAA Championships on the platform dive with a score of 496.00 on Thursday. The freshman from Canada finished eighth among the field at the NCAA Zone D Diving Championships, hosted in Minneapolis, Minn.

Clairmont's eighth-place finish punched her ticket to Knoxville, Tenn., where she'll join fellow Husker freshman Gena Jorgenson at Nationals, March 15-18.

Thursday marked Clairmont's fourth time competing on the platform at the collegiate level. In December, she claimed the platform title at the mid-season Hawkeye Invitational with a score of 283.15. 

On Tuesday, Clairmont competed on the three-meter and placed 22nd with a 281.50. Reagan Hinze joined Clairmont on three-meter and finished 41st with a 242.00. Hinze added a 38th-place finish on the one-meter with a 216.70.

Five Nebraska swimmers are currently in Elkhart, Ind., competing at the CSCAA National Invitational Championships. Events began today and will continue through Saturday.

Nissley Earns Third State Player of the Year Award

Future Husker Logan Nissley captured her third consecutive North Dakota Gatorade Girls Basketball Player of the Year Award when the honor was announced earlier this week. Nissley, a 6-0 guard out of Century High School in Bismarck, is averaging 21.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, 4.2 steals and 2.6 assists this season. She is ranked among the top 100 recruits in the nation by ESPN and signed her National Letter of Intent in November of 2022 to play for Coach Amy Williams and Nebraska beginning in 2023-24.

In addition to being a three-time North Dakota basketball state player of the year, Nissley has won back-to-back state volleyball player-of-the-year honors in North Dakota. She helped Century to a Class A state championship game appearance in volleyball as an outside hitter by recording 336 kills and 507 digs to go with 61 service aces, 55 blocks and 17 assists. She finished her career with more than 1,000 career kills and 1,000 career digs.

Nissley and the Patriots basketball team opened state tournament play on Thursday (March 9) with a 69-64 win over Fargo Davies in the quarterfinals at the Scheels Center at the Sanford Health Athletic Complex in Fargo. Nissley finished with team highs of 20 points and five assists. She added five rebounds and a pair of steals while knocked down four three-pointers.

In addition to Nissley's rare accomplishment, fellow future Husker Natalie Potts, who was the 2021 Missouri Gatorade Player of the Year, recently crossed the 2,000-point mark in her high school career in Missouri. Potts reached the milestone on a second-half three-pointer for Incarnate Word Academy in a Class 6 District 3 championship game win on Tuesday (March 7). Potts has helped Incarnate Word Academy to 97 consecutive wins heading into the Missouri Class 6 State Tournament, which begins Saturday (March 11).

Huskers Continue Non-Conference Play at Shocker Classic

• The Huskers will play their seventh and eighth game against a top-25 opponent this season when they face No. 23 Wichita State. 
• Nebraska's pitching staff leads the conference with eight shutouts. The Huskers are just one shutout away from matching the 2022 shutout total (9). 
• The Huskers are 12-1 when scoring more than two runs in a game this season. 
• NU has held 11 opponents to one run or less through the first 20 games.
• The Big Red leads the conference with a .505 slugging percentage.
• Billie Andrews has hit four of her eight home runs in the lead off at-bat. 
• Courtney Wallace leads the Big Ten with eight victories in the circle. 
• The Big Red will travel to Kansas this weekend, the home state of Husker Ava Bredwell. 
• In 16 games against non-top-10 teams, the Husker pitching staff is 14-1 with a 1.55 ERA and eight shutouts.  
• NU will face two opponents this weekend. The Huskers will take on Wichita State and Missouri State. 

Nebraska by the Numbers

• The Huskers lead the Big Ten in shutouts with eight and are ranked 11th in the NCAA. 
• NU has tallied a conference-best 38 doubles, a number that ranks fourth in the nation. 
• Billie Andrews is second in the conference and sixth in the NCAA in home runs with eight to start the season. 
• Billie Andrews and Caitlynn Neal both are tied for second-most doubles in the conference with six this season. 
• Ava Bredwell has tallied 18 runs through 20 games. She has the third-most runs in the Big Ten. 
• Courtney Wallace is first in the conference and 15th in the NCAA with eight victories. 
• Wallace has recorded three shutout wins this season, a mark that is first in the Big Ten and 10th in the nation. 

Opponents by the Numbers 

• No. 23 Wichita State leads the American Athletic Conference in batting average (.326), doubles (30), home runs per game (1.26), on base percentage (.390), scoring (6.26) and slugging percentage (.573).
• The Shockers also lead their conference in ERA (1.85), shutouts (6) and fielding percentage (.975). 
• Senior Sydney McKinney leads the Wichita State offense with a .629 batting average and in hits with 39. Both numbers are first in the NCAA. 
• Wichita State's Lauren Lucas is second in the nation with 10 doubles this season. 
• Missouri State averages 2.18 stolen bases per game, ranking second in the Missouri Valley Conference, and 24th in the NCAA.
• Freshman Abby Ford leads the MVC in stolen bases with 13 on the season. That number ranks 22nd in the nation. 

Husker Quick Hits 

• NU will play its seventh and eighth game against a top-25 team this season when they face No. 23 Wichita State twice this weekend. 
• Billie Andrews has tallied eight home runs this season, she is now tied for seventh all-time in Nebraska history in career homers with 35. 
• Andrews is one of 12 returning players in the NCAA who hit 20 or more home runs last season. 
• Mya Felder is the only returning Big Ten player who received All-Big Ten, All-Defensive and All-Tournament honors in 2022. 
• Courtney Wallace is one of six returning Rawlings/NFCA Gold Glove recipients from last season.

Huskers Head to South Carolina

After a pair of impressive performances to open the spring, the Nebraska women's golf team will try to build more momentum against a strong tournament field at the Briar's Creek Invitational in Johns Island, S.C. (March 13-14).

The Huskers, who are coming off their second tournament title of the season with a win at the Westbrook Spring Invitational (Feb. 26-27), will be part of a 16-team tournament field in South Carolina that features 12 top-100 teams, including No. 25 UCF, No. 31 SMU, No. 36 NC State, No. 38 Maryland and No. 39 Nebraska among the top-40 teams in NCAA Division I women's golf. 

Pre-tournament action begins with Sunday's practice round at 7 a.m. (CT), before the Huskers open competition on Monday, March 13 with a shotgun start at 7:45 a.m. (CT). Following a 36-hole day on Monday, the tournament will conclude with the final round on Tuesday, beginning again with a shotgun start at 7:45 a.m. (CT). Live scoring for the tournament will be available through GolfStat.com.

True freshman Kelli Ann Strand leads Nebraska with a team-best 71.46 stroke average after earning her fifth top-10 finish of the season with her fifth-place effort at the Westbrook Spring Invitational. Strand, who finished with a seven-under-par 209 (71-69-69) in Arizona, owns 14 rounds better than par this season, including six straight rounds of 71 or better to open the spring. Her 71.46 stroke average has her on school-record pace, and she heads to South Carolina ranked No. 94 nationally by Golfweek. 

Miu Takahashi joined Strand in the top 10 for the second straight tournament, tying for eighth at Westbrook with a career-best 212 (71-71-70) to finish four-under-par. The sophomore from Nasu-Machi, Japan has trimmed her stroke average to 72.59 and ranks among the top 200 players in Division I according to GolfStat (190) and Golfweek (191). She owns four top-10 finishes on the year including a tournament title at the Dale McNamara Invitational in Oklahoma (Oct. 10-11).

Graduate student Megan Whittaker continues to be the model of consistency in the Husker lineup with seven top-30 finishes on the year, including her tie for 11th with a three-under-par 213 (70-71-72) at the Westbrook Invite. Whittaker owns a career-best 72.59 stroke average, which has helped her to a No. 178 ranking by GolfStat and No. 192 from Golfweek. She owns five top-20 showings on the year. Juniors Lindsey Thiele and Michaela Vavrova will round out Nebraska's five-count-four lineup in South Carolina after all five Huskers finished among the top 25 at Westbrook.

Briar's Creek Invitational
Johns Island, South Carolina
Host: College of Charleston
Course: The Golf Club at Briar's Creek
Par / Yardage: Par 72 / (TBA) yards
Monday, March 13 (Rounds 1/2): 7:45 a.m. (Shotgun)
Tuesday, March 14 (Round 3): 7:45 a.m. (Shotgun)
Live Scoring: GolfStat.com

Participating Teams (GolfStat Team Ranking)     
Boston College (117), Campbell (78), College of Charleston (46), East Carolina (135), Illinois (55), Iowa (104), Maryland (38), Miami (69), Nebraska (39), Old Dominion (72), North Florida (99), NC State (36), Penn State (73), Rutgers (105), SMU (31), UCF (25)

Nebraska Lineup
1. Kelli Ann Strand 
2. Miu Takahashi 
3. Megan Whittaker
4. Michaela Vavrova 
5. Lindsey Thiele
IND - Andrea Velez

True Team Effort Propels Nebraska to Westbrook Title
Michaela Vavrova fired a career-best 66 (-6) in the final round to fuel all five Huskers to top-25 individual finishes, as the Nebraska women's golf team stormed to the Westbrook Spring Invitational title in Peoria, Ariz. (Feb. 27).

The career-best 66 for the junior from Bojnice, Slovakia included four birdies and an eagle on No. 5, vaulting Vavrova from a tie for 50th after the first 36 holes into a tie for 20th with a career-best tournament total of 216 (E).

Vavrova's fabulous final round was far from the lone highlight for the Huskers, who captured their second tournament championship of the season with a three-round team total of 843 (-21) on the par-72, 6,248-yard layout at the Westbrook Village Golf Club. The Big Red closed with a final-round 277 (-11) to hold off No. 24 Ohio State. The Buckeyes finished second, while No. 44 Denver, Kansas and Rutgers rounded out the top five teams in the 14-team tournament field that featured 12 top-100 programs.

Freshman Kelli Ann Strand (Challis, Idaho) continued her outstanding play by leading the Huskers throughout the tournament. She closed with a final-round 69 (-3) to take fifth individually with a 54-hole score of 209 (-7). Strand has opened the spring with six consecutive rounds better than par in her first two tournaments and owns 14 rounds better than par already this season. It was Strand's second straight top-10 finish of the spring and fifth of the season.

Sophomore Miu Takahashi (Nasu-Machi, Japan) remained on the heels of Strand throughout the tournament, contributing a final-round 70 (-2) to finish in a tie for eighth at 212 (-4) for the tournament. It was Takahashi's second straight top-10 finish to open the spring and fourth top-10 performance of the season.

Graduate student Megan Whittaker (Elkhorn, Neb.) also continued her impressive play with a final-round 72 (E) to finish in a tie for 11th with a three-round total of 213 (-3).

Junior Lindsey Thiele (Wahoo, Neb.) rounded out the five top-25 individual finishers in Nebraska's five-count-four lineup with a three-round total of 217 (+1) in a tie for 25th. Thiele closed with a final-round 74.

The impressive performances from top to bottom in the Husker lineup allowed Nebraska to claim its second tournament title of the season - both in tournaments hosted by the University of Wisconsin. Nebraska won the 13-team Badger Invitational in Madison (Sept. 18-20). NU's win at Westbrook also gave the Huskers five top-two team finishes in seven tournaments in 2022-23, including runner-up showings at the Green Wave Classic (Sept. 12-13), the Dale McNamara Invitational (Oct. 10-11) and the FAU Paradise Invite (Feb. 6-7).

Freshman Strand Makes Instant Impact for Big Red
Kelli Ann Strand made a record-setting debut on her way to a title at the Green Wave Classic in New Orleans (Sept. 12-13).

Strand, a three-time Idaho state champion who was ranked among the top-310 players in the world (WAGR 308) before arriving at Nebraska, set the Husker freshman record with a second-round 65 (-7) while tying the NU record for best 54-hole tournament score with a 202 (-14) at the Bayou Oaks South Course. Strand's performance included a school freshman record 65 (-7) in the second round. The true freshman from Challis, Idaho, fired a 29 (-7) over the back nine in the second round before opening the third round with a 31 (-5) on the front nine, carding a 60 (-12) over those consecutive 18 holes splitting two rounds. The NCAA record for best round of women's golf is 61. Strand also was named the Big Ten Golfer of the Week (Sept. 15).

Strand, who earned her second straight Idaho Golf Association Women's Player of the Year award in December of 2022, won the Idaho Women's Match Play title. She added a runner-up finish at the Idaho Women's Amateur. She was also the runner-up at the Girls Junior Americas Cup (July 24-28) for the second straight year with a three-round total of 205 (-11). She captured third at the IMG Academy Junior World Championship (July 12-15) with a four-round total of 280 (-8), which came before competing at the U.S. Girls Junior Amateur in Kentucky (July 18-23), where she advanced to Match Play before finishing in a tie for 33rd.

Strand earned the No. 1 position in Nebraska's lineup for the season-opening Green Wave Classic by winning Nebraska's competitive qualifying rounds in advance of the tournament. 

She leads Nebraska with a 71.46 stroke average over 20.5 rounds, which is on pace to shatter the school freshman record  (73.90) and the overall school season record (72.18) - both held by All-American Kate Smith.

Strand is ranked No. 94 nationally by Golfweek and No. 109 by GolfStat.

Takahashi Takes Title, Huskers Finish Second at Dale McNamara Invite
Miu Takahashi won her first college title to lead Nebraska to a runner-up finish at the Dale McNamara Invitational in Broken Arrow, Okla., Oct. 10-11. Her one-stroke win came with a then-career-best 213 (-3), including a final-round 69 (-3).

Kelli Ann Strand added her third consecutive top-five finish to open her career, tying for third at 215 (-1), including a final-round 69 of her own. Michaela Vavrova contributed a 70 (-2) in the final round to surge into a tie for 22nd, while Megan Whittaker added a tie for 22nd as well with a three-round total of 223. Lindsey Thiele also pitched in a 70 in the final round to tie for 30th (226) in a 75-player field in Oklahoma.

The Huskers closed the 54-hole tournament with an 869 (+5) team score, just one stroke back of the team champions from Tulsa. Nebraska's final-round 280 (-8) was the best 18-hole score of any team in the tournament.

Whittaker Back for Fifth Year to Lead Huskers in Big Ten
A hard-working golfer who has shown impressive improvement throughout her five collegiate seasons, Megan Whittaker returns to lead Nebraska in the hunt for an NCAA Regional bid in 2022-23. The graduate student from Elkhorn, Neb., produced Nebraska's No. 2 stroke average (74.04) in 2021-22, just missing an individual NCAA Regional bid. She trailed only NCAA Regional qualifier Kirsten Baete (73.94) among the Huskers.

Whittaker opened her fifth season as a Husker with a career-best 207 (-9) to take sixth at the Green Wave Classic. It followed a big summer for Whittaker that included a sweep of the Nebraska women's match play and stroke play championships and a berth in the U.S. Women's Amateur.

Whittaker also joined teammates Michaela Vavrova and Kelli Ann Strand as Big Ten Golfers to Watch heading into the 2022-23 season. Whittaker produced the first two top-10 individual finishes of her career while matching Baete and Vanessa Bouvet for the team lead with seven top-25 finishes last year.

In fact, Whittaker has notched top-25 finishes in 13 of her last 15 collegiate tournaments, including a tie for 11th with a 213 (-3) at the Westbrook Spring Invitational (Feb. 26-27).

Whittaker has produced a career-best 72.59 stroke average over 20.5 rounds this season  and is ranked No. 178 by Golfweek and No. 192 by GolfStat.

A star in the classroom and the community, Whittaker earned her bachelor's degree in finance in May of 2022. She is a four-time WGCA Scholastic All-American, a three-time Big Ten Distinguished Scholar and a three-time Academic All-Big Ten selection. In the community, she earned a prestigious Sam Foltz 27 Hero Leadership Award at Nebraska in 2021. She was also Nebraska's 2021 Big Ten Sportsmanship Award winner for women's golf.

Whittaker's ties to Nebraska women's golf are very strong, as her mother Kim (Lefler) lettered as a golfer for the Huskers from 1991 to 1994, helping Nebraska advance to the 1994 NCAA West Regional as a senior.

Vavrova Slovakian Player of the Year
Nebraska junior Michaela Vavrova was named the 2022 Slovakian Women's Player of the Year on Feb. 11. She earned the national honor after finishing second at the Slovak Amateur Championship and 12th at the AMUNDI Czech Ladies Challenge. Vavrova also represented Slovakia at the 2022 World University Golf Championships in Turin, leading Slovakia to a ninth-place finish. At the 2022 World Championships, she helped Slovakia to a 31st place finish.

She celebrated the award by carding the best round of her college career with a final-round 66 (-6) to help the Huskers close out a tournament title at the Westbrook Spring Invitational (Feb. 26-27). Vavrova vaulted 30 spots up the leader board on the final day in Arizona, tying for 20th with a career-best 216.

Vavrova missed the first week of fall classes while competing as a member of the Slovakian Team at the World Amateur Team Championships in Paris in late-August. The third-year Husker was Slovakia's top finisher in a field that featured 56 of the world's best amateur teams.

Vavrova did not travel to the Green Wave Classic after capping her sophomore season at Nebraska by tying for 17th with a three-round total of 220 (+7) at the 2022 Big Ten Championship. She opened with a then-career-best 68 (-3) to sit atop the leader board after one round and was tied for fifth at 141 (-1) through two rounds in Pittsburgh.

Vavrova captured her first college title with a then-career-best 217 (+1) at the Stampede at The Creek in Elkhorn, Neb. (Oct. 4-5, 2021). She was named the Big Ten Co-Golfer of the Week (Oct. 6), and closed the 2021 fall campaign with a tie for 10th (217) that included a second-round 69 (-3) to help the Huskers to a runner-up finish at the White Sands Collegiate.

As a true freshman, Vavrova competed in all 21 rounds in the 2020-21 Husker lineup, posting NU's fourth-best stroke average (76.33). She notched three straight top-25 finishes (Arizona Wildcat, Allstate Sugar Bowl, Indiana Spring Invite). Vavrova also tied for 33rd (224) to help Nebraska to a runner-up team finish at the Big Ten Championship. She was NU's No. 2 finisher at the NCAA Columbus Regional with her tie for 45th (229).

Thiele Continues to Improve, Producing Strong Junior Year
Lindsey Thiele captured her second career top-10 finish by tying for eighth with a career-best 209 (-7) at the season-opening Green Wave Classic (Sept. 12-13). Her effort included a career-best 69 (-3) in the opening round.

As a sophomore, Thiele (pronounced TEEL) produced a solid 76.89 stroke average while competing in five tournaments. She shared the individual title with teammate Nicole Hansen at the Marilynn Smith/Sunflower Invitational (Sept. 20-21, 2021). Thiele opened with rounds of 70 and 7) on her way to a then-career-best 219 (+3) at Colbert Hills. Thiele's effort earned her Big Ten Co-Golfer-of-the-Week honors with Hansen (Sept. 22).

In the fall of 2022, Thiele produced five top-40 finishes while ranking fourth among the Huskers with a 74.00 stroke average.

The Wahoo, Neb., native who is the most recent of three sisters (Haley, Hannah) to play golf for the Big Red, was NU's sixth golfer in the count-four format at the 2021 Big Ten Championship.

An outstanding student, Thiele is a Regents Scholar at Nebraska and a two-time WGCA Scholastic All-American.

Huskers Storm to Badger Invite Title
Kelli Ann Strand charged 16 spots up the individual leader board to take a top-five finish and help the Huskers claim the team title at the Badger Invitational (Sept. 18-20). 

The Huskers, who entered the final round four strokes behind the leaders from Notre Dame, dominated the field on a stormy day on the 6,248-yard layout of the University Ridge Golf Course in Verona. Nebraska put up the best team round for the second straight day, closing the final eight holes with an even-par 288 to end the tournament at 863 (-1) over three rounds. The Big Red defeated both Notre Dame (874) and Old Dominion (874) by 11 strokes in the final team standings. ODU closed the tournament with a final-round 293 (+5), while the Fighting Irish struggled down the stretch with a 303 (+15).

Strand carded a final-round 67 (-5) to jump from a tie for 20th into a tie for fourth. Her final round included an eagle on No. 16 and three birdies to go along with 14 pars. Strand closed the tournament at 213 (-3). She battled her way into the final top five after ending the first day in a tie for 50th with a 77. Her final-round 67 was the low round of the day in the 75-player field.

Miu Takahashi added a top-10 finish of her own, closing an impressive tournament with an even-par 72. The sophomore from Nasu-Machi, Japan, finished eighth at 215 (-1).  

NCAA Championship Changes
The NCAA Women's Golf Championship will expand from 24 to 27 teams in 2023 at the Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Ariz. (May 19-24). The 2023 NCAA Championship features six regional sites with 12 teams and six individuals  qualifying in each region (72 teams, 36 individuals overall).
 
Regionals will be held at the University of Georgia Golf Course (Athens), PGA National Resort (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.), Palouse Ridge Golf Club (Pullman, Wash.), Lonnie Poole Golf Course (Raleigh, N.C.), TPC San Antonio (Texas) and The Club at Chatham Hills (Westfield, Ind.), May 8-10, 2023.

Huskers in The National Polls
Nebraska entered the national rankings for the first time in many years when the Huskers came in at No. 19 in the Golfweek rankings (Sept. 22). The Huskers also entered the Mizuno WGCA Coaches Poll at No. 20 (Sept. 23). Following a runner-up finish at the Dale McNamara Invitational, the Huskers remained in the top 25 at No. 23 in Golfweek (Oct. 13), while ranking No. 28 in the Mizuno WGCA Coaches Poll (Oct. 14). 

Nebraska is No. 37 by Golfweek and No. 39 according to GolfStat (March 6). Freshman Kelli Ann Strand heads to South Carolina ranked No. 94 individually by Golfweek, while graduate student Megan Whittaker (178) and sophomore Miu Takahashi (191) join Strand among the top 250 golfers in the nation. Junior Lindsey Thiele (353) and Michaela Vavrova (452) round out Nebraska's top five.

Sutherland Leads Huskers
After spending a season as associate head coach, Jeanne Sutherland was named the new Nebraska Head Coach on Thursday, May 5, 2022. Sutherland came to Nebraska after spending 10 seasons (2011-21) as the head coach at SMU. She previously spent 15 seasons as the head coach at Texas A&M (1992-2007).

In 2018, Sutherland was named the inaugural winner of the WGCA Kim Evans Award. She also earned the WGCA Founders Award in 2017. A four-time conference coach of the year at Texas A&M (3 Big 12, 1 Southwest Conference), Sutherland was also a two-time NCAA Regional Coach of the Year (1997, 2007). She led 13 Texas A&M teams to NCAA Regional play, including four NCAA Championship appearances in 1997 (17th), 2004 (24th), 2005 (22nd) and 2006 (19th). 

In her head coaching career, Sutherland has guided 18 teams to NCAA Regional appearances. She has coached three individual All-Americans, five individual conference champions and three conference players of the year.

Huskers Honor Daegan Page with Folds of Honor Bag
The Nebraska women's golf team is honoring Marine Corporal Daegan Page from Omaha as part of the Folds of Honor Military Tribute Program during the spring of 2023.

Page, who was one of 13 service men and women killed in action while helping to evacuate people from the Kabul Airport in Afghanistan on Aug. 26, 2021, has his name, rank and branch of service displayed on a Husker women's golf bag this season.

Megan Whittaker, a graduate student from Elkhorn, Neb., proudly carried the bag in Page's honor in Nebraska's first spring tournament as part of a nationwide program sponsored by the Women's Golf Coaches Association (WGCA) and the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA). Kelli Ann Strand carried it during Nebraska's run to the Westbrook Spring Invitational title in Arizona, while Michaela Vavrova will carry the honor bag at the Briar's Creek Invitational.

Folds of Honor is a preferred charitable partner of the WGCA and the GCAA, and the groups work together to ensure that no family is left behind in the fight to preserve American freedom. Through scholarships and other assistance, they give back to the spouses and children of soldiers killed or disabled in service to our country.

Daegan William-Tyeler Page would have celebrated his 25th birthday on Feb. 6, 2023, when the Husker women's golf team opens its spring season at the FAU Paradise Invitational in Boca Raton, Fla., on Monday. He was born in Red Oak, Iowa and moved to Omaha at age 5. He was an avid hockey player, competing for the state champion Westside Warriors, before graduating from Millard South High School in 2016. Page also loved skateboarding, the outdoors and animals.

Cpl. Page was a rifleman in 1st Platoon, Company G, 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment. To learn more about Daegan Page, or to help others "Live the Dae Way" visit the Cpl. Daegan Page Foundation website at daeganpage.org.

Huskers Set Pace in Classroom
Nebraska leads NCAA Division I with 349 CoSIDA Academic All-Americans all-time across all sports. The Huskers also lead all schools in history with 18 NCAA Top 10 Award winners across all sports. 

Nebraska women's golf leads the nation with 90 WGCA Scholastic All-Americans since 1989, including three in 2021-22. Kirsten Baete, Lindsey Thiele and Megan Whittaker all earned WGCA honors for the second straight season in 2021-22. 

Baete and Whittaker became the seventh and eighth four-time WGCA Scholastic All-Americans in Nebraska history in 2021-22. This season, Whittaker could become the first five-time WGCA Scholastic honoree in the Husker record book. Megan's mother, Kim (Lefler), was also a three-time WGCA Scholastic All-American at Nebraska (1992, 1993, 1994).

Lindsey is the third Thiele sister to be a WGCA Scholastic All-American, joining Haley (2016, 2018, 2019, 2020) and Hannah (2018).

NU also owns a 95 percent graduation success rate across all student-athletes.

Huskers Begin Nine-Day Beach Trip in Hawaii

The Nebraska beach volleyball team will play 12 matches over the next nine days in Hawaii and California. 

On Friday, the Huskers will begin the Heineken Queens Cup at 2:15 p.m. (CT) against No. 11 California on Queen's Beach in Honolulu. NU will also play No. 9 Hawaii at 4:45 p.m. (CT) on Friday. The Huskers are back on Queen's Beach on Saturday at 1 p.m. (CT) against Texas and 3:30 p.m. (CT) against No. 14 Washington. NU will play Oregon at 2 p.m. (CT) on Sunday on the final day of the tournament. 

Before leaving Hawaii, on Tuesday, March 14 the Huskers will battle the Rainbow Wahine one more time at the Ching Complex at 2 p.m. (CT). 

As the Big Red heads back to the mainland, they'll stop in California for six final matches. The Huskers will play Grossmont and San Diego Mesa in El Cajon, Calif., on March 16, and then they will play Saddleback College and Orange Coast College on March 17 in Irvine, Calif. The Huskers will close out their season on March 18 with a doubleheader against Irvine Valley College and Hope International University, also in Irvine. 

Huskers to Cap Season at NCAA Championships

The No. 7 Nebraska Rifle team will compete in its final matches of the season at the NCAA Championships on Friday, March 10 and Saturday, March 11. Both days of the championships will take place at the James A. Rhodes Arena in Akron, Ohio. 

Day one (March 10) will be the smallbore relays and day two (March 11) will be the air rifle relays. Both days are slated to start at 8:15 a.m. (central). 

This is the 19th time since 2000 that the Huskers have qualified for the championships, and the team will be looking for a strong finish to the season. The last time Nebraska finished in the top five of the NCAA Championships was during the 2014-15 season, under Head Coach Ashley McAllister.

"It's been a long season for the Huskers," said Head Coach Mindy Miles, who will not be traveling with the team due to health reasons. "The NCAA Championships is one of the most fun matches in an athlete's career."

Assistant Coach JT Schnering will step in as head coach for the Huskers in Miles' absence.

NU will take five athletes to the championships: Junior All-Americans Cecelia Ossi and Madelynn Erickson, sophomore Mackenzie Strauch and freshmen Emma Rhode and Vittoria Watts. All five have been significant contributors for the Huskers this season. 

Team captain Ossi has competed in 11-of-13 matches for Nebraska and has notched 10 top-five overall finishes in those matches, including one at the PRC Championships. She has finished in first place in three of those 10 matches. She has also added a top-10 finish against Alaska-Fairbanks on Nov. 13. Her smallbore (587.73) and aggregate (1,181.82) averages top the team.

Erickson has shot in all 13 matches for the Huskers. Her smallbore average of 584.15 is second on the team, and she has posted six top-five aggregate finishes, including two first-place, and four top-10 finishes.

Strauch has also competed in all 13 of NU's matches. She has contributed four top-10 overall finishes and a top-five finish. 

Rhode earned seven top-five finishes, including two first-place showings, and three top-10 finishes this season while shooting in all 13 matches for the Huskers. Her air rifle average of 594.38 leads the team, and she didn't shoot below 590 once in the discipline. Her aggregate average (1,178.00) is second on the team and her smallbore average (583.62) is third.

Watts has competed in 12-of-13 matches this season. Her air rifle (594.08) and aggregate (1,177.00) averages are third on the team, and she has not scored below a 592 in the air rifle. She has notched six top-five finishes and five top-10 finishes for the Huskers.

Ossi and Erickson have both competed in the NCAA Championships before – Ossi qualified as an individual last year in the smallbore event and placed ninth out of 45 shooters. Both athletes were part of the Nebraska team that qualified in 2020-21 and finished sixth.

NU will be joined by No. 1 TCU, No. 2 Alaska-Fairbanks, No. 3 West Virginia, No. 4 Kentucky, No. 5 Ole Miss, No. 6 Murray State and No. 8 Air Force. 

The Huskers have lost to both the Horned Frogs and the Nanooks twice, but have defeated the Falcons twice. NU recorded its season-high aggregate score the last time it faced Alaska-Fairbanks. 

"Akron does a great job hosting championships, and it should be a well-run match," said Miles. "The team has one more chance to shoot a score that represents this season. I'm proud they have continuously listed Nebraska records, but I would love to see them post scores they are each proud of at the end of the match."

One-stop results for the matches are available here and an overview of the championships, including a livestream, is available here. Live video will also be available on the NCAA's rifle home page. 

NU Returns Home to Face Omaha

The No. 48 Nebraska men's tennis team (7-5, 0-0 Big Ten) returns home to take on Omaha, Saturday at 10 a.m. CT at the Sid and Hazel Dillon Tennis Center. Live stream and stats will be available on Huskers.com, and updates will be posted on @HuskerMTennis on Twitter.
 
Scouting Omaha (8-4, 0-0 Summit League)
• The Mavericks enter the in-state battle coming off a 5-2 loss to No. 44 Arkansas.
• Omaha spent one week as the No. 75 ranked team in the nation.
• Signature wins for the Mavericks include victories over DePaul and Georgetown. 

Series History
This is the eighth matchup between the two in-state rivals. The Huskers are 6-2 all-time against Omaha. The Mavericks won the most recent matchup 4-3, which was played Feb. 20, 2022, in Lincoln. In the six Nebraska wins, the Huskers have outscored Omaha 35-1.
 
Huskers Move Up in the ITA Team Rankings
The Big Red jumped from No. 50 to No. 48 in this week's ITA team tennis rankings. The Huskers beat then-ranked No. 74 Ball State 4-0 in La Jolla, Calif.
 
Gleason Named Athlete of the Week
For the second straight week, the Big Ten Men's Athlete of the Week honor is going to the Huskers. A week after Shunya Maruyama picked up the award, William Gleason won it thanks to an impressive 8-1 record. Gleason won both his doubles and single match in the NU victory over Ball State. In the Pacific Coast Doubles Tournament, partnered with Calvin Mueller, Gleason finished with a 6-1 record and finished as runner-up.
 
Up Next
The Huskers' next match opens Big Ten conference play when they host Michigan State on Friday, March 24, at 5 p.m. at the Sid and Hazel Dillon Tennis Center.