LINCOLN, NEB. – Campbell's first-ever NCAA Tournament berth came to an end with a straight-set defeat to No. 10 Nebraska in front of a crowd of 7,884 at the Devaney Center, the largest ever for a Campbell match. The loss ends Campbell's historic season with a 21-10 record.
 
Nebraska will move on to face Florida State in the second round tomorrow, after FSU topped Kansas State in straight sets in the first match of the day.
 
"I couldn't ask for anything more from our players; they played their hearts out, and obviously we weren't as consistent as we needed to be," head coach Greg Goral said after the match. "I'm proud of the way our team fought through all three sets, especially at the end, and that resilience is something we've had all season and the reason we're sitting here and not someone else in the conference."
 
Campbell struggled to get Nebraska out of system and with their size up front, as the Huskers hit .272 to Campbell's -.022, the first time Campbell has hit below zero since the first weekend of the season. Nebraska tallied 10 total blocks on the night, led by six total from Lauren Stivrins.
 
The Camel offense was paced by Lailah Green, Melody Paige and Hailey Wilson, all with four kills each. Paige did so on an efficient .375 with only one error. Madee Miner tallied nine assists with Emily Mitter adding eight. Claranne Fechter posted a match-high 16 digs.  
 
It was all Cornhuskers in the first set, as the hosts took it 25-14. Nebraska hit .300 in the opening frame while holding Campbell to hitting -.069. Lailah Green provided the most offense for the Camels, notching the team's first three kills of the match and adding an ace to go with it.
 
Nebraska won the second set by the same 25-14 tally. The hitting disparity was even larger, with Nebraska posting a .345 to Campbell's -.034. Hailey Wilson had a big second set with three kills and a block.  
 
The Camels hung closer for the first portion of the third set and forced a Nebraska timeout trailing just 16-12. But the Huskers got going out of that timeout and reached 24-13. Campbell made a little noise and held off four set-points before eventually falling 25-17.  
 
It was a memorable experience for this Campbell team, having played in front of a capacity crowd at the Devaney Center against a traditional powerhouse program.
 
"It was really cool, in simple terms," Cook said. "In eighth grade I was watching Nebraska's fifth-year players, Lexi Sun and Lauren Stivrins, and looking up to them, and now you're staring at them from across the net. It's just a really cool experience to play across from a group of respected players."
 
Nebraska was led by Strivrins, who posted nine kills along with her six blocks. Nicklin Hames dished out a match-high 37 assists with Lexi Rodriguez collecting a team-best 10 digs.
 
This was the final match for five Campbell seniors: Sarah Colla, Grace Kane, Kate Menz, Madee Miner and Hailey Wilson.