It was a classic David vs. Goliath showdown, with the Dayton Flyers stepping into Goliath’s shoes, relying on Lexie Almodovar’s star power to lead them. But in the end, it was Nebraska who stood tall, taking down No. 5 Dayton 3-1 (25-17, 25-18, 25-27, 25-13) to advance to the Regional Finals. Sure, the Flyers gave it a valiant effort, but even the scrappy outside hitter had to tip their hat to the Big Red’s dominance. The result?

Another victory for Nebraska in the NCAA Volleyball Championship 2024. But hold up! Friday night was more than just a win—it was a chance for Nebraska to rack up a few more bragging rights. First off, the Huskers experienced a hiccup in their usual sweep-happy ways, dropping a set to Dayton. But that was really just a minor blip on the radar. The bigger story?

Nebraska extended its home-court dominance to 43 straight wins. The win against Dayton extended Nebraska’s impressive home streak to 43—making it the second-longest home win streak across all NCAA women’s volleyball divisions (DI, DII, and DIII). Pretty impressive, right? Oh, and there’s another “second” to mention, too! When it comes to NCAA Volleyball Championship victories, Nebraska ranks second with 132 wins, putting them in the top three all-time. So who’s at the top, you ask? Well, we’ll save that surprise for later.

But here’s another Nebraska milestone that came on December 13 (Friday the 13th, no less!). Their appearance in the Sweet 16 was the 40th time the Huskers have made it that far, making them the only program to reach this milestone. Talk about consistency! Then, there’s Lexi Rodriguez, who’s making a serious push to surpass Justine Wong-Orantes’ career digs record.

She had 22 digs on Friday, bringing her career total to 1,843—just 25 away from topping Justine’s record. The good news? She’s got at least one more match to make history. And guess who’s up next? The Wisconsin Badgers. Will Lexi get her hands on that record? We’ll find out on Sunday.

But wait, there’s more! Let’s not forget Lexie Almodovar, who was absolutely on fire in the game. She added her own touch of greatness to the victory, turning heads with her performance. What did she do, exactly?

Nebraska volleyball fans applaud the best player in the opponent camp 

Before the penultimate match, the Nebraska coach already praised her. In the press conference, John Cook even said, “She’s just undersized, but man, she’s a heck of a player, does everything great.” On Friday, the Huskers had their moment to watch the brilliance of the 5’8” “undersize” opposite hitter. In the game, Lexie Almodovar had the lofty Huskers standing against her. But their intimidating presence failed to shake Almodovar’s feet. She ended the night with 20 kills, just 2 shy of Harper Murray, the best performer of the game. But the score may fail to describe her effort in the game. 

On Friday, Nebraska lost their first set of the 2024 NCAA Volleyball Championship to the Dayton Flyers, but let’s be real—it was all because of Lexie Almodovar. How? In that third set alone, Lexie hammered home 12 kills, with some coming at the most clutch moments. And get this—out of 149 hitting attempts by Dayton, 68 were from her. Talk about taking over! The Nebraska fans were on their feet, clapping for her, showing some serious love after that set.

Here’s a quick fun fact: Lexie has already put up 552 kills this season—200 more than her closest competitor. Now, let’s hear it: how wild is that? Can anyone else handle the pressure like she does and still deliver when it counts?