We are almost through the stretch of the summer that everyone dreads from year to year. Why do people dread it you may ask? Because there’s no sports on. Well there is, but all you can watch is either the MLB or golf for the most part and those are what I like to call nap sports. Nap sports are exactly what the name says: sports that I can take a really good nap during because they put you right to sleep.
Come the end of August though, college sports will be full speed ahead again as volleyball starts
at the end of this month and football starts at the beginning of September. We also have the NFL starting in September, then the NBA and NHL starting later in the fall along with NCAA basketball as well.
Husker Volleyball, yet again, has a lot of hype around it. This is nothing new for them and they are used to high pressure being one of the top teams in the nation for 10+ years at this point. This year brings a lot of new though. There’s a new B1G Tournament at the end of the regular season which takes out a couple regular season matches at the end of the season. Devaney has also been renovated to fit even more fans than before. 5 for 5 could become a real thing. Husker volleyball doesn’t actually play a home match until September 10th, unlike prior years.
The B1G released their preseason honors list on July 30th and we saw the names that we were all expecting to see already. To start, the Huskers were the #1 team in the preseason poll. They also landed 3 players on the Preseason All-Conference Team: Andi Jackson, Harper Murray, and Bergen Reilly. They were all unanimous selections. Jackson, Murray, and Reilly were also named to the AVCA Player of the Year Watchlist on July 29th.
The Huskers schedule consists of 2 possible exhibition matches, 11 non-conference matches, and 17 regular season B1G matches. The regular season will finish with the B1G Tournament and then, hopefully, a NCAA Tournament birth in December.
Looking at our non-conference schedule this year, compared to other years, I will say I was a little disappointed. Besides the Texas match, our schedule seems to be a little soft as opposed to last years when we started off the year with a bang against teams like Pitt and Stanford in the 1st weekend. While we are playing in some notable locations, it would’ve been nice to see teams like Texas A&M or other strong teams in the non-conference.
Below is their schedule separated into home, away, and neutral matches along with dates, times, and tv info (if applicable). Matches that aren’t aired on TV are usually streamed on B1G+ for an extra fee. All times in CST.
2026 Roster and Potential Starting Lineup
The Seniors
This years senior class is one of the most memorable in many years as the team has kind of revolved around these 4 being in the starting lineup. With the new 5 for 5 rule, we could see them in a Husker uniform again in 2027, but for now this is their last year until they make their decisions known.
Bergen Reilly – Reilly is a 6’1” setter from Sioux Falls, SD and has been the backbone of the Husker offense her past 3 years as a Husker. She has won B1G Setter of the Year and also has been All-B1G First Team all 3 years so far. She was very close to winning AVCA Player of the Year last season, being a finalist, and, instead, won AVCA Setter of the Year.
Laney Choboy – Choboy is a 5’3” DS/Libero from Raleigh, NC and was given the libero jersey for most of the season in 2025. She has been the B1G Defensive Player of the Week once and will look to add more of these to her accomplishments as she hopes to have the libero jersey all year long.
Andi Jackson – Jackson is a 6’3” middle blocker from Brighton, CO. Jackson really stepped up her game in her junior year becoming one of the top players in the country and someone that is always talked about now. She’s been an All-American and All-B1G First Team the last 2 seasons.
Harper Murray – Murray is a 6’2” outside hitter from Ann Arbor, MI and is probably the most notable woman on this Husker roster. Between all of her NIL deals, she is also one of the top players in the country. She made the step up from All-American Third Team her freshman year to First Team her junior year. She will look to add National Player of the Year to her long list of awards.
The Juniors
Olivia Mauch – Mauch is a 5’6” DS/Libero from Bennington, NE. Mauch switched on and off with Choboy last season when it came to wearing the libero jersey. Along with being a exceptional volleyball player, she also has received many honors for her work in the classroom and has shown she is an all-around student athlete. Mauch is also the only junior listed on the roster for the 2026 season.
The Sophomores
Virginia Adriano – Adriano is a 6’5” opposite hitter from Turin, Italy. While she is listed as a sophomore, she was only given 3 years of eligibility because of her age. She was still considered a freshman last season as she earned a spot on the B1G All-Freshman Team.
Campbell Flynn – Flynn is a 6’3” setter from Oakland, MI. Last season, Flynn only played in 28 total sets during the season as Bergen Reilly was the teams starting setter. She will probably expect to see the same as Reilly will most likely be the starter again.
Teraya Sigler – Sigler is a 6’3” outside hitter from Scottsdale, AZ. Last season, she primarily played in the back row as Taylor Landfair and Murray held the two outside positions. She was also dealing with a lingering injury as well. She still had a very good season in this limited role and also looked very solid in the spring matches.
Manaia Ogbechie – Ogbechie is a 6’3” middle blocker from Santa Rosa Valley, CA. Like Campbell Fynn, Ogbechie also had a limited role last season, only playing in 27 sets. She seems to be the favorite to take Rebekah Allick’s spot, but the competition is very tough on this roster.
Skyler Pierce – Pierce is a 6’2” outside hitter from Lenexa, KS. While Pierce has been on the roster for 3 seasons now, she redshirted her freshman year and didn’t see a lot of court time last season. The OH position battle has always been a tough one as the Huskers have some of the best in the country. Pierce will look to have a break out year and nab one of those starting spots.
The Freshman
Keri Leimbach – Leimbach is a 5’4” DS/Libero from Lincoln, NE. After redshirting last season, Leimbach will hope to get some quality game time this season. She will most likely take over Maisie Boesiger’s role, from last season, as Choboy and Mauch are both still on the roster.
Kenna Cogill – Cogill is a 6’4” middle blocker from Gilbert, AZ. Cogill also redshirted last season and is in a pretty tough battle right now with Ogbechie, and Keoni Williams for that 2nd middle blocker spot. She really impressed in the spring matches and practices and has a real shot at getting that 2nd, and final spot, as a starting middle.
Keoni Williams – Williams is a 6’4” middle blocker from Fort Worth, TX. She got her first glimpse at college volleyball in the spring and will make her case for a starting spot in fall camp. She might have a harder shot at making that lineup since she has less experience, but she definitely has the talent to do so.
Ryan Hunter – Hunter is a 6’2” opposite hitter from Charlotte, NC and is coming off her redshirt season as a Husker. After continuing to nurse her ACL repair in her freshman season, she will compete with Adriano for the starting spot in the 2026 season.
Jayden Robinson – Robinson is a 6’3” outside hitter from Missouri City, TX and adds her name to an already full outside hitter room. Robinson average 5.0 kills per set with a .381 hitting percentage in high school. She was the No. 10 overall prospect by PrepVolleyball and No. 12 by PrepDig.
Gabby DiVita – DiVita is a 6’1” outside hitter from Grosse Pointe Farms, MI. DiVita rounds out the freshman class and brings a big arm to it too. She apart of Club Legacy in Michigan, which is the same club Murray and Flynn came from. She will make a real run at that starting lineup in her freshman season.
My Starting Lineup Prediction
After watching the spring matches and seeing how the team works together, I have taken a stab at who we might see as our starters come August 27th.
Setter: Bergen Reilly
Opposite Hitter: Virginia Adriano
DS/Libero: Olivia Mauch: DS, Laney Choboy: Libero
Middle Blockers: Andi Jackson and Manaia Ogbechie
Outside Hitters: Harper Murray and Teraya Sigler with Gabby DiVita subbing in at times
Reilly, Choboy, Jackson, Mauch, and Murray were no brainers as they will continue to play a big role on this team until the day they decide to leave whether that be after this season, for the seniors, or if they will/can take a 5th year.
Adriano wasn’t a slam dunk because Ryan Hunter will definitely work hard to prove herself, but with Adriano’s experience, both NCAA and international, I think she is just stronger than Hunter right now. Ogbechie will get that 2nd spot because it seemed like she was being groomed into being moved into that spot when Allick left. While Cogill has looked very good, Ogbechie played on on the U21 Pan American Cup team this summer while Cogill didn’t get the nod to do so.
The outside hitter room is a hard one to figure out after Harper Murray takes her spot. While Sigler, DiVita, Pierce, and Robinson are all very good players and bring different skill sets to the locker room, Sigler will most likely get that 2nd starting spot. Like Ogbechie, she was the one getting those minutes last season while Pierce wasn’t. DiVita has a good chance to be a sub-in as she has been looking really good. Unfortunately, I think Skyler Pierce may be spending the majority of this season on the bench again which really sucks because she is an amazing player.
The Huskers’ season will, unofficially, get underway on August 27th in Dallas, Texas at the Spikes Under the Lights. The winning team will win NIL money as these matches are exhibition matches. The official season will start in Las Vegas, Nevada against UNLV on August 29th.
