Pavan led the Huskers (8-1, 3-0 Big 12) with a match-high 16 kills and hit .478 while adding six blocks, while Saleaumua joined the freshman in double figures with 12 kills, eight digs and a .360 hitting percentage, as the Huskers outhit Colorado, .323-.092 in recording its 13th straight win over the Buffaloes. With the win, Nebraska also improved to 3-0 against ranked opponents.

In addition to the strong performance from its outside attackers, Melissa Elmer also shined for NU in the win with eight kills and matched a season high with eight blocks. Elmer moved into sole possession of 10th place on NU’s career block assist list. Elmer and freshman Tracy Stalls, who had seven blocks and four kills, helped the Huskers, who leads the nation in blocking at 3.78 per game, control the nets by a 16-8 margin.

Pavan carried the Huskers in game one with eight kills and hitting .545 in the Huskers’ 30-25 win. The Huskers trailed early, but took control with a 9-2 run to build a 16-11 advantage, as Pavan had three kills in the spurt. The Huskers held Colorado to .030 hitting, while hitting .314.

Nebraska got out of the gate quickly in game two, jumping out to a 9-2 advantage. The Buffaloes closed to within 13-9 before Tracy Stalls keyed a 5-1 Husker spurt with a pair of kills and a service ace to put the Huskers up 18-10. Colorado continued to whittle away at the NU lead, getting to within 25-21 after a service ace by Ashley Nu’u, but could not get closer, as Saleaumua ripped two straight kills before the Huskers took game two by a score of 30-25. Saleaumua had six kills on seven swings in game two, as the Huskers outhit CU, .344-.125, and outblocked the Buffs, 8-2, in the game.

The Huskers trailed 15-12 before getting a spark off the bench from senior Ally Rebholz, who had a kill and a block to help Nebraska score four quick points and take a 16-15 lead. CU tied the match at 16-all, but then Stalls’ strong serving helped the Huskers score the next five points and force Colorado into calling a timeout. CU whittled the lead to 24-21, but the Huskers closed strong to clinch a 30-23 win Rebholz had three kills and a pair of blocks in the finale for Nebraska.

Allie Griffin led CU (6-4, 1-2 Big 12) with 13 kills, but the Buffaloes were held to under .100 hitting in two of the three games.

Notes: Nebraska has won 13 straight matches against Colorado, dating back to 1998... Elmer, who moved into 10th place on NU's career blocking chart, passing Carla Baker, who had 338 block assists from 1986-89...McCormick, who had a match-high 14 digs, has had at least 10 digs in each of Nebraska's last six matches, dating back to Sept. 10.

Source: University of Nebraska Athletic Dept.