The UNO volleyball team (2-14) returns to action Sept. 30-Oct. 1, traveling to Topeka, Kan., for the Washburn Lady Blues Classic. On Friday, the Mavs face Tarleton State (9:30 a.m.) and Abilene Christian (2 p.m.), followed by matches on Saturday against Dallas Baptist (9 a.m.) and Central Oklahoma (3 p.m.). Live stats will be available through OMavs.com.

Nebraska Omaha last took the court on Sept. 27, hosting South Dakota at Sapp Fieldhouse for the Mavs' last home match of the season. Junior Natalie Ebke finished with nine kills and 12 digs, while senior setter Emily Myers had 26 assists for the night and led the Mavericks at the net with four blocks. The crowd of 1,208 fans was UNO's second-largest of the season, following last week's attendance of 2,429 against UMKC, which was the second-biggest in school history.

UNO, which is in its first year as a reclassifying Division I institution, is guided by Head Coach Rose Shires, who is in her 22nd year at the helm of the Maverick program. In 2010, UNO finished with a record of 17-15 and had two All-MIAA honorees in third-team pick Kayla Uhing and honorable mention selection Ebke. Uhing has since rejoined the Mavericks as a student assistant in 2011, and Ebke is one of 10 returning letterwinners this year.

OMAHA, – The UNO volleyball team suffered a 3-0 loss at the hands of future Summit League opponent South Dakota Tuesday night, falling 23-25, 20-25, 14-25 at Sapp Fieldhouse. Nebraska Omaha, in its first year as a Division I team, is now 2-14 on the year, while USD improves to 8-7.

The match also marked Senior Night and the Mavericks’ final home appearance of the 2011 season. Senior setter Emily Myers had 26 assists for the night and led the Mavs at the net with four blocks. Senior middle blocker Brittany Hanssen notched three blocks – including two solo stops – and senior libero Angie Reicks totaled 11 digs. Reicks, who is second all-time in career blocks, now has 1,727 in four years and is just 56 away from breaking the school record.

Junior outside hitter Natalie Ebke narrowly missed a double-double, finishing with nine kills and 12 digs. Junior middle blocker Lizzy Mach and sophomore outside hitter Abby Sorensen notched six kills apiece, and Mach added three blocks.

The UNO volleyball team (2-13) returns to action on Tuesday, Sept. 27, hosting South Dakota in the Mavs' final home contest of the season. The match is slated for a 7 p.m. start at Sapp Fieldhouse, and seniors Brittany Hanssen, Emily Myers and Angie Reicks will be honored with pre-game Senior Night festivities. The first 1,000 fans with an official UNO volleyball postcard or a valid MavCard will receive a free t-shirt. Live stats and live video will be available through OMavs.com.

Nebraska Omaha last took the court at North Dakota on Sept. 23, falling 3-1 in Grand Forks, N.D. Junior outside hitter Natalie Ebke nabbed her team-leading eighth double-double with 14 kills and 13 digs, while senior setter Emily Myers also earned her fifth double-double with 32 assists and 10 digs. UNO went 0-3 in a challenging week with three Division I matches in four days, also falling 3-0 at Wichita State and 3-2 against UMKC.

The Mavs' last home match was last Wednesday against a future Summit League foe in the visiting Kangaroos, and UNO fans were out in full force. A crowd of 2,429 fans came out to support the Mavericks, creating the second-largest attendance mark in school history.

OMAHA - The UNO volleyball team got another taste of Summit League competition Wednesday night, narrowly falling 3-2 to UMKC in front of a season-high crowd of 2,429 fans at Sapp Fieldhouse. With the 25-19, 20-25, 27-25, 25-21, 10-15 loss, the Mavericks, who are in their first year of reclassifying to Division I, drop to 2-12 on the year, while the Kangaroos improve to 6-7.

“I was very pleased with our team's performance tonight,” Head Coach Rose Shires said. “We played well enough to win, but we just need to execute on clutch plays. We just ran out of gas in that fifth set.

“We had a tremendous crowd at Sapp Fieldhouse tonight, and it was gratifying to see so many fans coming out to support us.”

WICHITA, Kan. – The UNO volleyball team suffered a sweep at the hands of Wichita State on Tuesday night, falling 20-25, 15-25, 17-25 at Koch Arena. With the loss, the Mavericks drop to 2-11 on the year, while WSU improves to 8-4.

Senior middle blocker Brittany Hanssen and junior outside hitter Natalie Ebke led Nebraska Omaha with seven kills apiece, with Hanssen hitting .308 for the night. Sophomore outside hitter Abby Sorensen chipped in six kills of her own, and Ebke and senior libero Angie Reicks had 11 digs each. Sophomore right side hitter Ali Jansen paced the Mavs at the net, totaling a match-leading three blocks.

The Shockers were topped by eight kills from Camri Zwiesler and another seven from Elizabeth Field, who hit at a .375 clip. Setter Mary Elizabeth Hooper put up 25 set assists to help WSU to a .298 team attacking performance, while Wichita State simultaneously held the Mavs to a .000 hitting percentage.

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When UNO last appeared in competition, Abby Sorensen had a breakthrough weekend.

The sophomore outside hitter from Clay Center, Neb., set career highs in kills twice in a three-match stretch at the Premier Volleyball Classic in Denver, with 19 in a five-set win over California Baptist and 26 in a four-set loss to Colorado-Colorado Springs.

After an open week, the UNO volleyball team (2-10) returns to action with three Division I matches over four days, facing Wichita State, UMKC and North Dakota. On Tuesday, Sept. 20, the Mavericks travel to WSU for a 7 p.m. contest with the Shockers at Koch Arena. The following night, UNO comes home to Sapp Fieldhouse to host UMKC at 6:30 p.m. The Mavs hit the road for their final match of the week at North Dakota on Friday, Sept. 23 at 7 p.m. at the Sioux Center.

Nebraska Omaha last took the court at the Colorado Premier Challenge, Sept. 9-10, in Denver, Colo. The Mavs went 1-3 for the weekend, posting a 3-2 win over Cal Baptist while dropping matches to Seattle Pacific (3-0), Regis (3-2) and UC-Colorado Springs (3-1). Sophomore outside hitter Abby Sorensen shined during the tournament, averaging 3.73 kills per set, with a standout 26-kill performance against UCCS. The outing marked a career high for Sorensen, which smashed her previous best of 19 kills, set against Cal Baptist the night before.

ENVER, Colo. – The UNO volleyball team dropped its last two matches of the Colorado Premier Challenge on Saturday, falling 3-2 to Regis (16-25, 25-22, 19-25, 25-23, 13-15) and 3-1 to UC-Colorado Springs (21-25, 25-17, 26-28, 20-25). The Mavericks are now 2-10 on the year.

Sophomore outside hitter Abby Sorensen shined for the Mavs, totaling a combined 37 kills over the two matches. Sorensen had 26 kills in the UCCS match alone, which smashed her previous career high of 19 set against Cal Baptist on Friday in Denver.

MATCH 1 – REGIS 3, UNO 2
Junior outside hitter Natalie Ebke earned her fifth double-double of the season with a career-high-tying 19 kills and 22 digs. Abby Sorensen (11) and junior middle blocker Lizzy Mach (10) also reached double figures in kills and tallied two blocks apiece. Senior libero Angie Reicks put up 25 digs, marking her third match this season with 25 or more, and sophomore defensive specialist Amy Roberts chipped in 13 digs of her own. At the net, senior middle blocker Brittany Hanssen had a team-leading four blocks.

The UNO volleyball team (1-7) hits the road this weekend, traveling to the Colorado Premier Challenge in Denver, Colo., co-hosted by Regis and Metro State. On Friday, Sept. 9, the Mavericks face Seattle Pacific at Noon and Cal Baptist at 3:30 p.m. at the Regis Fieldhouse (1,800). Saturday’s schedule and opponents will be determined by Friday’s results. Live stats for all matches will be linked through OMavs.com.

Last weekend, the Mavericks went 1-3 at the annual UNO Showcase at Sapp Fieldhouse. After falling 3-1 to Winona State in the opening game, Nebraska Omaha earned its first victory of the season in a hard-fought 3-2 tilt with Minnesota State Moorhead. On Sept. 3, the Mavs dropped a pair of matches to Northern State (3-1) and nationally-ranked Nebraska-Kearney (3-2). Three UNO players finished with double-figure kills against the Lopers -- junior outside hitters Natalie Ebke (12) and Sydney Fleege (12) and sophomore outside hitter Abby Sorensen (10). Ebke grabbed her third double-double of the year with 11 digs, while Sorensen earned the first double-double of her career along with 12 digs. Fleege’s mark off the bench was a career high.

UNO also had a mid-week match-up at South Dakota State, where the Mavs were swept 3-0 by the Jackrabbits. Senior libero Angie Reicks had 21 digs on the night, which moved her up to third all-time in school history for career digs.

BROOKINGS, S.D. – The UNO volleyball team faced its first Summit League foe in a non-conference match on Tuesday night, falling 3-0 (26-24, 25-13, 25-16) at South Dakota State in front of 1,021 fans at Frost Arena. With the loss the Mavericks drop to 1-7 on the year, while SDSU improves to 6-2.

Middle blockers Lizzy Mach and Brittany Hanssen, along with junior outside hitter Natalie Ebke, led the Mavs with seven kills apiece. Mach, a junior from Wahoo, Neb., hit .429 for the night with just one attack error, while Hanssen finished at .222 and chipped in a pair of blocks.

Senior libero Angie Reicks moved up to third all-time in school history for career digs, totaling 21 digs against the Jackrabbits. Reicks now has 1,613 in her career, just ahead of Amy Gradoville (1987-90), who had 1,604.