Setter enrolls at NU
We can assume Jessica Yanz simply wanted a chance to compete for a starting job. And without Rachel Holloway, we know the Nebraska volleyball team was in need of a setter.
As matchmaking goes, it seemed like a can’t-miss proposition.
Barely a month after her Penn State team won the national championship, Yanz enrolled at Nebraska on Tuesday. It’s yet to be determined if Yanz, a sophomore from Bolingbrook, Ill., will be eligible to play this spring or to compete with another transfer — former Utah starter Sydney Anderson — for a starting spot this fall.
“We are happy that she wants to be a part of Nebraska volleyball,” said NU head coach John Cook, confirming a move that had been rumored for several days. “She is a great kid who is looking for an opportunity to compete.”
Yanz could not be immediately reached for comment.
Spring semester classes at Nebraska began last week, when there were indications that Yanz was seeking a release from her Penn State scholarship.
By Tuesday afternoon, Yanz’s name was gone from the roster posted on Penn State's official Web site. As a Nittany Lion, Yanz played sparingly behind sophomore classmate Alisha Glass, seeing action in 17 matches as a freshman and 18 this season.
Ironically, Yanz’s only starts in 2007 came on the heels of Penn State’s loss to Nebraska at Qwest Center Omaha. Against NU, Yanz replaced Glass midway through the second game and distributed 22 assists in a three-game sweep by the Huskers.
Yanz, who started Penn State’s next three matches, was her state’s player of the year in high school and a “Fab 50” selection by Volleyball Magazine in 2006.
At times, Yanz and Glass were utilized in a two-setter system, something that would be a possibility at Nebraska this fall, and potentially this spring, assuming Yanz is eligible. Maggie Griffin, who like Yanz is a product of the Chicago-area Sports Performance Volleyball Club, has said that she would help out as needed in the exhibition season, even though she just completed her senior year.
Nebraska was temporarily left without a setter when Holloway, an All-American in both her freshman and sophomore seasons, announced on Jan. 8 that she was giving up her final two years of eligibility.
Holloway is attending Alabama. Anderson, meanwhile, is working to complete her associate’s degree at a Utah junior college and likely won’t join the Huskers until August.
Reach Todd Henrichs at 473-7320 or thenrichs@journalstar.com.
As matchmaking goes, it seemed like a can’t-miss proposition.
Barely a month after her Penn State team won the national championship, Yanz enrolled at Nebraska on Tuesday. It’s yet to be determined if Yanz, a sophomore from Bolingbrook, Ill., will be eligible to play this spring or to compete with another transfer — former Utah starter Sydney Anderson — for a starting spot this fall.
“We are happy that she wants to be a part of Nebraska volleyball,” said NU head coach John Cook, confirming a move that had been rumored for several days. “She is a great kid who is looking for an opportunity to compete.”
Yanz could not be immediately reached for comment.
Spring semester classes at Nebraska began last week, when there were indications that Yanz was seeking a release from her Penn State scholarship.
By Tuesday afternoon, Yanz’s name was gone from the roster posted on Penn State's official Web site. As a Nittany Lion, Yanz played sparingly behind sophomore classmate Alisha Glass, seeing action in 17 matches as a freshman and 18 this season.
Ironically, Yanz’s only starts in 2007 came on the heels of Penn State’s loss to Nebraska at Qwest Center Omaha. Against NU, Yanz replaced Glass midway through the second game and distributed 22 assists in a three-game sweep by the Huskers.
Yanz, who started Penn State’s next three matches, was her state’s player of the year in high school and a “Fab 50” selection by Volleyball Magazine in 2006.
At times, Yanz and Glass were utilized in a two-setter system, something that would be a possibility at Nebraska this fall, and potentially this spring, assuming Yanz is eligible. Maggie Griffin, who like Yanz is a product of the Chicago-area Sports Performance Volleyball Club, has said that she would help out as needed in the exhibition season, even though she just completed her senior year.
Nebraska was temporarily left without a setter when Holloway, an All-American in both her freshman and sophomore seasons, announced on Jan. 8 that she was giving up her final two years of eligibility.
Holloway is attending Alabama. Anderson, meanwhile, is working to complete her associate’s degree at a Utah junior college and likely won’t join the Huskers until August.
Reach Todd Henrichs at 473-7320 or thenrichs@journalstar.com.
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