Louisville volleyball head coach Dani Busboom Kelly instilled a motto amongst her players heading into the 2022 season: "We won't flinch."
That was the case Thursday afternoon when the Cardinals pulled off their sixth consecutive sweep to move one win away from back-to-back Final Four appearances.
The No. 2 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, U of L (29-2) made quick work of No. 4-seeded Baylor in a Sweet Sixteen matchup at the KFC Yum! Center. The Cardinals weathered a late rally from the Bears (25-7) to win the first set 25-23, and that momentum carried over into comfortable victories in the second (25-16) and third (25-17) sets.
"It was just fun that we had so many different people contribute, and that's always out goal: To be a very balanced team," Busboom Kelly said. "I thought there were different points when different players took over that match."
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Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year Claire Chaussee and junior outside hitter Anna DeBeer led Louisville with 11 kills apiece, while redshirt senior Aiko Jones added eight of her own. Chaussee and sophom*ore libero Elena Scott also came up big during momentum-shifting rallies with 12 and 14 digs, respectively.
The Cardinals, who rank third in the country with 3.01 blocks per set, owned the front line against Baylor, blocking 10 balls to the Bears' three. It was a group effort spearheaded by Phekran Kong, ACC Defensive Player of the Year Amaya Tillman and ACC Setter of the Year Raquel Lazaro, who tallied more blocks individually than their opponents had collectively.
"That's something we're really competent in," Busboom Kelly said. "Once we can start blocking balls, I think it just gives everything else more confidence."
Baylor head coach Ryan McGuyre commended Louisville for throwing his team off its game. Reflecting on the season-ending loss, he said: "I'm not sure if I felt like we were ever in control."
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"They played a great match and definitely were the steadiest from start to finish," McGuyre said of the Cardinals, whose streak of six consecutive sweeps dates back to Nov. 13.
U of L had a long wait before taking the court Thursday after the first of the two regional semifinals at the Yum! Center, a thrilling duel between No. 3 Oregon and No. 2 Nebraska, ran longer than three hours. Despite the extra downtime, Busboom Kelly's team got off to a hot start, building an 8-3 lead and not flinching when Baylor's Mallory Talbert notched a kill and an ace to bring the Bears within striking distance, 24-23, at set point.
"I think our mentality was just not getting too far ahead of ourselves," said DeBeer, an Assumption grad who returned to the court Nov. 4 after suffering a lower leg injury earlier in the season. "The match that was before us was really exciting, and it's fun to watch ... but at the same time, we had to stay mentally focused and mature, knowing that we have to take care of business."
What's next
With Thursday's win, Louisville moves to the Elite Eight and will face Oregon at 4 p.m. Saturday back at the KFC Yum! Center.
"Oregon has two great outside hitters that can pass and can hit from any place on the court, so they are very talented. Very, very talented," Busboom Kelly said. "I feel like it is really going to be a battle. They are going to be really hard to slow down. I don’t really know where we can expose them. I think they are really balanced and I know we are very, very balanced. I just hope that we'll expose them. It will be a fun match, and their speed is ahuge challenge. That's why we prepped for them a bit earlier in the week, because that style is differentfrom what we normally see.”
The Ducks (26-5) outlasted Nebraska (26-6), Busboom Kelly's alma mater, in a five-set marathon Thursday to advance to their first regional final since 2018.
"I feel like I need to represent now that Nebraska got knocked out," Busboom Kelly said. "I would hope that Nebraska fans would be cheering for us."
Punching a ticket to a second consecutive Final Four would be massive for Busboom Kelly and the Cardinals, who had a 32-match winning streak snapped by Wisconsin in last year's national semifinal round. Having not conceded a set in six consecutive matches, Chaussee was confident after Thursday's match that she and her teammates will be moving on to Omaha, Nebraska.
"Knowing that we've been there before helps," Chaussee said. "We've been in these situations; we trust each other; our staff is doing everything they can before the games to prep us well.
"It's gonna be really exciting if we win — when we win — on Saturday to get back to the Final Four."
Reach recruiting and trending sports reporter Brooks Holton at bholton@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter at @brooksHolton.
