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The Banquet wasn't the same last night without Baylor emceeing things. Diane Mendenhall did a fine job filling in while JB was off doing Dad things, but as has been the case with the past several banquets, it was a bit disappointing not seeing some of the Seniors last night. Morgan and Kelsey were (completely not shockingly) already overseas playing pro ball, so neither were there. It would have been nice to send them off with one last rousing round of applause, but I'm certain they're getting plenty of that in Europe (Morgan) and Puerto Rico (Kelsey). Hayley was there, and it would appear that her volleyball career is over for good. Which is not surprising with her injury, but it was something she loved and was so passionate about and it's a bit melancholy that she's done-done. You never want to see these girls' playing days end, you know? It's not all "ends" for Hayley, though. In her Senior Speech she announced that she was moving on in her studies after gaining acceptance into the UNMC program she had been hoping for - based on a contact she developed during rehab, providing a tremendous silver lining to an otherwise heartbreaking career-ending injury. Mendenhall talked at length about this season's trials and tribulations, and as she listed off the obstacles the 2013 Nebraska team overcame, it became more and more obvious that voting Russ Rose as the Big Ten Coach of the Year was an utter joke. To be sure, Penn State was a juggernaut this year and Rose crafted that team, but Cook took a team with ten new faces, eight of them true Freshmen, into a new arena, playing against the toughest conference in the history of this sport, and turned that into the #2 team in the Big Ten. I guess I kinda forgot, watching the wins pile up, how badly the deck was stacked against Cook and this team heading into this season. Rose got that award because he won the toughest conference in Women's Volleyball - but his was not the best coaching job, not even close. I'd have to bug Mendenhall to get a rundown of all the hurdles Cook overcame this year because I've forgotten them as she rattled them all off, but put it this way - it took over a minute of speaking to list them all. Go find an article online and start reading it out loud and time yourself. You get through a ton of material in 60 seconds. That's how much Mendenhall had to discuss. Turning that raw pile of girls (albeit talented girls) into a near-champion team in what cannot be overstated as the strongest volleyball conference in the history of this sport is nothing short of amazing. Cooker got robbed of that award, no doubt about it. At one point the Big Ten had seven teams ranked in the top 15 in the nation. Two Big Ten teams made it to the Finals. Wisconsin, the runner-up, was a team Nebraska beat this year. Twice. Anyway, the stage is set for this year, and for the year after that. This is a team that has a look, that very intense look from deep inside the eye, that says they won't be having a Sophomore Slump next year. Lots of things can happen between now and December, but as good as this team was this year, they could be even better next year - and that's despite losing the Big Ten Player of the Year. They played several of the pump-up videos the girls watched throughout the year during the dinner. I'd like to find some of those on youtube if I can and post them here. They're just awesome work. Anyway. That's a bow on the 2013 season. The girls got to rest for all of like 15 days before sand season started, and they're already full-bore into preseason training for that. Can't wait for 2014 to start. This is going to be a hell of a fun team to watch. Look out, Big Ten. Here come the Huskers.