On its opening night at the Runza/AVCA Classic in Omaha, the Nebraska volleyball team tried on the hype and found it fit like a glove.

The No. 2 Huskers smashed No. 14 Kentucky Saturday 25-9, 25-14, 25-20 in front of 5,863 fans at the Qwest Center, unveiling its 6-2 setter system and steamrolling the Wildcats with lightning-quick attacks from left-side hitter Lindsey Licht. who finished with 14 kills on just 20 attempts. Outside hitter Hannah Werth - picking up where she left off at the end of last year, was excellent as well, with 11 kills on 21 attempts.

“It was fun, everybody was out there working hard," Licht said. "We all feed off of each other’s energy so when we’re out there playing it’s a great time, it’s fun.”

Setters Sydney Anderson and Lauren Cook combined for 33 assists. Kayla Banwarth pitched in six assists and 20 digs, many of which kept alive Husker rallies and thwarted some of UK's best scoring chances.

"That is something we’ve been talking about all year, trying to suffocate teams, keep the pressure on them with our serving and defense and of course, siding out," head coach John Cook said.

Cook said the Wildcats looked tenative, and they did, hitting -.10 for the night. Some of UK's best attacks were dug by Banwarth. Nebraska hit just .267 - low for such a lopsided win - but had nine team blocks.

Sunday: A match vs. No. 13 Florida, which gutted out a tough four-set win over No. 9 Iowa State.

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