Michigan State volleyball falls out of the rankings

Michigan State volleyball is out of the AVCA Division I Coaches Poll. The Spartans lost twice at home at the Breslin Center, first to a ranked Indiana team, then to top-ranked Nebraska. That 0-2 stretch erased them from the rankings entirely in the Week 10 poll released Monday. Read more: Michigan State volleyball falls out of the rankings

No. 19 Indiana beat No. 25 Michigan State 3-2 at Breslin Center on Friday, completing a reverse sweep, a match won after losing the first two sets. Indiana dropped the first two sets 19-25 and 15-25, then closed it out 25-15, 25-19 and 15-7. Indiana hit .277 as a team to Michigan State's .174, the gap that fueled that finish.

Avry Tatum led Indiana with 15 kills on .303 hitting and six blocks, and Jaidyn Jager added 14 kills. Teodora Krickovic ran the comeback with 44 assists, eight aces and nine digs, and Audrey Jackson also added 16 digs. Michigan State's Madi Andrews had a career-high five aces to go with 12 kills. But the loss still dropped the Spartans to 17-4 overall and 7-4 in the Big Ten.

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Nebraska finishes the weekend sweep

Nebraska finished the job a day later, also at Breslin Center, beating Michigan State 3-1 after dropping the opener 25-21. The Huskers hit .340 as a team and held the Spartans to .093 for the match. That gap explains the 25-17 and 25-12 scores in the final two sets.

Andi Jackson led Nebraska with 12 kills on .360 hitting. Manaia Ogbechie also added 11 kills without an error, for a .786 mark and a team-high eight blocks.

That loss put Michigan State at 17-5 overall and 7-5 in the Big Ten. Nebraska, meanwhile, moved to 23-0 overall and 12-0 in the Big Ten.

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Indiana's own split weekend

Indiana's weekend wasn't clean either. The Hoosiers lost to an unranked Michigan team 3-1 the very next day. Indiana fell 23-25 and 22-25, won the third set 25-22, then dropped the fourth 19-25. That loss dropped Indiana to 6-6 in the Big Ten, 11th in the conference standings.

Jessica Toomer reported that Monday's AVCA poll reflected all three results. Michigan State volleyball dropped out of the rankings entirely. Colorado stepped into the exact spot the Spartans had vacated at No. 25.

Indiana's own win over a ranked opponent wasn't enough to hold its spot, either. The Hoosiers slid two places, from No. 19 to a tie with Vanderbilt at No. 21.

Nebraska stayed unanimous at No. 1, taking all 63 first-place votes. Pitt held at No. 2, with Louisville, Florida and SMU rounding out the top five. One Big Ten weekend cost two ranked teams ground, but only one of them disappeared from the poll completely. Nebraska's next game is at No. 12 Oregon, its toughest test yet at 23-0.