When former Nebraska assistant Craig Skinner took over as Kentucky volleyball coach, the Wildcats weren't very good.
Kentucky hadn't had a winning season in five years and hadn't been to the NCAA Tournament since 1993.
That changed in a hurry.
Skinner joined the program in December of 2004. The Wildcats went 17-12 the next year and qualified for the NCAA Tournament.
Kentucky improved to 19-12 and won a first-round NCAA Tournament game in 2006. In 2007, Skinner guided the Wildcats to a 22-10 record and the school's third straight NCAA Tournament appearance.
"It was just changing the culture and the losing mentality and getting players to believing in themselves and believing in each other," Skinner said.
And of course upgrading the talent including former Grand Island Senior High standout Ann Armes and former Lincoln Northeast and Husker player Brooke Bartek.
"We've recruited talented players," Skinner said. "Talented players make good coaches.
"We only have one player on the roster we didn't recruit. I think overall the talent base in the program has gone up significantly in three years. That's had a big impact not only on the level of play in matches but the level of play in practices too."
Skinner's Wildcats, 4-0 in the spring exhibition season so far, will be on display when they face Nebraska at 7 p.m. Saturday at the NU Coliseum in an exhibition match.
"I think it's going to be really competitive," Nebraska coach John Cook said. "They're good. They're going to have pretty much their whole team back where we've gone through a complete transition.
"I think it will be a very competitive match. It will be a reunion to get him back here."
Cook wants the Husker players to get another chance to play at the Coliseum.
"Our goal is to create a big match for our players, especially our young players, because they get more nervous playing in the Coliseum than they do somewhere else," Cook said. "We'd like them to be able to experience that before next fall."
Skinner was an assistant under Cook for three years at Wiscosin and five at Nebraska.
"It was a phenomenal experience," Skinner said. "John and I had a great relationship for years, not only at Nebraska but at Wisconsin. I learned a lot about coaching and winning and building a program that's had a big impact on our success at Kentucky."
Skinner said the Wildcats will certainly benefit from playing at the Coliseum, both because of the competition and the environment.
"I think it will be a very competitive match and a great volleyball environment," Skinner said. "One reason we want to come out is to see a successful program like Nebraska has and the environment they play in.
"I think all female athletes deserve to play in such an environment. It's such a great sport and Nebraska has taken the lead in promoting it throughout the country."
Armes, who was captain of The Independent's All-Heartland Super Squad as a senior, certainly knows about the atmosphere at Nebraska. So does Bartek.
Armes will be playing Saturday night, but Bartek won't. She had surgery on Wednesday to repair a torn labrum muscle in her shoulder.
Bartek, who grew up in Grand Island before moving to Lincoln before her freshman year of high school, was fourth on the team last year with 291 kills (2.51 per game). She played a key role in several matches for the Wildcats, including 18 kills in a win over LSU, 16 against Tennessee and Georgia and 15 against Northern Iowa.
"She had some very big matches for us," Skinner said. "She was a reason why we won several of those matches. She has a presence at the net and hits the ball very hard."
The Wildcats will be bringing in another player with Nebraska ties in the fall when Becky Pavan, the younger sister of four-time Husker first-team All-American Sarah Pavan, joins the program.
Skinner said Becky Pavan is a versatile player who can play either middle blocker or outside hitter.
"That's the difference between her and Sarah," Skinner said. "Sarah was a right side and was exceptional at that. Becky probably has the ability to do lots of different things on the court which in my opinion is a strength."
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