Nebraska Soccer- A Point Against No. 8, and Alabama Already Here
Football is still in camp. Volleyball is a week from its first real match. Soccer is already playing ranked teams at Barbara Hibner Stadium.
Nebraska is 1-0-2 after Thursday’s 1-1 draw with No. 8 Notre Dame. Nathalie Lewis scored in the 33rd minute off a rebound. The Irish equalized in the 72nd. The Huskers held on. That is a result that travels.
Sunday they host No. 18 Alabama.
How they got here
The non-conference slate was built to hurt. John Walker — in his 33rd season — scheduled it that way on purpose.
Aug. 5: at Colorado State — 1-3 loss
Aug. 12: at Louisville — 3-1 win
Aug. 16: South Dakota — 1-1
Aug. 20: No. 8 Notre Dame — 1-1
Two draws at home against a mid-major and a top-10 ACC side, plus a road win at Louisville, is a respectable start. It is not a finished product. Walker has talked all preseason about a high-press, attacking identity. Against Notre Dame, the Huskers took the lead and then had to survive. That is the next test: turning one-goal leads into 90-minute results.
Lewis, and the local core
Lewis is the new piece. The senior forward from Queen Creek, Arizona, arrived to give Nebraska a finisher. She was in the right spot when the rebound dropped Thursday. That is exactly why she is here.
Around her is the thing this program has always sold: Nebraska kids. Ava Makovicka (Gretna), Karli Williams (Gretna East), Ella Guyott (Papillion-La Vista), Reese Borer (Norris), Emma Prososki (Marian), Kayma Carpenter (Lincoln East). Walker has said for years that Big Ten titles here are built on homegrown players. The 2026 roster still looks like that, with Canadian and transfer additions mixed in.
Veterans Borer, Ella Rudney, and Carpenter are the ones Walker pointed to before the season as the tone-setters. Goalkeeper Avery Gillahan is the senior in net. If this team is going to steal points from ranked sides, that group has to stay organized after they score.
What Sunday means
Alabama is the second ranked visitor in four days. Hibner will be loud again. A win would make the Notre Dame draw look like a statement instead of a near-miss. Another draw would still be a useful point. A loss would not sink the season — Big Ten play does not start until Sept. 10 against Indiana — but it would confirm the finishing problem.
Then Omaha (Aug. 27) and a trip to Kansas State (Aug. 30) close the non-conference. After that: Indiana, Iowa, Washington, Michigan State, Michigan. The league is not going to get easier.
The story for Husker Headlines
Soccer is the sport on campus that is actually playing meaningful games this week. The football team is still installing. Volleyball is still polishing. Walker’s group just took a point off a top-10 team and has another ranked opponent in 48 hours.
That is the hook: a veteran program, a new scorer, a brutal August, and a chance to prove the press is more than a talking point before the Big Ten schedule arrives.