Nebraska Volleyball's Harper Murray reveals her feelings after losing NCAA Finals during freshman year

Harper Murray recounted her emotions following a tough defeat to Texas in the 2023 NCAA Finals. She had been a standout performer in her freshman year, finishing second on the team with 3.23 kills per set.

Murray debuted against Utah State on August 25 and scored kills as the Huskers won 3-0. Nebraska went undefeated on their road to the finals, with Murray recording an impressive 384 kills and 247 difs.

However, the Huskers were blown out by Texas 3-0, and Murray only managed nine kills and four digs. She was understandably upset, but in a recent interview with Triple Crown Sports, the 19-year-old said she didn't want to show it to her teammates and refused to cry.

"I'm not a cryer, so I was really mad. I was angry, and I refused to cry. I didn't wanna show anyone I was upset with myself or the team," Harper Murray said.

"We were in the locker room, and I was just standing there, and my coach looked at me and said..he was like, Harper, look at me. I was like, No.. I was like, if I'm gonna look at you, I'm gonna cry. So he ended up forcing me to look at him, so I did, and started crying," she added.

The outside hitter bounced back last year and racked up 411 kills, the highest by anyone on the team. However, Nebraska's run to the national title was cut short by Penn State in the semifinals.

Huskers have since bid farewell to senior players Lexi Rodriguez and Merritt Beason and longtime head coach John Cook, who announced his retirement last month.

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We can win one national title for John Cook: Harper Murray on her approach for the 2025 season

Division I Women's Volleyball Semifinals - Harper Murray in action (Source: Getty)

While there's still plenty of time before the 2025 Volleyball season starts, Harper Murray recently made it clear that they were eyeing the national title and were more driven toward the cause after John Cook's retirement. The 19-year-old said they wanted to win the trophy for Cook, for new head coach Dani Busboom-Kelly, and all the little girls in Nebraska.

“A lot of us wanted to win a national championship with coach. But I think the way that we can reframe that in our head is now we can win one for him," Harper Murray said.

"And I think that's the best way to approach this year. And you know, we can win one for coach. We can win one for Dani. We can win one for all the little girls that look up to us in Nebraska and around the country," she added.

Murray has yet to win a national championship with the Huskers, who won four in Cook's 25-year tenure.