Qwest Center Tickets

Josh Groban Performs Tonight!

Singer Josh Groban will perform tonight at 7:00 PM at the Qwest Center in Omaha.  Groban is one of the premier classical/pop vocalists presently.  His rich baritone voice has garnard praise from celebrities and fellow singer/songwriters as well.

The show tonight will be in support of his latest disk Awake.  The show should showcase some songs from that album as well as some pop standards and maybe a broadway tune.  Keep your ears open for a duet that Groban has been occasionally playing during this tour with opening act Angelique Kidjo.  The duet has been getting great reviews and has become one of the highlights of his shows.

The show should be great, I will post a review next week!

Josh Groban Performs Friday

The Qwest Center is the place to be this Friday.  The Qwest Center's main stage will feature the world renowned singer Josh Groban and his famous smooth baritone voice.

Groban,26, is fairly new to the music scene.  He started recording in 1997 but did not hit it big until 2000 when he was "discovered" during a Celine Dion rehearsal.  Since then he has released three studio albums and two live discs.

Groban is known not only for his baritone voice but for putting on terrific concerts.  Omaha is on the last leg of his 71 city tour in support of his 2006 album Awake.  Groban likes to perform so much that he has expressed interest in starring in a Broadway show in the future.

John Mellencamp to Perform at Qwest

The Qwest Center just announced that American rocker John Mellencamp will perform on the main stage on November 11.  As reported by Omaha.com, Mellencamp will perform at 7:30 on November 11 in support of his newest disc Freedom's Road and a new album that he is currently recording.

Mellencamp, 55, has released 22 albums in the span of over 30 years.  His hits include "Jack and Diane," "Hurts So Good," and recently "Our Country."  Mellencamp is known for having socially aware lyrics and is a supporter of many progressive political movements.  Mellencamp was one of the headliners on the Vote for Change tour during the 2004 presidential campaign.

Look for more details about the concert in later posts.

Nebraska Wins AVCA Showcase

Not surprisingly, the Nebraska Cornhuskers won the AVCA Showcase this weekend at the Qwest Center in Omaha.  11,076  lucky ticket holders witnessed the final match at the Qwest Center Saturday night.  Nebraska took on the Bruins of UCLA and won 30-23, 22-30, 30-18, 30-21.

Tracy Stalls was the woman to watch this weekend.  She made kills at crucial times for the Huskers and helped AVCA player of the year Sarah Pavan run up the score quickly and efficiently.

The Huskers were expected to win the tournament from the get go.  Not only were the Huskers ranked by the AVCA as the #1 team in their preseason poll but they also got home court advantage by playing in the Qwest Center.  The Qwest Center is not the Huskers home court but is only an hour drive from UNL and most Husker volleyball fans.

UCLA and Nebraska Win in First Round

It was an exciting night at the Qwest Center where the AVCA Showcase was seen by over 15,000 people.  Not surprisingly UCLA and Nebraska both advanced winning their respective matches with Utah and Tennessee.  There was an excitement in the crowd all night but it wasn't until the hometown Huskers took the court that the crowd got rowdy.

UCLA dominated their matches against the Utah Utes early in the night (30-23, 30-21, 30-27).  The Utes could not find a rhythm early on and suffered from that. 

Nebraska showed tonight that they are the team to beat, they took down the Lady Vols of Tennessee in three matches(30-15, 30-19, 30-18).  Christina Houghtelling was fun to watch tonight.  She was returning to the court after missing all of last season to injuries.  She is back and in a big way and will help this Husker team make it to the championship again this year.

Nebraska vs. Tennessee

Yesterday I looked at the match up between UCLA and Utah to take place tomorrow night at the Qwest Center and predicted a narrow victory by the Bruins.  Today I will look at the match between the Nebraska Cornhuskers and the Tennessee Lady Vols.

The Huskers look very good this year.  Last year their team went 34-1and won the national championship.  Stars Sarah Pavan and Tracy Stalls will be joined again by Christina Houghtelling who missed all of the 2006 season with injuries.  Houghtelling was the AVCA player of the year in 2005 (Pavan was in 2006) and will be the icing on the cake for this NU team.  Some have said that this team could go down in history as one of the best teams in college volleyball.

On the other side we have the Tennessee Lady Vols.  Tennessee comes into the tournament unranked and unproven.  The Vols are a young squad but have a wealth of talent.  Sophomore Leah Hinkey will be fun to watch during the tournament as she is one of the most explosive players in the game today.  Tennessee has the talent to upset the Huskers but it will definitely be an uphill battle.

Not surprisingly I think that the Huskers will win this match.  The talent and experience is almost unbeatable and it also helps that the Huskers have home court advantage.  If the Lady Vols win it will be one of the biggest upsets of the year and maybe the decade.

Utah vs. UCLA

Today and tomorrow I will examine the match ups at the AVCA Showcase set to take place at the Qwest Center in Omaha beginning Friday night.  The first match on Friday will take place at 6:00 PM and will feature the Utah Utes and the UCLA Bruins.

The match between these two schools should be tough.  Both are coming off great years last season and both have a wealth of talent at the key positions.  UCLA comes in ranked 5th nationally and boasts 4 returning starters.  It will be an experienced team with a strong drive for success.  I believe that the Bruins will win the match based on their experience and sheer talent.

The Utes will put up a fight but may struggle with the consistency that UCLA is known for.  They lost some key players to injuries this summer and that may hurt the depth of their bench.  The Utes will play hard, and I expect the score to be close, but I think that UCLA will eventually win the match.

Why is the AVCA Showcase So Important?

The AVCA Showcase happening at the Qwest Center in Omaha this Friday is one of the most important Volleyball tournaments this year...and every year.  But why?

The AVCA Showcase was started 13 years ago with the intention of bringing a bigger and better spotlight to the sport of women's volleyball.  It traditionally includes four of the best teams in the game and normally includes the defending national champions from the previous year.

This year the AVCA picked the right teams and location.  It not only has three teams in the top 25 attending but it has the defending national champions the Nebraska Cornhuskers.  It is being played in the Qwest Center and will most likely be seen by 16-17,000 people.  If that is not a big enough spotlight for a Volleyball fan I don't know what is.

AVCA Spotlight: UCLA Bruins

We continue today with our coverage of the AVCA Showcase happening August 24 at the Qwest Center in Omaha, Nebraska.  Today we will put the spotlight on a traditionally successful team, the UCLA Bruins.

The Bruins will enter the tournament this week ranking an impressive #5. Four starters return to the line up this season for UCLA, the squad went 33-4 last year.  Look for impressive performances from Nellie Spicer, a Junior, who received first team All-American honors as only a Sophomore last season.

The Bruin's squad will face off against the Utah Utes for their first match.  If they win they will advance to either play Tennessee or Nebraska who beat them  in the National Semi-Finals last season at the Qwest Center.

AVCA Spotlight: Tennessee Lady Vols

We continue our coverage today of the AVCA Showcase happening August 24 at the Qwest Center in Omaha with the University of Tennessee Lady Vols.  The Vols are a young yet experienced squad that returned an impressive 12 letter winners from last season.

Tennessee's main threat will come from Junior Mindy Flynn who received honorable mention from the AVCA All-American list.  She will be supported by standout sophomore Leah Hinkey who put up borderline record numbers last year as a freshman.  She started in 29 of 31 games and is expected to be an even bigger influence on the team's outcome this season.

The Lady Vols will get a good test of their skills in their first match of their season against the top ranked Nebraska Cornhuskers on August 24 at the Qwest Center.