No. 2 Nebraska Volleyball holds off upset No. 10 Purdue in five sets

And in the first 16 rallies before the game, each team had already clinched a truly epic victory.

It was a sign that there would be a three-hour slugfest between two top 10 teams.

Nebraska landed the final blow – Merritt Beason – and won in five sets. The set scores were 25-22, 22-25, 23-25, 25-22, 17-15.

Look again at how close each set was, with the margin never exceeding three points.

Nebraska finished with 74 kills and Purdue had 68.

Nebraska's 12-game winning streak will last at least another day, as will its 35-game home winning streak.

Beason led the Huskers with 22 kills. Harper Murray added 17 kills and Andi Jackson had 14.

Purdue outside hitter Eva Hudson had 26 kills and Chloe Chicoine had 22.

Nebraska passed the test and played a top-10 opponent in Big Ten play for the first time. Overall, the Huskers are 5-0 against top-10 teams.

Purdue fell to 1-4 against top-10 teams.

Facing a 2-1 deficit and needing to win the fourth set to continue play, Nebraska was killed down the stretch in the fourth set by Beason and Taylor Landfair, winning the set 25-22.

Chicoine just kept going in the fifth set and her three quick kills in the set gave Purdue an 8-7 lead.

Nebraska tied the match at 10-0 after Beason scored one of the best kills of the match with a blast from a tight angle and Jackson scored with a quick set up the middle.

The biggest moment came during a turnover when Purdue couldn't convert a couple of nice swings. So instead, Jackson, you guessed it, ended the game with a down-the-line kill on the slide attack for her 13th kill of the match.

Nebraska scored the final three points of the game, the last on Beason's 22nd kill of the game.

Jackson was the star of the first set, going 5 for 5 in kills and having a block. Neither team gained much of a lead until Nebraska went on a 3-0 run in the crucial period for a 23-20 lead from Merritt Beason. Then Jackson knocked down another kill on the slide attack to take a 24-21 lead.

At the designated point, Beason scored the kill with a back row attack through the middle of the Purdue defense.

Purdue had four blocks in the set and got five kills from Chloe Chicoine. But in a close set, the Boilermakers committed four service errors while Nebraska had none.

In the second set, Purdue took a 19-13 lead as Nebraska kept making mistakes. Nebraska mounted a small comeback, fending off Purdue's first three set points before the Boilermakers won the set 25-22 and tied the game.

The third set was a slugfest with 17 kills for Nebraska and 16 for Purdue. Nebraska let a late 21-19 lead slip due to a deflection.

Purdue won the final two points on a scoring error by Nebraska and a kill by Hudson to win 25-23. The Boilermakers had a 2-1 lead.

Catch the full story later tonight on Omaha.com