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There were a handful of upsets last week in NCAA volleyball, and even a high-profile celebrity (he didnt bring Rihanna with him) taking in a game in person. Heres what you need to know.Making noise nationallyNorth Carolina was picked to win the ACC, and the Tar Heels continue to make a national statement, this time with a come-from-behind win over a Wisconsin team many project to reach the final four.North Carolina upended the Badgers 3-2 in Chapel Hill in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. The Badgers, No. 6, in this weeks American Volleyball Coaches Association poll, had been ranked No. 2.After splitting the first two sets, Wisconsin nipped the Tar Heels 25-23 for the third. Instead of being deflated, the Tar Heels found energy for a 7-0 run, leading to a 25-20 fourth set. The teams were tied 8-8 in the final set before the Tar Heels won seven of the final 10 points.This is the first time in program history the Tar Heels, who improved to No. 8 in the poll, have wins over two top-10 teams. North Carolina stunned Penn State in five sets on opening weekend, only the 15th loss ever for the Nittany Lions at Rec Hall in State College, Pennsylvania.Redshirt sophomore Taylor Leaths third double-double of the season (23 kills, 19 digs) also marked the first 20-kill performance by a Tar Heel since 2013. Freshman Julia Scoles, MVP of the Penn State Invitational, added 18 kills and 15 digs, her fourth double-double in six matches.North Carolina also got inspired play from Taylor Fricano, who spent her first two years a Badger and is best buddies with Wisconsin middle blocker Haleigh Nelson, playing back near her hometown, Cary. Fricano hit .407 with a career-best 15 kills against her former team; the junior had recorded 20 kills in North Carolinas first five matches.The Badgers played without starter Lauryn Gillis, second on the team in kills, who is out with an ankle sprain. That forced Kelli Bates to move from libero to outside hitter for the first time this season. Wisconsin hit a season-low .139 in the match.North Carolina, which dropped its first match of the season the following night to No. 3 Minnesota, plays its final preconference tournament at the TCU Horned Frog Invitational starting Friday. In addition to the Horned Frogs, the Tar Heels meet Sam Houston State and SMU.Getting it done in fiveNorth Carolinas victory over Wisconsin wasnt the only nail-biter. No. 4 Kansas survived Creighton 3-2, its second five-setter in a row. The Jayhawks nipped Arkansas 3-2 on Sept. 3.In addition to strong play from its veterans, Kansas got support from its newcomers in the Bluejay Invitational, including 22 digs from redshirt freshman Patricia Montero.No. 14 Purdue rallied from two sets down to defeat then-No. 9 Stanford in five at Maples Pavilion, outhitting the Cardinal in four of the five sets.Pitt also ended Michigans unblemished season 3-2, earning what coach Dan Fisher said might be the biggest win in program history. The Panthers won the final set of their own invitational behind tournament MVP Stephanie Williams, a redshirt freshman, who finished with a team-best 21 kills and 13 digs.It was the second win over a ranked opponent for the Panthers, who became the 18th Division I program to notch 1,000 wins when they defeated Colorado State, ranked 25, when the teams played on Sept. 3.Behind 10 aces, No. 19 Ohio State survived Green Bay in five. Senior middle blocker Taylor Sandbothe took home all-tournament honors.No. 6 Washington also got its first win over a ranked team this season, outlasting No. 15 Hawaii in five behind Crissy Jones career-high 22 kills and .300 hitting.Drizzy drops inIts offseason for the Toronto Raptors, so when Drake was seeking out a sporting event last Thursday, he turned up at Walter Pyramid in Long Beach, California. Turns out his goddaughter, Long Beach State junior Ashley Murray, is a starting middle blocker for the 49ers, who responded by sweeping then-No. 25 Loyola-Marymount.Social media spread the word quickly about the rapper, who has almost 34 million Twitter followers, and attendance swelled in the 5,000-seat arena.I was pretty nervous because it was the first time he had ever seen me play, said Murray, who calls Drake a family friend.But Murray, the Big West Freshman of the Year in 2014, didnt show nerves and had her best game of the season -- 11 kills, a .526 hitting percentage and six blocks. Three of the final four points were Murray kills to seal the sweep over a team that reached the Sweet 16 last year.After the game, Drake visited the 49ers locker room and wasnt shy about taking pics with the team. He gave us a motivational speech that I really think is going to help us, said Murray, who grew up in Torrance, California. It was very exciting and brought the whole team a lot closer.Murray said she recalls doing homework when she was younger while Drake sat nearby going over his latest recordings, and that made me believe anything is possible.A sports psychology major, Murray wants to have her own sports clothing line. For the record, she loves every Drake song but her new fave is Fire & Desire.Whos to say if Drake will turn up for any more Long Beach State volleyball games, but basketball season is nearing, and its not unusual for the icon to pop in on Pepperdine mens games in support of Ashleys brother, Lamond Murray Jr., who is the leading scorer for the Waves.Who hasnt lost?No. 1 Nebraska (6-0), which has won 22 straight, including the 2015 national championship, isnt the only undefeated team. Before we get to the others, two more Cornhusker notes: Only Michigan State on Nov. 11 has extended the Huskers to five sets in that span. Florida is the lone team to take a set from Nebraska this season.The other teams with perfect marks: No. 4 Kansas (9-0), No. 5 Washington (8-0), No. 9 Brigham Young (9-0), No. 17 Santa Clara (9-0), Dayton (10-0), South Carolina (9-0), Illinois-Chicago (9-0), East Carolina (8-0), UNLV (9-0) and Weber State (6-0).Filling the stat sheet at Eastern IllinoisA year ago Taylor Smith set the program record at Eastern Illinois for triple-doubles (kills, digs, assists) with seven. She was a freshman.This season the 6-0 outside hitter from Mattoon, Illinois, already has three, including two last week. On Sept. 6, Smith amassed 11 kills, 15 assists and 19 digs against Western Illinois. She followed that up last Saturday with 14 kills, 16 assists and 11 digs against Louisiana Tech. Her first triple-double this season came against Jackson State.Smiths three triple-doubles in 2016 ranks No. 1 in the NCAA. Bruce Smith Jersey . LOUIS -- Lance Lynn was one of the more enthusiastic participants as the St. Thurman Thomas Jersey .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. http://www.shoptheofficialbills.com/Customized/ . This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. Doug Flutie Jersey . In Europe, top teams seem to be largely happy with their squads after spending nearly $1 billion in the off-season. And although English league clubs are unlikely to splash cash in January, Arsenal and Chelsea could be tempted to strengthen their squads with new strikers. Andre Reed Jersey .ca! Hi Kerry, Heres an interesting one. I know its common knowledge that all players are responsible for their sticks. We witnessed that when Zack Kassian hit Edmontons Sam Gagner in the face after a missed check. CHICAGO -- A ballgame that produced exactly one run lasted 3 hours, 33 minutes.Compared to some of the commercial-packed, long-on ceremony-and-celebrity marathons that have clocked in at four hours and beyond this postseason, Clevelands 1-0 win over the Chicago Cubs in Game 4 of the World series felt like a sprint.But there were five minutes we could have done without.No, not comedian Bill Murrays drawn-out, Daffy Duck-inspired rendition of Take Me Out to the Ball Game. At least there was some comic reliefWhat we had in mind instead were the three instant-replay reviews. An overwhelming majority of fans believe the only thing that matters is to get every call right, even though thats impossible -- and never mind that it both changes and hurts the very games its supposed to improve. More on that in a moment.The only one of the three replay reviews that resulted in the original call being overturned happened in the first inning, when Cubs starter Kyle Hendricks picked Francisco Lindor off first base. The two calls that stood both came in the seventh.The first happened when Cubs catcher Willson Contreras threw to third trying to pick off pinch-runner Michael Martinez, who was called safe (both times) and scored soon after when Coco Crisp followed with the tiebreaking single. The second happened when the next Cleveland batter, Jason Kipnis, hit a grounder to the right side, dove into first base and was called out (both times).The call on Kipnis looked just plain wrong. His arm clearly hits the base before the ball nestles in Cubs pitcher Mike Montgomerys glove. But thats the problem when humans make the first and last decision, no matter how many camera angles are viewed in between.Of course, Ive been on the losing side of this debate for years -- in every sport -- and so it went again Friday night when I asked Cleveland manager Terry Francona whether hed like to see more or less instant replay.Thats the question after a 1-0 World Series win? Francona answered with a question of his own.Well, yes.I think theyve done a great job with replay. I mean, we all know what it is, and I think its made the game better, he said.Joe Maddon, his Cubs counterpart, was an even bigger booster.It definitely helps preventing the spike in the blood pressure, because youre just able to ask them to replay it as opposed to running out there and arguing. So I like that component of it, he began.There are certain parts about it that I think need to be addressed. For example, like when hovering over a bag and all of a sudden you say the guy came off the bag, something like that or the hand wass above home plate .dddddddddddd.. Id like to see some adjustments, but I think overall its wonderful.Furthermore, I would imagine eventually YOURE GOING TO SEE IT CALL BALLS AND STRIKES (emphasis mine).Let that settle in for a moment.Umpires were already in danger of becoming figureheads, stuck behind the plate to lend an air of authority more imagined than real, like the Queen of England at events of state, minus the tiara and jewelry. Count on it happening sooner rather than later.Replay began in baseball in 2008, employed strictly at first to decide home runs. It was expanded significantly in 2014 to include plays at the bases, trapped balls and just about everything else, save balls and strikes.While the average time it takes to review a call has varied -- 1:46 during the 2014 regular season, then 1:51 in 2015 and 1:36 in 2016 -- the number of calls overturned on replay have creeped up each year, from 47.3 percent in 14 to 50.4 percent this past season.Theres any number of theories about that incremental rise, and much of it centers on more and better slow-motion cameras at most ballparks and managers willingness to use every challenge available to them. But theres no doubt its led to a change in both the spirit of the game and how its played; nearly every fielder now holds his glove with the ball on the baserunners body for as long as possible, in the hope that at some point in the slide the camera will show the runner has lost contact with the base.Thats been happening for as long as the games been played. But its only now, because of advances in technology, that it can be spotted.As much as its not my favorite play ... its really hard for me to say its OK to be safe if youre not on the bag and the glove is tagging, MLB exec Joe Torre, whose duties include overseeing umpires, said at the last winter meetings.Well continue to have that conversation, he added.Good luck.Major League Baseball is already wrestling with the pace-of-play issue and the guess here is that what Maddon called the hovering play is only the first of many unforeseen consequences.Instant replay has already made the NFL and college football nearly unwatchable, and its made holding your breath at the last-minute plays nearly a requirement of being a football fan.Try that for nine innings when a robot is calling balls and strikes.---Jim Litke is a national sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at jlitke(at)ap.org and https://Twitter.com/JimLitke . ' ' '