The road to San Diego commenced at the UW Field House this weekend. The Wisconsin volleyball team (27-3) hosted the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament, starting its journey back to the championship game.
Having lost for the last time in October, UW was confident it could pass the first two rounds with ease.
Friday night, in front of a crowd of 5,115 fans, the Badgers dispatched the Panthers (20-7) 30-19, 30-15, 30-27 in only 80 minutes.
The big factor was Wisconsin's height advantage, with 6'2\ senior middle blocker Sherisa Livingston and 6'3"" junior middle blocker Amy Hultgren towering over the smaller UW-Milwaukee team, who had only one player over 6 feet tall.
While the win was quick, it was not as clean as the score might have indicated.
Livingston struggled throughout the entire match, finishing with only 13 kills and a .240 hitting percentage, well below her season average of .413. However, other players stepped up for the team.
Junior outside hitter Erin Byrd led the team with 16 kills and a .536 hitting percentage and contributed three service aces. Hultgren and freshman outside hitter Jill Odenthal added nine and eight kills, respectively.
Senior setter Lizzy Fitzgerald thought the win spoke volumes about the team's ability to perform well and make big plays.
""I think our team does a great job of stepping up when we need to step up in different areas,"" Fitzgerald said.
Before UW took to the court Friday night, a 20-7 Michigan State team had defeated Notre Dame in four sets, 30-25, 16-30, 30-20, 30-24. While the Badgers had handily defeated the Spartans twice this season, MSU was confident in its chances against the Badgers.
However, Head Coach Pete Waite said he believed that it would compel the seniors like Livingston to step it up against a Big Ten rival.
""As far as Sherisa's playing, what motivates her is looking at these stats and sitting here,"" Waite said. ""This motivates her for tomorrow night, so I don't think we have a problem with that.""
The Field House was packed again Saturday night with a Badger crowd more than 5,300 strong. The Badgers showed why they are two-time Big Ten champs, dominating the match 30-21, 30-22, 30-24 in 85 minutes.
""We lost to a superior team with a great deal of tournament experience, and they were better than us tonight,"" MSU Head Coach Chuck Erbe said.
The Badgers tallied 12 service aces, including four from senior defensive specialist Sara Urbanek. Livingston was back in all-American form, ending the match with 15 kills and a .440 hitting percentage.
The Badgers advance to the regional round in Palo Alto, Calif., where they will take on 15th-ranked Texas A&M Friday night. The winner of that game will play the winner of No. 3 seed Stanford vs. No. 13 Utah match Saturday.
