Although the UW women's volleyball team has to be disappointed with its undefeated season being disrupted against No. 14 Missouri Saturday, they cannot be too upset returning home after a 5-1 road trip. With two wins this weekend and a second place finish in the Montana State Holiday Inn Classic, the Badgers salvaged some momentum for their first home stand of the year.
The first match of the weekend occurred on Friday against Northern Colorado (1-6). Wisconsin was able to dominate all facets of the game as they put down the largely overmatched Bears 30-20, 30-16 and 30-22. As a team, UW was able to put up a .391 hitting percentage while holding Northern Colorado to a .068 hitting percentage. In addition, the Badgers got their first double-double of the young season in the form of junior Maria Carlini, who had 15 kills and 13 digs. Keeping UNC's hit percentage down was sophomore Taylor Reineke, who led the team with eight blocks. Complementing Carlini on the offensive end were freshman Audra Jeffers and junior Amy Bladow, who had a combined 21 kills. With UNC behind them, Wisconsin looked to the next morning and the marquee matchup with Missouri.
Even though the Badgers held leads in the first and third games, it just was not enough as they lost to Missouri (5-1) in a hotly contested 30-26, 30-26, 30-28 match. A season-low hitting percentage of .173 and getting outblocked for the first time this season led to UW's downfall. Sophomore Jackie Simpson held the offense together with 42 assists and sophomore Jocelyn Wack had a match high 12 digs, but the contributions were to no avail. Playing major roles in Wisconsin's demise were Tigers Jessica Vander Kooi and Shen Danru, who boasted of 12 kills each. UW could not wallow in its sorrow for too long, however, as they still could compete for second place.
While Montana State (5-5) may have owned the home-court advantage, it was the Badgers who owned the court in the actual match as they easily subdued the Bobcats 30-19, 30-21, 30-13 to take second place in the tournament. After getting outblocked against Mizzou, Wisconsin bounced back and held MSU to an impressive .025 hitting percentage, forcing errors left and right.
Senior Sheila Shaw had the stat sheet of the night, with three aces, eight kills, and four blocks. Keeping her amazing streak of matches with at least 10 digs was Jocelyn Wack, who had 18 to extend the streak to 37.
Also boosting UW's offense were Jeffers with 17 kills and Simpson with 39 assists. After starting the first two weeks on the road, the volleyball team starts its home season Friday at the Field House with the InnTowner Invitational. Coming to town will be Villanova, Valparaiso, and another challenge in the form of No. 10 UCLA. Friday's 7:00 match against Villanova is UW student night, as all get in free with a student ID.
