Their hopes for a Big Ten title all but vanquished, the No. 10 UW volleyball team (9-3 Big Ten, 17-4 overall) must now look to their last month of play as a springboard to carry momentum into the NCAA tournament. Friday's loss to No. 3 Penn State (12-0, 21-2) drained their chances of a conference championship, but the Badgers were able to rebound with a resounding victory over No. 19 Ohio State (8-4, 15-6) on Saturday.
'With the Penn State match, it was a great learning experience, they're a great team,' sophomore Jackie Simpson (87 assists and 12 blocks in the two matches) said. '[Saturday] I think we stepped up and made the changes we wanted to make and it showed.'
Another positive Wisconsin can take from last weekend is the return of senior Aubrey Meierotto, who was out for two games and used sparingly against Penn State because of illness. The Badgers struggled without her, and will need her contributing as they take on tough competition this weekend.
'Aubrey just brings a lot of fire out there,' freshman Audra Jeffers, who has seven straight matches with double digit kills, said. 'You can look to her to get that kill when you need one, it was great to have her back.'
While Illinois' record (4-8, 13-10) may not strike fear into the hearts of many, they cannot be dismissed before Friday's match. The Illini took down Michigan State and Michigan last weekend, and seem to be playing much better than when they were dominated by UW Oct. 1. They have the most prolific attacker in the Big Ten in senior Rachel VanMeter, who averages 5.7 kills per game.
'[VanMeter] has about twice as many kills as anyone on their roster, so we know she's their go-to player,' head coach Pete Waite said. 'I think they're happy with the way they're playing and they're a much better team than they were back then.'
If there ever was a team that personified the term 'on fire,' it would be No. 15 Purdue (9-3, 20-3). The Boilermakers are on an absolute tear, winning their last nine matches to go from cellar dweller to second place in the Big Ten. Purdue's offense is fluidly set up by senior Renata Dargan, who averages 13.17 assists per game. Many of those sets go to 6'4' freshman Danita Merlau, who leads the team with 3.5 kills a game. The defense is centered around their 6'3' middle blockers, who both average more than a block a game.
Both games are at 7 p.m. at the Field House.
