So close, yet so far. That has been the story of the UW volleyball team's postseason campaign since seniors Maria Carlini, Amy Bladow and Katie Lorenzen joined the program in 2003. Their freshman year, they suffered a loss to Texas A&M in the second round of the NCAA tournament. As sophomores and juniors, the trio made it to the Elite Eight, only to fall just two matches short of the title both years.
This season the Badgers plan to change that trend, press on beyond the Elite Eight and make a legitimate run at the national championship.
""I think that its really motivating for us, losing two years in a row, not only in the Elite Eight going into the Final Four, but also to the eventual national champions both years in a row,"" Bladow said. ""I think that this team ... has the best shot that we've had in the last four years to make it, at least since I've been here, to actually make it to the Final Four.""
""For the last two years, having finished in the Elite Eight has given this team the incentive to take it a step further,"" UW head coach Pete Waite said. ""This year is a great blend of players, and they've proven right now that they're playing at a level that puts them near the top of the Big Ten and competitive nationally.""
If their recent performances are any indication, it would seem as though the prospect of making it to the NCAA championship game is very real. Two weeks ago, No. 10 Wisconsin (11-3 Big Ten, 19-5 overall) became the first team to hand then No. 2 Penn State a loss and is now riding a five game conference winning streak. If they maintain their current momentum, the Badgers could feasibly finish the season with 11 straight victories—only No. 13 Minnesota and No. 16 Purdue stand in their way, and both teams have suffered two losses in the past two weeks. A burst of energy like that could propel them all the way to a national title.
Several factors have been contributing to the late success of the team. Waite has been stressing a stronger serving and passing game, which has led to a spike in service aces in recent weeks. In the last four matches, UW has served up 22 aces compared to the 16 aces in the four matches prior.
The Badger blocking game has also stepped up tremendously in the past few weeks. Last weekend, Wisconsin out-blocked its opponents 25 to 7 in seven games. Junior middle blocker Taylor Reineke's average of 1.68 blocks per game continues to top the Big Ten, while Bladow sits at fifth place in the conference with 1.27 blocks per game. As a team, Wisconsin's blocking game ranks second in the conference and fifth in the nation.
""I think that we're really big and physical this year, and we're athletic, and I think you can see that in our blocking stats,"" Bladow said. ""Where the blocking stats lack our defense is picking up ... we've just been playing a lot more consistently and that's what the stats are really showing.""
""We just have so much potential on our team, and when we play together we're unstoppable,"" Carlini said. ""I think even just the Michigan and Michigan State games on the road, we showed that hey, we can play on the road now. I think our team's really coming together and we haven't even peaked yet, which is awesome.""
Wisconsin will be looking to continue their hot streak and make another case for a long tournament run this weekend when the team returns to the UW Field House to take on Northwestern and Illinois.
