Behind stellar play by unanimous Preseason All-Big Ten Team selection and Wisconsin junior Brittney Dolgner, the No. 13 Wisconsin Badgers (3-0) racked up three sweeps to claim the Kentucky Classic this weekend in Lexington, Ky.
It was a great start for us,"" head coach Pete Waite said. ""We started a little slow on the first night but that's a little understandable with a new group and offense. Every set we played we got stronger and that was nice to see. When our backs were against a wall, we stepped up.""
""This is a team starting to build chemistry together and a team understanding how hard you have to work to play at a high level,"" Waite added. ""We're real proud of what our team was able to do this weekend.""
Dolgner, who tallied 39 kills in the tournament, was also named the Kentucky Classic's Most Valuable Player. Senior Audra Jeffers was also selected to the all-tournament team, totaling 29 kills and eight blocks on the weekend.
Wisconsin 3, Western Carolina 0
Nearly everyone saw court time in the opening game Friday night against Western Carolina (0-4) as Wisconsin secured a first round victory, 25-13, 25-9, 27-25.
""In the third [set] we made a few lineup changes, trying a few different things and it definitely affected the rhythm on the court,"" Waite said. ""It was partly me testing the team.""
The Badgers held the Catamounts to a .000 hitting percentage for the match and scored nine aces from the service line.
Dolgner led the Badgers with 10 kills and sophomore Kim Kuzma tallied a match-high 18 digs.
Wisconsin 3, Pittsburgh 0
Defense once again helped Wisconsin keep Pittsburgh (3-1) to a .042 hitting percentage, as the Badgers defeated the Panthers 25-19, 25-19, 25-16 in the second round of the tournament.
Dolgner led UW with 16 kills from the outside and added 10 digs for her first double-double of the season. Redshirt sophomore Nikki Klingsporn and freshman Janelle Gabrielsen combined for 35 of the team's 39 assists.
Wisconsin 3, Kentucky 0
Wisconsin remained undefeated by sweeping host Kentucky (3-1) 25-21, 25-19, 25-22 to take home the Kentucky Classic championship.
Junior Katherine Dykstra led Wisconsin with 14 kills on .550 hitting and added three block assists against the Wildcats. Dolgner added 13 kills on .367 hitting - matching the team's overall hitting percentage.
Next, the Badgers will head to Las Vegas to take on stiff west-coast style competition in Cal-State Fullerton, Miami of Ohio, and host UNLV.
""We'll get in the gym this week and work out some of the kinks we see in our play,"" Waite said. ""The team will focus even more and I think we'll have a great outing next weekend.""
- uwbadgers.com contributed to this report.
