Michigan State, Illinois and No. 11 Purdue were the latest victims to run into the No. 10 Wisconsin Badgers volleyball buzzsaw. Wisconsin totaled 149 kills over their last three wins, securing the second best record in the Big Ten behind the No. 1 Nebraska Cornhuskers, who Wisconsin fell to back in October.
Wisconsin only has three Big Ten games left until postseason competition begins.
Michigan State
Wisconsin outplayed Michigan State in every aspect of the game. Wisconsin out-killed (51-35), out-blocked (13-6) and out-digged (37-23) the Spartans en route to a commanding win.
Outsider hitter Mimi Colyer and middle blocker Carter Booth, both veteran players, led the game for Wisconsin. Colyer recorded 21 kills, her best mark in the last six games. Booth made 10 blocks, one solo block and nine block assists for her personal best of the season.
Colyer and Booth were crucial in the first set, with Colyer making four of the final five points for the Badgers in kills. Booth provided five of her ten total blocks within the first set.
The strong offensive and defensive balance led to Wisconsin taking the victory 25-17.
Wisconsin had difficulty replicating that same success in the second set, as back and forth play led to five lead changes.
The Spartans began set two with a few well-placed kills. Wisconsin picked up their pace around point 12, with a block from Booth and Colyer. The Badgers kept it going until they led 18-15 off a set from setter Charlie Fuerbringer and a kill by Una Vajagic.
Four of the Badgers’ final six points in the set came from Colyer kills. Wisconsin won the second set 25-21.
“We were really good in in-game situations in the second set and in the third set, coming back and staying together,” Badgers head coach Kelly Sheffield said.In set three, the Badgers fell behind the Spartans for the majority of play before tying it up at 23-23.
Wisconsin wasn’t picky with who scored the final few points, as just about everyone on the court had a turn. Colyer recorded the tying point and Vajagic followed with the tie-breaker.
After a point from Michigan State, Booth came back with her own. Another point by the Spartans and a kill by Grace Egan resulted in another tie: 26-26.
Finally, Wisconsin found back-to-back kills, made by Alicia Andrew and Colyer, for the win. The Badgers won the final set 28-26.
Wisconsin managed to keep their opponent below a .200 hitting percentage for the 15th time this season. In the third set, the Badgers recorded a hitting percentage of .500.
Vajagic recorded a career best hitting percentage of .611 on 12 kills with only one error.
Fuerbringer, who has now been back for three games after a mid-season injury, shined with 43 assists.
“There were a couple of details that were messy on our side, but towards the end we just kept battling,” Fuerbringer said.
Illinois
Just one day after handling Michigan State, the Badgers faced Illinois, once again beating their competition in three sets.
Both teams kept pace to start the first set, with Illinois advancing ahead 12-17. But with two kills by Colyer and a service ace from Vajagic the Badgers made a comeback.
Wisconsin scored five of the final nine points, making the score 25-25. The set headed into extra points, concluded by a kill from Egan, ending the set at 35-33.
A short, four-point run early in the second set gave Wisconsin the edge. Colyer carried the moment through the midpoint of the set, recording four kills and one service ace.
The Badgers had a total of nine service aces in the game, four of them in the second set. Egan recorded the final point of the set on a service ace of her own, ending the set with Wisconsin ahead 25-15.
Colyer started the Badgers off strong with a quick kill to secure the first point of the set. Illinois stayed a touch ahead, though, for most of the set.
On point 21, Wisconsin began to pull ahead. Egan and Andrew made a crucial block followed by a returning score from Illinois and a service error that awarded Wisconsin another point.
Now 22-21 in favor of the Badgers, Fuerbringer grabbed a kill of her own. A point later, Vajagic slammed down another kill. For the game-winning point, Fuerbringer and Andrew made a final block at the net, bringing the third set to 25-23 in favor of Wisconsin.
Purdue
Wisconsin and Purdue battled it out in three long sets Wednesday night in the Field House. The Badgers ended up taking the victory, reaching a sixth straight win and fourth consecutive sweep. Wisconsin came out hot against Purdue, drawing the first point off an Andrew kill.
Purdue had a strong response, capitalizing on a few early Wisconsin mistakes. Egan was next to score for the Badgers, recording a kill of her own.
This match highlighted Wisconsin’s strong serving game, as the Badgers collected ____ service aces. Fuerbringer was the first to record a service ace of the night with a short dropped serve.
Once the Badgers made it out of the small deficit at the beginning of the set, they managed to stay ahead of the Boilermakers by a point or two the majority of the way. Purdue made a short run at the end of the set, tying the game up 21-21.
A long rally — which included a net violation on Purdue — ended with Vajagic scoring, putting Wisconsin ahead 23-21.
Another back and forth tied the game. Andrew made a kill to get to match point for Wisconsin, and an attack error by Booth moved the game to extra points. Booth made up for it quickly, recording a back-to-back solo block and block assist. A block from Egan won the set for Wisconsin 26-24.
Wisconsin grabbed the first two points of the second set and continued to push forward, coming out stronger than in set one. The Badgers strong serving and strategic hitting had them leading midway through the set.
A five-point run for the Badgers, highlighted by a service ace from Wardlow and solo block by Colyer, had Wisconsin ahead 13-4. Vajagic and libero Kristen Simon also tallied service aces for the Badgers in this set.
Colyer scored three of Wisconsin’s final five points in the set, closing out a 25-15 victory.
In the early part of the third set, Sheffield successfully challenged whether Wisconsin hit the ball inside the field of play, t putting the Badgers up 4-3 and feeding the crowd’s energy.
Set three didn’t stay close for long. A 10-1 Badger run in the middle of the set allowed Wisconsin to slip ahead. This play was highlighted by kills and block assists from Andrew, driving Wisconsin to a 21-14 lead.
After a mild comeback attempt from Purdue, Booth was able to secure the game for the Badgers with a final kill. She ended the night with nine total kills, and Wisconsin won the final set 25-17.
“We were very balanced offensively,” Sheffield said. “We had five people pretty darn close to each other in kills.”
Wisconsin ended the night with a hitting percentage of .311%, significantly higher than Purdue’s .184%. Andrew recorded the highest hitting percentage for the Badgers, tallying eight hits and no errors.
“Our team went in knowing it’s go-time,” Andrew said.
Coming up, the Badgers have three more Big Ten competitions before conference tournament play. Iowa, Northwestern and Minnesota are ranked much lower in the conference than Wisconsin, and defeating these teams will secure a top place for the Badgers in both conference and national tournaments.
“It’s a great win against a program that we highly respect, and we’re on to the next.” Sheffield said.
