Football
As the Badgers (3-1 Big Ten, 5-2) look forward from a productive and restful by week, head coach Gary Andersen mentioned excitement about reigniting a regional rivalry.
Next Saturday’s game against Iowa State will be a unique and demanding challenge. The teams in the matchup next week are similar in their defensive strategies and have comparably physical, tough-minded running backs.
“I think our kids are very excited about the opportunity,” Andersen said. “It goes way back and a lot of our kids have played against Iowa. It’s been a couple years but it’s gone back and forth and been very physical.”
Anderson acknowledged that the bye week came at a convenient time for senior inside linebacker Chris Borland. He would not have been able to play had there been a game last Saturday, though Andersen noted that senior outside linebacker Ethan Armstrong’s versatile ability would have allowed him to cover for Borland.
Women’s Hockey
After the potentially discouraging loss of senior forward Madison Packer last Saturday, Badgers’ (4-2-0 WCHA, 6-2-0) head coach Mark Johnson maintained optimism for his young team.
“It’s a good learning opportunity for a young team and [there were] things you could take away from that experience,” Johnson said. “That will help get us down the road as we get further into the season.”
Johnson will continue to enforce good habits in his team, and has been very impressed with the performance of the freshman, many of whom got their first goals for Wisconsin this past weekend.
Johnson thinks the players are enjoying the process of preparing for top-tier opponents like Ohio State this upcoming weekend, and the energy they have seen in the stadium has been electric. The players have been listening to respected senior goaltender Alex Rigsby, the team captain.
After suffering an injury Packer won’t lace up for the next two practices, but looks better than initially expected. Freshman defenseman Jenny Ryan is also improving, but will continue to play one game per weekend due to an injury last spring.
Volleyball
The Badgers’ (6-4, 17-5) hit the road for a pair of games at Indiana and Purdue this week, and head coach Kelly Sheffield knows all too well the challenges these two teams pose.
“You want to try to find momentum whatever it is in conference and it’s certainly tough in this league,” Sheffield said. “We want to stay in the top third (or) top half of the conference. We want to try to move up and we’ve got those abilities.”
The next week of games on the road against Indiana and Purdue could act as a springboard to start off the second half of the Volleyball season with the momentum they need.
“This is a really tough league to get wins at,” Sheffield said. “Every team is beatable. Whether you’re at home or on the road, you can beat every team and every team can beat you.”
Sheffield said the young team, with only one senior, is energetic and coping well with a busy schedule. Though they haven’t had time for many practices, they’re a competitive team that have exceeded his expectations, and continue to have room to grow.
Men’s Hockey
The Badgers (2-2-0) used their week off to get back to work after a confidence-shaking weekend of losses in Boston.
“Last week we accomplished a lot of things that we as the coaching staff set out to do,” head coach Mike Eaves said. “So we left the week on Friday, we felt that we went back to the basics, worked hard, worked smart, and worked on playing as a team.”
With the help of older team members, Wisconsin seems ready to face their opponents next week head-on.
Head coach Mike Eaves reported junior goaltender Joel Rumpel has been practicing with pads on ice since last week, and the next couple of days will be critical in determining whether he will be able to play in a pair of home games against Lake Superior State this weekend.
Men’s Cross Country
The Wisconsin mens’ and womens’ cross country teams will compete in the Big Ten championships next week. According to head coach Mick Byrne, the men are eager to tack on their 15th Big Ten championship in a row.
“They know they’re going to be under a lot of pressure as we head out to West Lafayette,” Byrne said. “They’re excited about that.”
With the help of their win in the Adidas meet, team morale is high despite previous criticism from the media, track sites and Twitter.
Women’s Cross Country
During this critical part of the season, the women have shown exciting improvement and growth over the last two and a half weeks. Previously injured junior Gabrielle Anzalone is now back in full health, and will help give the team more depth.
“They know they’re Badgers when they put on that uniform they’ve got a target on their back. And they kind of marvel in that,” Byrne said. “They love it. They love the pressure. And they showed just a couple of weeks ago at Adidas they can handle it.”
Wrestling
Badger wrestling tickets went on sale today, with a promising looking team and a few new faces.
Five new freshmen will help the team continue its comeback that started last year. They will be tested within the first two weeks with a match against Virginia Tech.
Wisconsin has a lot of returning stars as well, like redshirt seniors Jackson Hein, who dropped a weight class over the summer, and Tyler Graff.
“I think the last two years recruiting have gone really well for us. We just have done a good job recruiting throughout the country,” head coach Barry Davis said. “So we’ve got a lot more depth in our room right now. A lot of really young kids.”
Davis said that there has been a great atmosphere with the team, that they have been working together very well, and that they’re ready to get in the arena to let their wrestling do the talking.
