For the first time since 2007, the Wisconsin volleyball team took down No. 7 Minnesota 18-25, 25-21, 25-20 and 25-20 last night at the UW Fieldhouse. The Badgers (6-3 Big Ten, 17-4 overall) have surpassed their conference win total from 2012.
The victory over Minnesota (18-4, 6-3) not only marks the first time since 2006 that the Badgers have defeated back to back Big Ten teams but also the first time since 2000 that the team has beaten two top-10 teams.
“It’s what you call a great team effort,” head coach Kelly Sheffield said. “We’re just dependent on everybody, and we’ve got to play with a tremendous amount of heart, and I thought we did that tonight.”
Leading the Badger offense were juniors Deme Morales with 15 kills and Ellen Chapman with 14. Wisconsin out-blocked the Gophers 8 – 7, and freshman Lauren Carlini and junior Courtney Thomas led the team with 18 digs each.
“I thought they did a great job of just working the ball around, working the ball to different areas of the court and not just going after the same shot over and over again and really trying to keep the defense off balance,” Sheffield said.
The first set was back and forth, with the score tied up seven times. Despite recording a .256 attacking percentage, the Badgers were unable to stop the Gophers, who took the set 25-18.
“I think sometimes in the first set we come out a little flat with not as much energy as we should,” Carlini said. “The last few games we’ve been coming out in games two and three and just being a lot more aggressive and a lot more vocal.”
The score was tight in the second set as well, but a four point run late in the set allowed the Badgers to pull ahead. After a kill by Chapman, the Badgers won the set 25-21.
“We did a really good job transitioning out of those easy attacks, and just putting the ball away, which raises the energy on our side,” Chapman said.
Wisconsin started the third set off with a 4-1 lead, but Minnesota quickly came back, keeping the score close for the majority of the set. Two blocks and kills from Chapman put the Badgers in the lead, and a kill by Morales won the set for Wisconsin.
The Badgers started off strong and maintained the lead for the majority of the fourth set.
Wisconsin won 25-20 with a kill by Morales, who totalled seven for the set, earning the Badgers another Big Ten victory.
“I think it was a complete team effort in this match, which kept our momentum high,” Morales said. “Everybody was moving forward, after a good play or a bad play.”
Wisconsin finishes their run at home this Sunday, taking on Illinois at 1 p.m.
“We just need to keep up the serving and passing,” Chapman said. “I think that’s definitely what we have over other teams in the conference.”
