No. 5 Wisconsin (8-1 Big Ten, 17-2 overall) swept Iowa (1-8, 9-11) Wednesday night at the Field House to extend its winning streak to eight.
The Badgers have sustained their winning streak at home after sweeping Minnesota in six sets last week and now Iowa in three. Not allowing a single set for the Hawkeyes, Wisconsin won 25-15, 25-22 and 25-19. Earlier this week, Wisconsin head coach Kelly Sheffield shared his anticipation for the Iowa match at a press conference.
“They’ve got to be feeling really good about themselves,” Sheffield said. “They look really good on film.”
Iowa had its first conference win over Northwestern last week, which showcased the competitive level of play, which is present throughout all of the Big Ten.
The Hawkeyes should feel good if not for their play, but for their new head coach Bond Shymansky. After graduating from Iowa in 1995, Shymansky spent time coaching at Marquette until returning in 2014.
Sheffield said Shymansky wanted to speed up the offense, but it wasn’t quick enough for the Badgers. Offensively, Wisconsin had more assists and aces throughout the match because of sophomore setter Lauren Carlini and senior outside hitter Courtney Thomas.
Individually outscoring both sides of the net, Thomas led the Badgers with 11 kills and 13 digs. The Hawkeyes defensive play kept them in the game with freshman libero and defensive specialist Michelle Fugarino leading the match with 16 digs.
At the beginning of the week, Wisconsin’s junior libero Taylor Morey was named Big Ten Co-Defensive Player of the Week after dominating in the back row while sweeping Minnesota. This is Morey’s third honor of the season as she leads the Big Ten with 5.43 digs per set.
Looking ahead to the Sunday match against No. 14 Nebraska (6-3, 12-6), Sheffield spoke highly of the Badgers’ former coach and current Huskers’ head coach John Cook.
“I’ve got a lot of respect for him,” Sheffield said. “He’s helped me out on numerous occasions when I’ve called and just asked for some advice or help.”
Nebraska rallied back to win after losing the first two sets against No. 25 Minnesota Wednesday. Wisconsin and Nebraska will begin Sunday at 4 p.m. in the Field House and the match will be televised on ESPN2.
