Volleyball Faces Penn State for Big Ten Title
November 15, 2007 | Volleyball
Despite the fact that there are 20 matches in the Big Ten Conference volleyball season, the 2007 championship comes down to one match ' No. 9 Wisconsin playing at No. 1 Penn State on Friday. The Badgers (22-3 overall, 14-2 Big Ten) take on the Nittany Lions (24-2, 16-0) at 6 p.m. CT on Friday night in Rec Hall on the PSU campus. The match will be video streamed live on the Penn State Web site at www.gopsusports.com
'As a team, we want to keep getting better as we finish Big Ten (play) and head into NCAA tournament,' said UW coach Pete Waite. 'We've positioned ourselves very well within the conference but these (last few matches) are all opportunities for us to improve as a team.'
UW will play the nation's No. 1 ranked team for the first time since the 2000 season. That year, Wisconsin played top-ranked Nebraska in the NCAA championship match, losing 3-2. Regardless of the outcome of Friday's match, the Badgers will finish no worse than second place in the Big Ten standings, as they are five matches ahead of the third-place teams Purdue.
'Part of what we did to prepare (for Friday) was to watch tape of our last match with Penn State to see the things that we did well and to watch for the things that we need to work on,' said Waite. 'Now as we get in the gym (for practice) we'll put those ideas into place and try to be a better team when we go out on the court.'
In the last meeting between these two teams on Oct. 21, No. 2 Penn State edged No. 8 Wisconsin, 3-2, in the UW Field House. The battle between the two teams ended with the Nittany Lions winning the fifth game, 16-14, on a controversial call.
With only four matches left in the regular season, Waite sees these final matches as a way for his team to continue improving and prepare for post-season competition.
The match should also carry historic value as senior Jackie Simpson needs only 19 more assists to record career assist No. 5,000. The 6-0 setter ranks second on the UW all-time list with 4,981 assists in her four years. She would become just the 17th Big Ten setter to go over the five grand mark.
'Jackie's had a great career, starting with her freshman year, ' said Waite. 'She's just improved every area of her game. She 's had some great players around her to help her reach that goal. It's something that she should be proud of and something the whole team can share in. '
Wisconsin wraps up its Big Ten road season with a match at Ohio State (12-13, 6-10) on Monday night. First serve is at 7 p.m. CT from St. John's Arena in Columbus. Monday's match marks the fifth time this season that the Badgers will appear on the Big Ten Network.
'We've been lucky enough to be on television three or four times a year, but the Big Ten Network has the ability to put our program in front of recruits on a regular basis,' said Waite. 'Once the high school athletes see our large fan base they'll want to come visit our campus and feel what it's like to be part of it in person. '
The Badgers return home on Nov. 23 and Nov. 24 for matches against Iowa and Minnesota, respectively. The 64-team field for the 2007 NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Championship will be announced on Nov. 25 at 7 p.m. on ESPNU.
