Oct. 2, 2009
Box Score
Box Score (PDF)
MADISON, Wis. - The Wisconsin volleyball team (6-6, 1-2 Big Ten) earned their first Big Ten Conference victory on Friday against Ohio State (13-3, 1-2) to improve to a .500 overall record. The Badgers beat the Buckeyes 25-23, 20-25, 25-19, 25-21 in front of 869 fans at the St. John Arena.
Wisconsin had stronger offensive production than in recent matches. Sophmore Janelle Gabrielsen directed the Badger offense with a match-high 43 assists and 14 digs. Brittney Dolgner also led the way for the Badgers with a double-double in kills and digs. Dolgner, a senior outside hitter, scored a team-high 14 kills and added 10 digs.
Freshman Alexis Mitchell contributed both offensively and defensively. Mitchell put down eight kills and connected on .375 of her shots. Mitchell also put down a team high three blocks as Wisconsin out-blocked Ohio State 8-3.
Although the Badgers won 3-1, the match was nearly even statistically. Both teams scored 56 kills and the Badgers edged out the Buckeyes in assists 52-51. Ohio State did however out-hit Wisconsin .293-.278 percent and led in digs (47-40).
Junior Katie Dull led the Buckeyes with a match-high 17 kills while hitting a .324 percentage on 37 attempts. Setter Betsy Hone put up 31 assists along with her .333 hitting percentage for the Badgers.
The Badgers found themselves trailing late in the first set 19-14, but with two blocks and two kills from Dolgner, UW produced a 7-2 run to tie the set at 21. Wisconsin then went on to edge out Ohio State 25-23.
Wisconsin once again trailed in the second set (17-11) and rallied to outscore OSU 6-1 to pull within one (18-17). However, the Badgers hit just .075 for the set with nine, mostly unforced, hitting errors. Unable to overcome their offensive mishaps, Wisconsin dropped the set 25-20.
In the third set UW jumped out to a 10-3 lead and never looked back en route to a 25-19 set victory.
UW once again gained an early lead over Ohio State in the fourth set, which they did not let up. The Buckeyes came within one at 15-14, but the Badgers were able to hold them off to win the set 25-21.
Wisconsin continues their road trip on Saturday when they face top-ranked Penn State (15-0, 3-0) who on Friday set an NCAA record with 79 consecutive match wins in their victory over Iowa. The match begins at 6 p.m. at Rec Hall in University Park.
