Badgers fall in five sets to Florida

AUSTIN, Texas -- After battling back from a two-set deficit, the Wisconsin volleyball team's comeback came up short as the sixth-seeded Badgers fell to 11^th-seeded Florida 25-17, 25-23, 19-25, 22-25, 15-12 in the NCAA Regional Semifinals at the Gregory Gym on the University of Texas campus on Friday afternoon.

"It's two teams that I don't think anybody should hang their heads about. I thought it was a great, great college volleyball match," UW Head Coach Kelly Sheffield said. "It's the Sweet Sixteen and unfortunately somebody has to lose but it was one heck of a battle and I'm proud of my kids."

Wisconsin (26-7) hit .275 (69 kills - 27 errors - 153 total attempts) and was paced by sophomores Kelli Bates and Lauryn Gillis. Bates led Badgers with a career-high 21 kills while Gillis tied her career high with 20 kills. Junior Haleigh Nelson added 12 while freshman Tionna Williams chipped in nine.

Florida's high-powered attack overwhelmed the Badgers as the Gators hit .349 (68-15-152). Sophomore Rhamat Alhassan led all players with a career-high 24 kills while Alex Holston chipped in 20 kills for the Gators.

After dropping the first two sets, the Badgers roared back against a feisty Florida squad to force a fifth set.

Wisconsin took a 3-1 lead early in the fifth set but the Gators responded with a 4-0 run to go up 5-3. Two kills by Nelson paired with a kill by Gillis tied it at 6-6. Neither team led by more than one point as the period featured nine tied scores.

The Badgers led 12-11 off another kill by Nelson but the Gators would go on a 4-0 run, scoring on two blocks, to win the match.

"I don't think anyone should hang their heads down," Sheffield added. "I thought it was a great volleyball match. That's the sweet sixteen, unfortunately someone has to lose. It was one heck of a battle, and I am proud of my kids.

After losing the first set, Wisconsin led 19-14 in the second set before Florida started its comeback. The Gators cut the lead to 20-17 on a UW service error by a kill by Bates but UW up 21-17. A 5-0 Florida run put UF up 22-21 but a Gator service error tied the set at 22. A Gillis kill put the Badgers up 23-22 but Florida closed out the set on a 3-0 run behind a kill and block from Alhassan.

With the season on the line, the Badgers entered the third set ready to battle. Sharp hitting by Bates and Gillis paired with a block by Williams and Kriskova put the Badgers up 7-4. Two UW attack errors then tied it up at 8-8, but the Badgers responded with a 5-0 run put Wisconsin up 13-8. The Badgers extended their lead to 16-10 off a service ace from Carlini but the Gators cut it 18-15 with two straight blocks. An ace by freshman Madison Duello extended the UW lead to 22-16 and two kills by Nelson gave the Badgers their first set win.

The Badgers carried their momentum into the fourth set as stingy backcourt defense set up the UW attack well. Back-to-back kills by Gillis and Bates put Wisconsin up 8-5. A pivotal block by junior Lauren Carlini and Williams along with an ace by Nelson keyed a 7-3 Badger run to bring the score to 15-9. Kills from Williams and Bates extended UW's lead to 19-12. A 4-1 Florida run cut the lead to 20-16 and the Gators would make it a one-point game twice, including at 23-22. In a must-win situation, the Badgers rose to the occasion as Gillis put down a kill to bring set point and a Gator error forced the fifth set.

On defense, the Gators outblocked the Badgers 12-4.5, a season-low blocks for UW, but Wisconsin had a 63-46 advantage in digs. Carlini recorded 19 digs and 59 assists to record her 15th double-double, while senior Taylor Morey added 17 saves and Gillis contributed 10 digs to earn her fifth double-double of the season.

At the net, Nelson, Williams and Kriskova totaled two blocks apiece.

"I'm extremely appreciative of the coaching staff and I'm extremely appreciative of the way we battled tonight," Morey said of her final match in the Cardinal and White. "Florida came out and they played really well. We started out a little rocky and couldn't find our rhythm at first but throughout the match we slowly did. It came down to the last couple of points but unfortunately we weren't able to come up with a few plays at the end."

The Badgers lose only Morey to graduation, returning six starters and 12 letterwinners.

University of Wisconsin Athletics

Badgers fall in five sets to Florida

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Players Mentioned

Kelli Bates

Lauren Carlini

Madison Duello

Lauryn Gillis

Haleigh Nelson

Tionna Williams

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