Madison, WI – It was a new season for the 13^th-ranked Wisconsin volleyball team as it opened the Big Ten Conference season with a sweep of No. 15 Purdue.  The Badgers downed the Boilermakers 25-22, 29-27, 25-15 on Friday night in the UW Field House.

Junior Dana Rettke led the Badgers' attack with 12 kills, followed by Grace Loberg with 10, as Wisconsin finished with 40 total kills compared to Purdue's 37.

Rettke also held down the net from the defensive side with a match-high six blocks. Tiffany Clark anchored the Wisconsin back row, finishing with 10 digs - her seventh time finishing in double figures this season.

The Badgers won by taking Purdue away from its strengths.

Coming into the match, the Boilermakers led the Big Ten in both hitting percentage (.284) and blocks per set (3.06). The Badgers held Purdue to a .101 (37 kills – 26 errors – 109 attempts) attack percentage, while out-blocking the Boilermakers eight to five. Wisconsin hit .262 (40-12-103) on offense.

Purdue edged Wisconsin 46-41 in digs and 5-2 in service aces.

Every year, our B1G opener is played in honor of the late Steve Lowe.

To remember him and pay respect to his legacy, a scholarship is awarded to the player who most represents the love and passion for the UW Volleyball program.

Congrats to this year's winner, @Mdodge19volley! pic.twitter.com/Qnu79bGk5L

— Wisconsin Volleyball (@BadgerVB) September 28, 2019

Straight from the Court

"I thought it was a really good team effort. I think the other thing that jumped out at me a little is that our side-out percentage kept increasing as the match went on. Early on we were giving up some long runs of points. We kind of settled that down a little bit and started limiting their service runs a little more as the match was going on and I thought that was important." – Head Coach Kelly Sheffield

"I think the mindset going in was that it's a new season, a clean slate. Every game in the Big Ten is going to be a challenge, and we know that going into it.  Purdue is a great team and we knew it was going to be a battle. Out on the court, we were really confident and we brought it. This is our time and I'm really proud of the way that we fought." – Sydney Hilley

"That's a confidence booster, I think we struggled with that for the past four weeks in preseason and just coming into this clean slate saying yes we can do this was just a real big confidence booster." – Dana Rettke

Notes to Know

•           Wisconsin improves to 23-15 all time in Big Ten openers, including 15-8 at home
•           The Badgers defeated their first ranked opponent this season.
•           UW won the second set 29-27, the first time this season it has won a set that went extra points.
•           The Badgers outblocked the Big Ten's top blocking team 8-5.
•           The Boilermakers also entered the match with the conference's top hitting percentage of .284 and Wisconsin held Purdue to .101 in the match. 
•           Senior Tiffany Clark went over 1,200 digs for her career. The 5-foot-11 libero has 963 saves as a Badger. 
•           Redshirt senior Madison Duello picked up her 600th craeer kill tonight.
•           Junior Sydney Hilley recorded 25 assists in the match despite missing much of the first set with a bloody nose.

Up Next

The Badgers will look to stay undefeated in the early stages of the Big Ten season as they take on Indiana at the UW Field House on Sunday, broadcast on BTN Plus at 1 p.m. CT.