Photo by: Chad Mosley
Volleyball selected as unanimous preseason Big Ten favorite
January 20, 2021 | Volleyball
Hilley, Rettke and Haggerty earned preseason honors
MADISON, Wis. –Wisconsin was unanimously chosen as the Big Ten Conference favorite for the 2020-21 volleyball season, the league office announced on Wednesday. The preseason poll and 14-player preseason All-Big Ten team was voted on by the Big Ten coaches.
Â
The reigning Big Ten champions (27-7, 18-2 B1G in 2019) begin their 2020-21 campaign ranked No. 1 by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA). It is the sixth straight season the Badgers open a season ranked among the top-10 teams in the country and only the second time in program history ranked first in the nation.
Â
Minnesota (27-6, 17-3), ranked seventh nationally, was selected No. 2 in the preseason poll and Nebraska (28-5, 17-3) was tabbed third. Penn State (27-6, 17-3) was voted to finish fourth, while Purdue (24-8, 14-6) rounded out the top five of the preseason poll.
Â
Wisconsin's Sydney Hilley and Dana Rettke both earned unanimous Preseason All-Big Ten honors while the Badgers' Molly Haggerty was also named to the honor team.
Rettke, a 6-foot-8 middle blocker, was named the 2019 Big Ten Conference Player of the Year and the 2019-20 Big Ten Female Athlete of the Year. One of the country's best middle blockers, Rettke is a three-time first-team All-American and three-time All-Big Ten honoree. As a junior, she led the Big Ten with 1.45 blocks per set, in addition to leading the Badgers and ranking third in the Big Ten with a .390 hitting percentage. She also led UW and ranked fifth in the conference with 3.75 kills per set
The 2019 Big Ten Setter of the Year, Hilley earned first-team All-America honors in 2019 after ranking fourth nationally and leading the Big Ten with 11.92 assists per set. The 6-foot setter is a two-time first-team All-Big Ten selection.
Â
A 6-foot-1 outside hitter, Haggerty earned second-team All-America honors in 2019 after being named a third-team pick in 2016. Haggerty ranked second on the Badger team with 3.57 kills per set while hitting .266 as a redshirt junior.
Â
The Badgers open the 2020-21 season on Friday and Saturday, hosting No. 13 Purdue in the UW Field House. First serve is at 5:30 p.m. on Friday while Saturday's match starts at 8 p.m. Both matches air live on the Big Ten Network.
Â
2020-21 PRESEASON ALL-BIG TEN TEAM
Erika Pritchard, Sr., OH, Maryland
Paige Jones, Jr., OH, Michigan
Regan Pittman, Sr., MB, Minnesota
Stephanie Samedy, Sr., OPP, Minnesota
Lauren Stivrins, Sr., MB, Nebraska
Lexi Sun, Sr., OH, Nebraska
Serena Gray, Jr., M, Penn State
Kaitlyn Hord, Jr., M, Penn State
Jonni Parker. Jr., OH, Penn State
Grace Cleveland, Jr., OPP/M, Purdue
Caitlyn Newton, Sr., OH, Purdue
Molly Haggerty, Sr., OH, Wisconsin
SYDNEY HILLEY, SR., S, WISCONSIN
DANA RETTKE, SR., MB, WISCONSIN
Â
2020-21 PRESEASON POLL
1. WISCONSIN
2. Minnesota
3. Nebraska
4. Penn State
5. Purdue
6. Michigan
7. Ohio State
8. Illinois
9. Michigan State
10. Northwestern
11. Indiana
12. Maryland
13. Iowa
14. Rutgers
Â
ALL CAPS INDICATES UNANIMOUS SELECTION
Â
Â
The reigning Big Ten champions (27-7, 18-2 B1G in 2019) begin their 2020-21 campaign ranked No. 1 by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA). It is the sixth straight season the Badgers open a season ranked among the top-10 teams in the country and only the second time in program history ranked first in the nation.
Â
Minnesota (27-6, 17-3), ranked seventh nationally, was selected No. 2 in the preseason poll and Nebraska (28-5, 17-3) was tabbed third. Penn State (27-6, 17-3) was voted to finish fourth, while Purdue (24-8, 14-6) rounded out the top five of the preseason poll.
Â
Wisconsin's Sydney Hilley and Dana Rettke both earned unanimous Preseason All-Big Ten honors while the Badgers' Molly Haggerty was also named to the honor team.
Rettke, a 6-foot-8 middle blocker, was named the 2019 Big Ten Conference Player of the Year and the 2019-20 Big Ten Female Athlete of the Year. One of the country's best middle blockers, Rettke is a three-time first-team All-American and three-time All-Big Ten honoree. As a junior, she led the Big Ten with 1.45 blocks per set, in addition to leading the Badgers and ranking third in the Big Ten with a .390 hitting percentage. She also led UW and ranked fifth in the conference with 3.75 kills per set
The 2019 Big Ten Setter of the Year, Hilley earned first-team All-America honors in 2019 after ranking fourth nationally and leading the Big Ten with 11.92 assists per set. The 6-foot setter is a two-time first-team All-Big Ten selection.
Â
A 6-foot-1 outside hitter, Haggerty earned second-team All-America honors in 2019 after being named a third-team pick in 2016. Haggerty ranked second on the Badger team with 3.57 kills per set while hitting .266 as a redshirt junior.
Â
The Badgers open the 2020-21 season on Friday and Saturday, hosting No. 13 Purdue in the UW Field House. First serve is at 5:30 p.m. on Friday while Saturday's match starts at 8 p.m. Both matches air live on the Big Ten Network.
Â
2020-21 PRESEASON ALL-BIG TEN TEAM
Erika Pritchard, Sr., OH, Maryland
Paige Jones, Jr., OH, Michigan
Regan Pittman, Sr., MB, Minnesota
Stephanie Samedy, Sr., OPP, Minnesota
Lauren Stivrins, Sr., MB, Nebraska
Lexi Sun, Sr., OH, Nebraska
Serena Gray, Jr., M, Penn State
Kaitlyn Hord, Jr., M, Penn State
Jonni Parker. Jr., OH, Penn State
Grace Cleveland, Jr., OPP/M, Purdue
Caitlyn Newton, Sr., OH, Purdue
Molly Haggerty, Sr., OH, Wisconsin
SYDNEY HILLEY, SR., S, WISCONSIN
DANA RETTKE, SR., MB, WISCONSIN
Â
2020-21 PRESEASON POLL
1. WISCONSIN
2. Minnesota
3. Nebraska
4. Penn State
5. Purdue
6. Michigan
7. Ohio State
8. Illinois
9. Michigan State
10. Northwestern
11. Indiana
12. Maryland
13. Iowa
14. Rutgers
Â
ALL CAPS INDICATES UNANIMOUS SELECTION
Â
Players Mentioned
NCAA National Semifinal Post-Match Press Conference || Kentucky
Thursday, December 18
NCAA National Semifinal Prematch Press Conference || Kentucky
Wednesday, December 17
Cinematic Highlights || Texas
Tuesday, December 16
Post-Match Media Conference || Texas
Sunday, December 14
