EAST LANSING, Mich. - A dominant defensive performance led the No. 3 Wisconsin volleyball team to a sweep at Michigan State on Friday night. The Badgers (14-1, 6-1 B1G) beat the Spartans (8-8, 1-6) 25-20, 25-10, 25-18.
Wisconsin's defense was on point, holding Michigan State to a negative .020 hitting percentage (28 kills - 30 errors - 102 attempts), the lowest by any opponent this season.UW outblocked the Spartans, 9-2, led by Dana Rettke with six total.
Although the Badgers barely took the edge in digs, 40-39, with Lauren Barnes recording a team-best 12 digs, fifth-year senior Sydney Hilley accounted for seven digs, putting her over the 1,000-career dig mark.
The first set began as a back-and-forth battle before the Spartans were able to gain a four-point lead, 7-3. The Badgers slowly chiseled away, tying the score 12-12 before going on a 6-0 run, led by two blocks from Rettke to take a 18-12 lead. A Devyn Robinson kill put the Badgers in set-point position, 24-19, before a Michigan State service error sealed the set, 25-20.
The Badgers spent most of the second game preventing Spartan kills from hitting the floor, holding Michigan State to only 10, Wisconsin went on one five-point rally and two four-point runs to quickly end the set, 25-10.
After tying up the third 2-2 early on, the Badgers held the lead the rest of the set despite back-and-forth runs and a motivated Michigan State team. Wisconsin cruised to a 25-20 win, securing the sweep and their 14th win of the season.
As a team, Wisconsin hit .301 (39-11-93), their first time hitting above .300 since playing Minnesota on Oct 1.. Robinson was the only player to hit double-digit kills (10), followed by Rettke and Loberg each with nine. Robinson led the team with .643 (10-1-14) hitting percentage. She was followed by Jade Demps hitting .556 (5-0-9), a career high for the sophomore.
Behind the service line, Izzy Ashburn was the only Badger to record a service ace (two), falling behind Michigan State's three total.
Straight from the court
Head Coach Kelly Sheffield
"I thought Izzy (Ashburn) totally dominated from behind the service line and digging balls. I thought overall our serving was good, we were putting the balls where we wanted them to.
"Jade (Demps) was very efficient. She put the ball in good areas and is playing with a bit more confidence. She's handling it when balls are being served to her and is a lot more stable in her block. I thought she did a really good job.
"Those are some pretty nice numbers. (Robinson) gets in to space pretty well. I think she's seeing the block a little bit better now. She's hitting with a bit more range than a few weeks ago and it's something she's been working on.
"Grace (Loberg) is working the court really well. She's putting the ball in good areas when she does have a kill. She's playing with a lot of confidence and we're a lot better team when Grace Loberg is playing with confidence.
Notes to Know
- The Badgers extended their winning streak to six straight, their second-longest winning streak of the season.
- Wisconsin held the Spartans to a season-low opponent hitting percentage of negative .020 (28K - 30E - 102 TA).
- Fifth-year senior Sydney Hilley tallied seven digs in the match, going over 1,000 digs for her career. The 6-foot-setter became the 18th Badger to record 1,000 career saves. She is also just the third UW setter to hit 5,000 assists and 1,000 digs.
- Graduate student Lauren Barnes led all players with a match-high 12 digs, her fifth-straight match with 10-plus saves.
Up Next
The Badgers stay in Michigan, traveling to Ann Arbor overnight to take on the Wolverines on Saturday. First serve is at 3:30 p.m. from Crisler Center and broadcasted live on Big Ten Network.
