MADISON, Wis. -- Serving the ball impressively well and playing outstanding defense, the fourth-seeded Wisconsin volleyball team swept Colgate Friday night in the UW Field House to advance to the second round of NCAA tournament play. The Badgers (26-3) finished off the Raiders' season (18-10) with a 25-12, 25-15, 25-14 win.
Wisconsin held down the back court throughout the match, not letting Colgate record a single service ace. On the other side of the net, the Badgers tallied seven aces behind the service line, three from Lauren Barnes and two each for Giorgia Civita and Izzy Ashburn.
The Badgers also finished with a 38-31 advantage in digs, behind a match-high 18 from Barnes. In addition, UW outblocked the Raiders 7-4 behind four stops from Dana Rettke.
From the first point of the first set, the Badgers were in control. The offense was dominated by Rettke, recording a team-best 14 kills and hitting .565 (14 kills - 1 error - 23 attempts). Devyn Robinson and Anna Smrek both added eight kills as Robinson hit .545 (8-2-11) and Smrek hit .462 (8-2-13).
As a team, Wisconsin hit .391 (45-9-92) while holding Colgate to .063 (27-21-95). The Raiders were led by Alli Lowe with 12 kills and a .194 (12-6-31) hitting percentage.
After a 5-5 tie in the first set, Wisconsin went on a 3-0 run to take an 8-5 lead. Sparked by a Grace Loberg kill, the Badgers went on a 9-0 run to extend their lead to 19-8. A Rettke kill and Giorgia Civita service ace were the last two points Wisconsin scored before a Colgate attack error gave the Badgers the first set, 25-12.
As a team, Wisconsin hit an even .500 (15-2-26) during the second set to take home the win. Rettke came out swinging, scoring the first point off an assist from Sydney Hilley. The Badgers cruised their way to a 25-15 win, going on a 3-0 run to take the set. Loberg put the Badgers up 23-15 before two Colgate attack errors closed out the set.
Badger defense was on point during the third set, outblocking the Raiders 4-0. The Badgers took the set behind six kills from Rettke and four from Robinson. Izzy Ashburn recorded two aces.
Straight from the Court
Head Coach Kelly Sheffield
"Colgate has had a fantastic season. [Coach Ryan Baker] has done an amazing job with that program. I really like their lefts, they took some really good swings. I liked how we started. We wanted to be really good with our first contact and we wanted to be physical up at the net with our block. I thought we did really good with both of those.
"I thought it was a strength (serve and pass) for us. I thought most of our servers applied pressure from the service line. I thought our passing was really good. We were in an offensive rhythm."
Middle Blocker Dana Rettke
"I think we came out with the mentality of just riding the ball. It doesn't matter who is on the other side of the net. It doesn't matter if it's tournament or regular season, we are ready to play at all times. From point one, we were playing Badger volleyball tonight. I think our service went back with a lot of confidence. That's where it all starts and the game really comes after that. I thought our servers were really courageous tonight.
"I think when we're on that competitive edge, when we are balling out with each other, having fun, and we're running on all cylinders - that is so much fun for us.
Tomorrow's a new day and we're just ready to attack it. Great team (FGCU), scrappy team. They were down 2-0 and came back and won. That says a lot about a team – really gritty.
"I think there was a different energy in there tonight. It was really awesome to see the student section so full tonight. They're gonna bring all of the juice."
Right-side Hitter Jade Demps
"I don't think you can pick out one thing that made the match – it was everything."
Middle Blocker Devyn Robinson
"We had the mindset to play Badger volleyball and that's what we did.
"I think we prepare for every game the same. Just go with the mindset 'We gotta go out there and attack from point one.' We say that we go out there and do the things right and then the fun comes along with it."
Up Next
The Badgers host Florida Gulf Coast (27-5), a 3-2 upset winner over Texas Tech, on Saturday in the second round of the NCAA tournament. First serve is at 6 p.m. and streamed live on ESPN+.
