DEKALB, Ill. - The No. 2 Wisconsin volleyball team swept Northern Illinois Saturday night to close out it's non-conference schedule undefeated. Behind a trio of freshman, the Badgers (8-0) defeated the Huskies 25-16, 25-11, 25-18.
For the second-straight match, it was Julia Orzol and Anna Smrek along with fellow freshman Lauren Jardine who led the Badgers.
It was a career night for outside hitter Jardine, recording a career-high 14 kills while hitting a career high .565 (14 kills - 1 error - 23 attempts). She also contributed a career best two digs.
Orzol also added to the win with eight kills and a career high three service aces. Defensively, she accounted for three blocks and nine digs, both career bests. Middle blocker Anna Smrek added a career best eight kills while hitting the second highest hitting percentage of the night at .636 (8-1-11), and adding one block.
The first two sets were dominated by the Badgers. Wisconsin was able to close the first set on a 12-5 run and the second set with a six-point streak. As a team, the Badgers hit .458 (14-3-24) during the first set for their highest hitting percentage of the night.
The Huskies stormed back for the third set, putting up a fight. After leading 13-10, Wisconsin went on a three-point run fueled by two Orzol service aces. The Badgers kept their lead but steady play by Northern Illinois kept the score close. Up 24-18, Jardine's record-setting 14th kill gave the Badgers the sweep.
Offensively, Dana Rettke led the team with a .667 (10-0-15) hitting percentage, followed closely by Smrek. Behind the service line, Wisconsin recorded seven aces compared to the Huskies with only one service ace and nine service errors. Orzol had a team-best three aces with Joslyn Boyer counting for two.
Defensively, Wisconsin out-blocked Northern Illinois 12-4. Rettke accounted for five total blocks and Orzol recorded three. Giorgia Civita helped the Badgers get the edge in digs with 36 to the Huskies' 29, recording 10 personal followed by Orzol with nine.
Hilley put up 34 assists in running the Badger offense as UW hit .404 (44-8-89) while holding NIU to .176 (30-14-91).
Straight from the Court
Lauren Jardine
"Makes my mom proud. I just focused on staying high and hitting the deep corners. It was really easy for me to practice that and do it in the game.
"I felt really excited. Everyone works really hard in practice and I was excited to get my chance to show what I got. I'm really excited to be with this team and see how the Big Ten handles us."
Head Coach Kelly Sheffield
"Offensively, I thought (Jardine) was pretty good. Quite a few errors defensively that we have got to certainly clean up. The other thing is she started mixing up her shots as the match went on… Considering she was hitting .070 going in to the match and almost .600 coming out, it would be a confidence booster for anyone. She's got an unbelievable amount of potential, she's learning, and this was a good match for her.
"To be fair, (Smrek) has a foot height advantage over anyone on the other side of the net. She's going up against some big people during practice but this was a good weekend with both of them. It will start getting real next weekend with the Big Ten.
"We are a work in progress, like anyone else. We've had some really good moments and things we certainly have to get better at, which is fun! It's a fun place to be. You want to be a team that has potential to keep getting better."
Notes to Know
- Freshman Lauren Jardine had an incredible match, recording a career-high 14 kills while hitting .667 (14K-1E-23TA). She also added a career best two digs.
- Junior Joslyn Boyer played in set No. 200 for her career.
- Wisconsin was blocked only twice, the second-lowest block total by an opponent this season.
- Freshman Julia Orzol had a career-high three service, including two in the third set. The 6-foot outside hitter also added a career best nine digs and tied her career high with three blocks.
- Freshman Anna Smrek turned in her second-straight career match, tallying a career-high eight kills on 11 attempts tonight. She also tied her career-high with one block.
Up Next
The Badgers start Big Ten play on Friday when they travel to College Park, Maryland, to take on the Maryland Terrapins. First serve is at 6 p.m. CT on Friday. The weekend continues with a match at Rutgers on Saturday at 6 p.m. CT from Piscataway, New Jersey. Both matches will be streamed live on Big Ten+.
