Serving up six: Wisconsin hosts NCAA Regional

Thursday, December 8

Madison, Wis.

4:30 p.m.

Wisconsin Badgers

Penn State

Tickets

The Badgers celebrate winning a point on the court by cheering each other on.

Photo by: Greg Anderson

Serving up six: Wisconsin hosts NCAA Regional

December 05, 2022 | Volleyball

2022 NCAA Bracket

Badgers host Big Ten foe Penn State on Thursday

By: Diane Nordstrom

Venue	UW Field House, Madison, Wis.
TV	ESPNU
Radio	WIBA 13 10AM (Thursday) \| FoxSports 1070 (Saturday)
Match Notes	Wisconsin \| Penn State \| Pittsburgh \| Florida
Live Stats	NCAA.com
Social Media	Facebook \| Twitter \| Instagram
Tickets	UW Athletic Ticket Office (All-Sessions SOLD OUT)
Parking	NCAA Parking Map

MADISON, Wis. -- Second-ranked and top-seeded Wisconsin (27-3) hosts the Wisconsin Regional on Thursday and Saturday in the UW Field House. No. 6 Pittsburgh (29-3), seeded No. 2 in the region, takes on 12th-ranked and third-seed Florida (25-5) in the first regional semifinal at 2:30 p.m. on Thursday. Wisconsin (27-3) faces 11th-ranked and fourth-seeded Penn State (26-7) in the second regional semifinal, 30 minutes after the conclusion of the first match. Semifinal winners advance to the regional final on Saturday at 7 p.m. All matches air live on ESPNU.

1. SWEET 16, AGAIN! The Badgers make their 10th straight appearance in NCAA Regional play. Wisconsin is 62-24 (.721) all-time record in the program's 25th NCAA tournament appearances. UW is 34-8 under head coach Kelly Sheffield in its 10th-straight year in the championship.

2. WE LOVE THE FIELD HOUSE! Wisconsin is 15-0 in the UW Field House this season, on track for its first undefeated season in the facility. UW is 454-177 (.719) in its 43rd year of competition in the building, including a 130-21 (.861) record under head coach Kelly Sheffield.

3. 20 AND COUNTING: UW extended its winning streak to 20 matches with two wins last week, downing Quinnipiac and TCU in the first and second rounds, respectively, of the NCAA tournament. The active win streak ranks on the Wisconsin record list, just two short of the school record, and ties for second nationally.

4. DOMINATING AT THE NET: Wisconsin opened NCAA play with a 2-0 record thanks to dominating play at the net. UW hit .352 while holding opponents to a negative .043. The Badgers outblocked the two teams, 21-2, and outserved them, 13-2, in service aces.

5. BADGER BLOCK! Wisconsin continues to be one of the nation's best blocking teams, ranking second with 3.04 blocks per set. That mark is on track to break the current UW season record under 25-point rally scoring of 2.68 per set, established in 2015 and 2018. The Badgers have double-figure blocks in 18 matches this season, including 14 of the last 19 matches. Graduate student Danielle Hart ranks sixth nationally and third in the Big Ten with 1.52 blocks per set. Junior Caroline Crawford adds 1.39 blocks per set, which ranks 19th nationally and seventh in the conference.

6. STOPPING OPPONENTS: The Badgers rank sixth in the nation and second in the Big Ten, allowing opponents to hit just .147. Nine opponents have hit less than .100 this season, including both NCAA opponents last weekend. Quinnipiac hit a negative .144, the second foe to hit negative this season, while TCU hit .051. Twenty-one foes have hit less than .200 this year, including 14 of 20 Big Ten opponents.