Badgers sweep UIC in exhibition

MADISON, Wis. – For the first time in program history, the Wisconsin volleyball team played another opponent in preseason play.

It was no different than the regular season for the No. 2 Badgers as they swept UIC 25-13, 25-12, 25-18 on Saturday afternoon in the UW Field House. The two teams also played a fourth set with Wisconsin winning 25-19.

Wisconsin dominated the match at the net, hitting .284 (38 kills – 15 errors – 81 attempts) for the first three sets while holding UIC to negative .051 (17-21-78). The Badgers saved their best for last, hitting .405 (19-4-37) in the fourth set.

Redshirt junior Sarah Franklin led all hitters with 15 kills in three sets with no errors while hitting .625 (15-0-24). Junior Anna Smrek and senior Devyn Robinson added six and five kills, respectively. Eight UW hitters all recorded two-or-more kills.

Poetry in motion. pic.twitter.com/de4m39aHqh
— Wisconsin Volleyball (@BadgerVB) August 19, 2023

In the fourth set, junior Julia Orzol led all players with six kills while Franklin added four more putaways to her total.

The Badgers used strong defense to stop the Flames, outblocking UIC 11-4 while also finishing with a 37-24 advantage in digs through three sets. UW added 20 digs in the fourth set.

Sophomore Carter Booth led all players with nine blocks while sophomore Gulce Guctekin had nine digs in three sets. Franklin had eight digs in three sets and added two more saves in the fourth set for a double-double of 19 kills and 10 digs over the match. Freshman Saige Damrow started at libero in the fourth set, recording nine digs.

Wisconsin continued running its 6-2 offense with Izzy Ashburn and MJ Hammill both putting up 22 assists in four sets.

The Badgers also had a strong day at the service line, finishing with nine service aces in four sets. Ashburn, Booth and Guctekin all recorded two aces. Wisconsin gave up only one ace by the Flames.

Straight from the Court

Head Coach Kelly Sheffield
"It was great to play an opponent. I think to get out there in front of the crowd and work through some different things and some different lineups is great. We had a lot of really good moments today and a lot of things to learn in order to sharpen the blade, but I would say and these guys would all share, it's fun being back."

Sarah Franklin
"It just felt great to be back. There's no other way to put it. I was ready to get back with these girls because there was no place that I'd rather be than on the court with these players. I was just excited, didn't really have many thoughts going into it, just all right, let's go … it's go time."

Julia Orzol on playing libero:
"I was, for sure, excited; it's something new. I didn't have much experience with that position before, but I'm doing the stuff that I basically was doing. I'm passing, I'm digging just in a different zone, but I feel like the fact that your main responsibility is just passing and digging can be dangerous because it may get you stuck in a mindset that I have to be perfect at every time. I balance this mindset of still ball-out the same, the same way … having fun and not a big difference, to be honest. Just excited to be on the court and contribute."

Up Next

The Badgers open the regular season next weekend when they travel to Minneapolis for the Big Ten/Big 12 Challenge. Wisconsin takes on No. 15 Baylor on Friday at 4:30 p.m. and TCU on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. at Maturi Pavilion on the University of Minnesota campus. Both matches will be streamed live on Big Ten Network.