Charlie Fuerbringer celebrates after a point against Illinois.
Ashley Steltenpohl
0
Illinois Illini 7-5,2-1 Big Ten
3
Winner Wisconsin Wisc 10-1,3-0 Big Ten
Illinois Illini
7-5,2-1 Big Ten
0
Final
3
Wisconsin Wisc
10-1,3-0 Big Ten
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 F
Illinois Illini 15 17 20 (0)
Wisconsin Wisc 25 25 25 (3)

Game Recap: Volleyball | | Maddox Durst

No. 7 Badgers power past Illinois for ninth-straight victory

UW takes advantage of serving runs, strong defense to sweep Fighting Illini

MADISON, Wis. - The No. 7 Wisconsin women's volleyball team earned it's ninth consecutive victory behind a handful of offensive runs and one of their top defensive performances of the season, taking down Illinois (RV) (25-15, 25-16, 25-20) in straight sets. 

The Badgers (10-1, 3-0) notched their third conference win of the year—handing the Fighting Illini (7-4, 2-1) their first Big Ten blemish of the season. The victory marked UW's third-straight sweep, all of which coming in conference play, in addition to the beginning of the Big Ten: Discover Volleyball Challenge. 

Set one provided an assortment of runs between both teams, as the Badgers were able to separate after the match was tied at 9-9. A pair of kills turned in by outside hitter Mimi Colyer highlighted the rally, in addition to a quality swing from right side Madison Quest. 

Illinois responded right away with a 4-0 run of their own, ultimately taking a 15-14 lead. The Badgers answered in a big way, however, putting together an 11-0 burst to dominate the latter half of the set to win the first set 25-15. Wisconsin was paced by the serving run of Colyer, who tallied four kills and a service ace in the process. UW racked up 17 digs in the first set, too. 

Set two provided a similar storyline as the Badgers utilized a 9-0 run behind the serving of middle blocker Natalie Wardlow to give the unit a 15-6 lead. Wardlow finished with a service ace in that stretch, while middle blocker Carter Booth found a rhythm with a couple of kills. 

Wisconsin coasted to a 25-17 victory in set two, bouncing back quickly from a 5-0 run from the Fighting Illini. Setter Charlie Fuerbringer capped it off on a high note, as the sophomore earned back-to-back kills via setter dumps to give UW the 2-0 advantage. 

After Illinois cut the Badgers' lead to 13-12 in set three, Wisconsin continued to put together a strong effort on the defensive end—allowing the offense to take over in the final set of the match. The Badgers found their block with the help of Booth, Quest, Andrew and Vajagic—taking a 24-15 lead into the late stages of set three.

A hitting error from Illinois wrapped up Thursday's battle, as Wisconsin finished with a season-high in digs in a three-set match—racking up 57 in total. 

Libero Kristen Simon led the way in that department with 14, using the help of freshman Aniya Warren, who earned double-digit digs for the second time this season with 10. 

For the 11th consecutive match, Colyer finished with double-digit kills, this time leading the Badgers at 16. Vajagic followed suit with 10 kills of her own, marking the fourth match in double-digits for the redshirt sophomore. Booth continued her efficient streak on the front line, as the senior led Wisconsin in hitting percentage at .455 (6 - 1 - 11), complementing her six blocks.

Fuerbringer rounded out the Badgers on the offensive end, putting together her second game in a row with 38 assists—adding in eight digs, three kills and a pair of blocks as well. 

Straight from the Court: 
Head Coach Kelly Sheffield (on tonight's performance): "I just thought our team played steady tonight. We played within ourselves and that allowed us to get on some of these really nice long runs that we had tonight."

(On younger players stepping up): "These guys are just getting their career started. They've got very high ceilings and they're hungry. They are confident and believe in themselves."

Setter Charlie Fuerbringer (on the execution of tonight's gameplan): "I think it's just us coming together and the person behind the service line doing their job, getting them out of system. We knew what that team was doing. We scouted well and just did our jobs. We stayed steady as Kelly said and played very mature.

Libero Kirsten Simon (on her mentality at libero): "I would say my mindset this game was 'just come at me.' I wanted to pass the ball. Just working on being really aggressive and passing every ball."

Notes:
  • Badgers totaled 56 digs against Illinois, setting a new season-high for most digs in a three-set match.
  • With the win, Wisconsin extends it's win streak to nine.
  • Outside hitter Mimi Colyer once again reached double-digit kills. Colyer tallied a match-high 16 kills on 35 swings, while also hitting .345. She has now reached double-digit kills in every single match so far this season.
  • For the eighth time this year, the Badgers have out-blocked it's opponent. Wisconsin reached 10.0 blocks to Illinois' 6.0.
  • Also for the eighth time this year, Wisconsin has swept it's opponent 3-0.
  • Outside hitter Una Vajagic reached double-digit kills for the fourth time this season after recording a 10-kill performance over the Illini.
Up Next: The Badgers are back in action on Sunday, Oct. 5, where they will host the Silent Set Match when they take on Michigan. The match is set to start at 1:00 p.m. CT and will be streamed on B1G+. Silent Set t-shirts can be purchased at Bucky's Locker Room on campus.
 
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