No. 10 Badgers soar past Hawkeyes

Sunday, November 23

Madison, WI

1 PM

Wisconsin Badgers

22-4,15-3Big Ten

Iowa

14-16,5-13Big Ten

Iowa

Wisconsin

Photo by: David Stluka

No. 10 Badgers soar past Hawkeyes

November 23, 2025 | Volleyball

Box Score Final Box Score (PDF)Post-Match Presser

UW finishes home slate behind prolific offensive showing on senior day

By: Maddox Durst

MADISON, Wis. - The No. 10 Wisconsin volleyball team stifled Iowa in their final home regular season match of the year, defeating the Hawkeyes in straight sets (25-17, 25-15, 25-19) on Senior Day.

The Badgers (22-4, 15-3) extended their winning streak to seven matches behind their top offensive performance of the conference slate against the Hawkeyes (14-16, 5-13), turning in a hitting percentage of .510 (61 - 9 - 102).

Outside hitter Mimi Colyer was the standout in set one, turning in an impressive 10 kills to power the Badgers to a 25-17 victory. Sophomore Trinity Shadd-Ceres entered late and secured the final kill for UW in the first frame.

Right side Grace Egan and middle blocker Carter Booth each chipped in four kills apiece in set one as well.

After a quick Iowa response in the second set, the Badgers enjoyed an 8-0 service run from outside hitter Una Vajagic to build a 16-8 advantage. In that run, Colyer racked up four kills and a block. From there, UW never looked back to take a 2-0 lead in the match, as Egan and Vajagic both tallied a kill to conclude the second frame.

Graduate student Jada Cerniglia recorded her first assist of the season from the back row, as the Cross Plains native set up Egan for a kill in the latter half of the set two.

The Badgers kept their foot on the gas in the third and final set, jumping out to a 6-2 lead with the help of kills from middle blocker Alicia Andrew and Colyer. The teams continued to trade points throughout, as UW used a pair of 3-0 runs to put away Iowa for the second time this season.

The match ended with a kill from Booth in her final home regular season match at the UW Field House, as the senior accumulated eight kills on a .583 hitting percentage.

Colyer continued to dominate on the offensive end, turning in 23 kills on 38 attempts with zero errors. The Lincoln, California, native broke the program's all-time record for most kills in a conference season—passing Badger great Sarah Franklin, who finished with 308. Colyer will enter the final week of the season with 312 kills under her belt. Her 23 kills marks the ninth time she has reached 20 or more this season.

Egan joined Colyer as the other Badger with double-digit kill totals, as the redshirt sophomore accumulated 12 on the afternoon. The Sterling, Illinois, native recorded nine digs in the process.

Setter Charlie Fuerbringer provided an efficient showing once again, finishing with a double-double via her 49 assists and 10 digs. It marks her seventh double-double of the season. Fuerbringer's 49 assists are a season-best in a three-set match. The Badgers tied the school record for most assists as a team in a three-set battle with 59, last doing so against Rutgers in 2016.

Defensively, Vajagic turned in a career-best 16 digs, in addition to tallying seven kills.

UW defeated Iowa for the 10th consecutive match, sweeping the Hawkeyes in each of those. The Badgers have now won 16-straight sets against conference opponents to extend their winning streak to seven.

Straight from the Court
Head Coach Kelly Sheffield (on the team's growth): "I think people can see this team is getting better and better every week, and how they have each others back and how hard they play and how supportive they are of one another, and I think they respect the game with how they play -- the consistency of match in and match out. I thought going into this match these were probably two of the most improved teams in this conference, from the beginning of the season to the end."

(On outside hitter Mimi Colyer and libero Jada Cerniglia): "Mimi's numbers, those are video game numbers. Those are things you just don't see very much. And Jada was able to get in and so glad that she's been a part of this team this year, both of them. How they've gone and fit in and carried on the tradition of what a Badger's supposed to be, it's something that makes you really proud."

Outside Hitter Mimi Colyer (on her performance this afternoon): "It's fun to see those kinds of numbers, but I give all credit to, like Kelly said, we were passing really well. We were able to get a lot of our team involved. We're trying to get our middles involved more and more, and the more that everyone else gets involved, the more it opens me up and the more I'm able to be successful. Charlie [Fuerbringer], she's the best setter in the country, and she just puts up a good ball every single time no matter where she is on the court, and she makes my job so easy."

Defensive Specialist/Libero Jada Cerniglia (on Senior Day): "Throughout the whole season it's been so cool to see how we've gelled together and kind of seen how we peaked at the perfect time up to leading into the tournament. Looking back on my four years at NIU and my very short time here, I just can't help but be thankful for everything that I've experienced throughout my entire career."

Notes:

The Badgers hit .510 (61-4-102) against the Hawkeyes, replacing the Georgia Tech match (.488) on Sept. 12, for third-highest hitting percentage in a three-set match all-time.
Wisconsin's .510 hitting percentage is also the highest hitting percentage this season against a Big Ten opponent.
For the ninth time this season, outside hitter Mimi Colyer reached 20 or more kills. Against the Hawkeyes, Colyer led the Badgers with 23 kills in just three sets. Colyer also surpassed Sarah Franklin (308) for the most kills (312) in Big Ten play.
Outside hitter Una Vajagic set a new career-high with 16 digs.
Setter Charlie Fuerbringer turned in another double-double with 49 assists and 10 digs for her seventh of the season and 17th of her career. Fuerbringer's 49 assists also set a season-high for most assists in a three-set match, replacing her 43 assists against Michigan State on Nov. 14.
The Badgers tied a program record for most kills in a three-set match at 61.
Redshirt sophomore Grace Egan added 12 kills (12-2-18) reaching double-digit kills for the fourth time this season, and first time since Sept. 21 against Florida.
Wisconsin improved to 64-21-1 all-time against Iowa and 34-9-1 when playing at the UW Field House. The sweep over the Hawkeyes marks the 10th-straight win and 10th-straight sweep.

Up Next: The Badgers will enter their final week of conference play to wrap up the regular season, as they will take on Northwestern in Evanston on Wednesday, Nov. 26. First serve is set for 7:00 p.m. CT at Welsh Ryan Arena and the match will be streamed on B1G+.