Saddle Up: No. 3 Badgers advance to Regional Semifinals

Friday, December 5

Madison, WI

7:00 PM

Wisconsin Badgers

26-4,17-3Big Ten

North Carolina

22-9,14-6ACC

North Carolina

Wisconsin

Saddle Up: No. 3 Badgers advance to Regional Semifinals

December 05, 2025 | Volleyball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)Post-Match Press Conference

UW sweeps North Carolina in Second Round

By: Maddox Durst

MADISON, Wis. - The No. 3 seeded Wisconsin volleyball team punched their ticket to the Regional Semifinals for the 13th consecutive season with their second sweep in as many days, this time defeating North Carolina (25-14, 25-21, 27-25) in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament.

UW maintained their momentum from their First Round battle right away in set one, putting together a 15-9 advantage with a potent attack on the offensive end.

The Badgers (26-4) were able to close out the first frame behind a 4-0 run, highlighted by a pair of kills turned in by outside hitter Mimi Colyer. Setter Charlie Fuerbringer was able to cap it off with a kill of her own, tallying eight between the pair of matches this weekend.

After a back-and-forth affair to begin the second set, Wisconsin found some separation by winning four-of-five rallies to build a 12-7 lead. The Tar Heels provided a quick response to bring it within 18-17 with the help of their physical block.

Outside hitter Una Vajagic and right side Grace Egan each racked up a kill to force a North Carolina (22-9) timeout. Egan wrapped up the set two with another kill, as the Badgers went on to win three of the four last points.

Wisconsin and the Tar Heels continued to trade points throughout the majority of the third set, which saw 19 ties and 10 lead changes. Colyer accumulated her 20th kill of the match in the process—giving UW a narrow 14-13 lead at the midway point of the set.

Vajagic recorded six kills in the set, providing a spark on the offensive side of the ball. The redshirt sophomore continued to excel for the Badgers, concluding the match with 12 kills on a .435 hitting percentage.

Late in the set, North Carolina fought back to force extra points by winning three-straight points. Outside hitter Trinity Shadd-Ceres and libero Maile Chan entered late and made an instant impact, highlighted by a block from Shadd-Ceres and a pair of digs turned in by Chan. UW made one final push to officially advance in the NCAA Tournament, led by a resilient effort on the defensive end—converting on a trio of kills to wrap up the match.

Colyer, in her final match at the UW Field House, ended a lengthy rally with a kill to seal the victory. The senior finished with 22 on the evening, the 11th time this year where she has accumulated 20 or more. The five-time Big Ten Player of the Week also earned her eighth double-double of the season, adding 13 digs.

Egan joined Colyer in the double-double department, emerging as a staple on the defensive end with 11 digs, complemented by her 11 kills. Libero Kristen Simon put together another standout showing defensively as well, totaling a team-high 16 digs. The freshman added eight assists to wrap up a strong week of play in her NCAA Tournament debut.

On the front line, Fuerbringer led the way with 43 assists—powering the Badgers to a hitting percentage of .365 (60 - 14 - 126) against one of the strongest blocks in the country.

Middle blocker Carter Booth was one of the beneficiaries, turning in her third-straight errorless match with eight kills on 16 attempts. After tonight's performance, Booth will enter Texas swinging .540 (27 - 0 - 50) in her past three matches.

SADDLE UP! 🤠

The Badgers are MOVING ON to the Lone Star State!!#OnWisconsin || @UWHealth pic.twitter.com/RYGsPNi4KZ
— Wisconsin Volleyball (@BadgerVB) December 6, 2025

Straight from the Court

Head Coach Kelly Sheffield (on continuing to build confidence down the stretch): "It's earned through work. Confidence is earned by the work you put in; it's earned by how you talk to yourself. It's been something that these guys have worked a lot on, not just having an individual confidence, but a collective confidence."

(On the performance of outside hitters Una Vajagic and Mimi Colyer): "These two hitting over .400 against one of the best blocking teams in the country is just a ridiculous number. They got some blocks on us, but we stayed aggressive and we continued to accelerate and hit good shots and know when to be patient."

Outside Hitter Mimi Colyer (on playing one last time in the Field House): "Coming to Wisconsin has been the best decision I have ever made. This program and this fan base is just so special. Just the love that we have for each other and the love this fan base has for each other is just so special. It's incredible, there's nothing like it."

Outside Hitter Una Vajagic (on building on her first postseason run): "I feel it was great tonight, playing with my team and having their backs all of the time was such a huge thing for me. Just with them behind me, I felt super confident and I'm so excited."

Notes:

With the 3-0 sweep over North Carolina, Wisconsin will advance to the NCAA Regional Semifinals for the 23rd time in program history and 13th-consecutive season under head coach Kelly Sheffield.
The victory also moves Wisconsin to 72-29 all-time in the NCAA Tournament, and 21-5 in the Second Round of the tournament.
The Badgers had three players with double-figure digs, Kristen Simon (16), Mimi Colyer (13), and Grace Egan (11).
Senior Mimi Colyer recorded her eighth double-double of the season and 44th of her career with a 22 kill, 13 dig performance.
Right Grace Egan totaled her fourth double-double of the season, eighth of her career with an 11 kill, 11 dig performance.
Wisconsin also had three players with double-figure kills, Colyer
Wisconsin totaled 56 digs, tying a season-high for most digs in a three-set match.
With 57 assists, Wisconsin totaled it's second-highest assist mark for the season in a three-set match.
For the 16th consecutive match, Colyer totaled double-figure kills at 23, and her 11th match with 20 or more kills this season. She also tied Ellen Chapman (2013) in program history for most consecutive matches with double-figure kills.
In consecutive nights, senior Carter Booth recorded another error-less match. She tallied eight kills on 16 swings for a .500 hitting percentage.

Up Next: The Badgers will await their next opponent in the Regional Semifinals down in Austin, Texas. The date and time for the match is still to be determined.