MADISON, Wis. - The No. 7 Wisconsin volleyball team continued its winning ways to wrap up non-conference play, as they came back and defeated No. 15 Florida in four sets (19-25, 25-22, 25-20, 36-34) at the Kohl Center Classic in front of a crowd of 12,277.

In set one, the Badgers (7-1) utilized a quick 4-0 burst to take the lead early. The Gators (5-4) responded quickly, using their stingy defense to find their rhythm on the offensive end. After a kill from outside hitter Grace Egan tied the match at 16-16, Florida rattled off six consecutive points to earn the 22-16 lead.

A solo block from outside hitter Madison Quest cut into the Gators' advantage, but it was not enough by set one's conclusion with Florida taking the early advantage 25-19.

The Badgers provided an answer in set two, led by the likes of outside hitter Mimi Colyer and middle blocker Carter Booth. Colyer tallied multiple kills towards the first half of the set, finishing the afternoon with a season-high at 27. The senior earned her second double-double as a Badger, and she added 14 digs by the end of the match. 

Booth notched a clutch block in the late stages of the second set, tallying a kill in the process to secure the 25-22 victory to even the match heading into the third set. 

UW took advantage of that momentum in the later stages of set three, battling back-and-forth with the Gators to begin. With the Badgers leading 20-19, the unit was able to win five of the next six rallies to earn their first advantage of the match. 

Colyer gave Wisconsin the lead by accumulating three-straight kills, all off of assists from setter Charlie Fuerbringer to power the Badgers past Florida in set three with a 25-20 final score. 

Both teams remained resilient in set four, which saw 19 ties and nine lead changes. UW and the Gators went to extra points after the Badgers erased a deficit early on. A pair of Colyer kills, in addition to one of Fuerbringer's three kills on the afternoon allowed Wisconsin to tie set four at 14-14. 

From there, the teams each traded rallies, with neither gaining much separation. The Badgers took advantage of an attack error while down 34-33, winning the next two points to secure their sixth-straight victory. 

Outside hitter Una Vajagic and Colyer provided the big swings to wrap up Sunday's battle, as the Badgers won 3-1 in front of the UW faithful. 

Egan, Colyer, Fuerbringer and Vajagic all tallied double-doubles against the Gators—including a season-high in assists for Fuerbringer at 50. 

Booth was a staple in the middle once again for the Badgers—concluding a strong week on the court. The senior earned a season-high nine blocks to lead UW to 17 in total, their best mark on the year. 

Straight from the Court:
Head Coach Kelly Sheffield (on today's match overall): "I think everybody was treated to a special match. Just two tough-minded, resilient teams that are going to grow a lot from that match. It's a great match. Win or lose, certainly we're happier that we won, no question about it, but win or lose, it's just one of those matches that you get excited for and hope for going into the conference season. I thought defensively, we got better as the match went on. We were grinding."

(On what the team has learned through non-conference play): "We're getting better. We've said that from the very beginning, I think this team is going to be really fun to watch grow. I think every week, we've seen some growth from this group. That's what gets you excited as a competitor. That's what gets you excited as a coach, when you're watching people grow and going through hard times together and embracing that."

Outside Hitter Mimi Colyer (on the team's performance): "As a whole we settled into the match. Our passing got a lot better, I think we were able to utilize more people so it gave me some better looks. I think Charlie does a really good job of spreading the offense."

Middle Blocker Carter Booth (on the team's versatility, mindset): "I think teams that rely on runs to win are teams that put themselves in positions of weakness. I think our versatility as Mimi was saying, the amount of weapons that we have and the type of game that were able to play where yes we can get on runs, but today we proved we can also get in the mud and go point for point with a team. I think that is a skill that's priceless going into Big Ten play."

Notes:

• The Badgers totaled 17.0 blocks in the match, setting a new season-high. Wisconsin had 15.0 blocks against Kansas on Aug. 29. The 17.0 blocks marks the 12th highest block total this season in the NCAA in a four-set match.
• Outside hitter Mimi Colyer hit a match-high and season-high 27 kills while also hitting .339 (27-6-62). Colyer added 14 digs for her second double-double of the season and 38th of her career.
• Setter Charlie Fuerbringer set a season-best 50 assists and recorded her fourth double-double of the season and 15th of her career adding 10 digs.
• Senior Carter Booth totaled nine blocks for a new season-best.
• Both Grace Egan and Una Vajagic also recorded double-doubles with an 11 kill, 12 digs and 10 kills, 12 dig performances. Egan tallied her second double-double of the season while Vajagic totaled her third.
• The match totaled 46 ties with 19 ties alone in the fourth set.
• With the 3-1 victory over Florida, this marks the first victory for Wisconsin against Florida when playing in Madison. Entering today's match, Wisconsin had never beat Florida in Wisconsin.

Up Next: The Badgers will be back in action at home, this time beginning conference play against Rutgers at 7:00 p.m. CT at the UW Field House. The match will be streamed on B1G+.