Badgers volleyball takes down Oregon

(UW ATHLETICS) EUGENE, Ore. – The No. 12 Wisconsin volleyball team answered back to take down Oregon (26-28, 25-23, 25-22, 27-25) at the Ducks’ home arena for the first time in program history, winning three-straight sets in Eugene to sweep the weekend. 

The Badgers (15-3, 8-2) found their rhythm early on in set one, leaping out to a 13-4 behind two lengthy runs, highlighted by the serving runs of outside hitters Grace Egan and Mimi Colyer. 

The Ducks (13-7, 4-6) were quick to respond though, as they exploded for a 7-0 run and took their first lead of the match at 19-18 later in the first set. The teams continued to trade rallies, but the Oregon offense was able to pull through and secure a victory in extra points and win 28-26.

UW put together a resilient effort in set two, falling behind early before coming back to tie the match. The Ducks led late by a score of 20-17, as the Badgers fought back by winning five of the next six rallies to take a 22-21 lead. 

Oregon provided three errors down the final stretch to allow Wisconsin to knot up the match at 1-1 entering set three. 

Neither team could find much separation in the third set, as Colyer’s 10th kill of the afternoon gave the Badgers a 15-14 advantage. The senior has turned in double-digit kill totals in 17 matches this year, finishing the day with a team-high 18.

Wisconsin found some separation with the help of defensive specialist Maile Chan, who brought a spark on the defensive end. Chan notched a dig that led to a kill from outside hitter Una Vajagic, in addition to providing a strong serve to get the Ducks out of system and close out set three with a 25-22 final score. 

Oregon enjoyed a 4-1 run in the middle of set four to create a 14-9 lead, utilizing their advantage throughout the majority of the set. The Badgers responded with a late flurry with the help of a service ace from Egan, followed by an attack error to tie it up at 24-24 and force extra points for the second time on the day. 

UW took advantage of a service error to get the lead at 26-25, and then used a free ball to set up Colyer for her final kill at Matthew Knight Arena, concluding her return to her former school—flying from the back row to put the Ducks away with a 27-25 score. 

The Badgers went on to win their second-straight match in four sets, going undefeated on their west coast trip for the second consecutive year. 

Vajagic was steady on the offensive end with 13 kills and six digs, turning in a .375 hitting percentage, good for her highest mark in the conference slate. 

The middle blockers for UW continued to be efficient, as the combination of seniors Carter Booth and Alicia Andrew were the sparks on the front row. Booth tied a season-high nine kills with only one hitting error, while Andrew finished with a swinging percentage of .750 (6 – 0 – 8). 

Libero Kristen Simon continued to excel on the defensive end, leading the Badgers with 14 digs. The freshman has earned double-digit digs in nine consecutive matches. 

To round out Wisconsin’s top performers, setter Addy Horner turned in her second-highest number of assists on the year with 44. 

Straight from the Court
Head Coach Kelly Sheffield (on continuing to grow): “We were in this similar match against USC last week at our place, and I thought the only other thing is being able to have a match like that on the road. And, that was this. It was a battle, proud of our kids and how they stuck with it and just battled.”

Outside Hitter Mimi Colyer (on what the Big Ten Conference brings): “Every night in the Big Ten is going to a battle, we saw such a close game. That could have been anyone’s game and I think we’re going to see that throughout the rest of Big Ten play. It’s such a good conference, it’s the best conference for volleyball.”