MADISON – l didn’t win as convincingly as one would count on from a Huge Ten workforce towards a Horizon League foe, however the s humbly left the UW Area Home with a win of their nonconference finale.
The sixth-ranked s defeated e in 4 units, 25-18, 25-18, 22-25, 25-15, on Sept. 18 on the UW Area Home to spice up their file to 6-4 forward of Huge Ten play.
It was the Panthers’ first time profitable a set towards the Badgers since Sept. 14, 2013 – n coach Kelly Sheffield’s first season in Madison. The Panthers additionally compelled eight ties and three lead adjustments within the first set.
“Expertise gained the match,” Sheffield stated. “However I felt like we misplaced the trouble, and that doesn’t occur too many occasions right here.”
Listed below are three takeaways from the Badgers’ less-than-picturesque win:
Third set leaves a lot to be desired for Badgers
Wisconsin’s third set was a puzzlingly dangerous end result. (Whereas the Panthers had been coming off 5 straight wins heading into the Area Home, this additionally was the identical workforce that completed the 2025 season at No. 243 in RPI.)
UWM hit a match-high .345 within the set – significantly above the .238 that the Badgers beforehand allowed all through matches towards principally power-conference competitors.
“It was too excessive of a quantity,” Sheffield stated. “I believe our workforce defensive effort in all probability contributed to that quantity.”
The Badgers additionally didn’t assist themselves in different elements in the course of the third set. They dedicated a match-high six service errors and allowed a crucial 4-0 run that turned a 20-19 lead right into a 23-20 deficit.
The 2013 match when the Panthers final took a set towards the Badgers additionally was the final time that the Panthers even reached 20-plus factors within the all-time sequence. The final time that Wisconsin misplaced by three or extra factors in a set to its easterly neighbor was 2010.
Wisconsin will get a number of gamers concerned
The Badgers’ first eight matches had been solely towards power-conference groups, and the ninth match featured Huge East mainstay Marquette. That left the Sept. 18 match as the best alternative to get a number of bench gamers into the match.
Whereas Kymora Scott had obtained taking part in time at center blocker at different factors within the season, she had an particularly prolonged alternative towards the Panthers. She capitalized with 13 kills whereas hitting .579.
Fellow outdoors hitter Natalie Wardlow additionally began within the second, third and fourth units and completed with eight kills and a .636 hitting proportion. Wardlow spoke extremely of the work that UW setter Charlie Fuerbringer did to place her and Scott in good positions.
“She is aware of methods to get the ball to us, regardless of the place she is on the court docket,” Wardlow stated. “Like with Kymora, she was in a position to string that again, and I believe that simply exhibits the wonderful setter that she is.”
Sixteen of UW’s 18 gamers appeared within the match, and 12 of these 16 gamers recorded no less than one kill. Alyssa Konrad and Morgan Van Wie had been among the many reserves who noticed the court docket, and Van Wie’s serving run on the finish of the fourth set clinched the match.
The number of gamers allowed starter Jaela Auguste to have a lighter workload in her third match (and second begin) since coming back from an damage. Fellow starters Decelise Champion, Lynney Tarnow and Audrey Flanagan additionally appeared solely within the first set.
“Our resolution wasn’t to sub these guys in as a result of I needed to go straightforward on put on and tear,” Sheffield stated. “I hoped their effort was going to be higher. And I’d say some that we introduced in had better effort, and a few others in all probability didn’t.”
Wisconsin caught ‘sleepwalking’ in final two nonconference matches
Wisconsin’s 14 service errors towards the Panthers had been the second-most in a match this season, trailing solely the 15 service errors within the five-set win over then-No. 17 Florida. There was nobody wrongdoer both, as six UW gamers every completed with two or extra service errors.
“Not constant sufficient clearly,” Sheffield stated. “Too many errors out of timeouts. Thought that was the case for the final two matches, and we acquired to get that mounted.”
It’s a part of Sheffield’s total disappointment within the sixth-ranked Badgers’ effort not solely within the four-set win over unranked UW-Milwaukee, but in addition within the four-set win over unranked Marquette the day earlier than.
“That goes past profitable and shedding a set,” Sheffield stated. “I believed we slept-walked, and we acquired ourselves out of it yesterday. … Once you’re sort of sleepwalking to begin a match, which means I’ve not ready our workforce effectively sufficient. Our leaders haven’t requested sufficient.”
This text initially appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: s