Kelly Sheffield said it liked the depth for this Badgers team. However, he wasn’t always satisfied with how Wisconsin looked against humble Rutgers on Friday night.
With UW heavily subbing, the No. 1 Wisconsin Badgers (5-0 Big Ten, 5-0 overall) sent the Rutgers Scarlet Knights (1-4, 1-4) in even sets 3-0 (25-18, 25-20, 25-16) for their fifth round of the season.
Only three eligible badgers didn’t touch the ground in the game as UW showed an even attack and also dominated on the defensive. Wisconsin had a total of 11.5 blocks, with senior Dana Rettke putting up seven alone.
“The submarines we did tonight had nothing to do with trying to buy people time. I was trying to find someone who would perform at a higher level,” Sheffield said the game.
Although Wisconsin got off to a slow start in the first set – 5-0 early – a 7-0 run left the Badgers back in the set and they took control. Senior outside hitter Molly Haggerty had solid serves, including an ace, during that run, while senior Grace Loberg had two kills to start UW.
The Badgers also served much better in that game, nine aces total with only six faults, as the second Izzy Ashburn and Haggerty each scored three aces. Sheffield continued:
“I thought Dana (Rettke) really served the ball a lot better, Dana and Izzy (Ashburn) served the ball a lot better tonight. They were much more consistent, they worked very hard on that in the gym, and I thought it paid off a little behind the service line for both of them. Both of them have really bad serve if they are consistent, that puts a lot of pressure on people. ”
Haggerty, a preseason All-Big Ten contestant, led Wisconsin with eight kills and seven digs. Junior Danielle Hart had seven kills when eight badgers recorded at least one kill.
Rutgers was impressed with the serve last week, but they only had an ace to contend with against Wisconsin, compared to nine service errors. This was a match that UW took control of after a slow start and that he never let go.
“I just think we came out flat. We were pretty dead on the pitch and we have to come out and create our own energy, ”remarked Lauren Barnes.
With four out of five games that end in sweeps, Wisconsin has proven its spot at number 1 on the polls. Your chance to claim another win against Rutgers tomorrow afternoon at 4:00 p.m. CST.
