SPORTS
Seniors wrap up careers
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Also by Greg Schmitz:
- Blown away: Cyclones shock Badgers (December 3, 2007)
- Super Seniors (November 29, 2007)
- Badgers draw comparisons to 2000 finalist squad (November 27, 2007)
Related Stories:
- One last shot for Badger seniors (March 23, 2007)
- Careers over for storied senior class (December 3, 2007)
- Wisconsin enters tournament on roll (November 26, 2007)
- Super Seniors (November 29, 2007)
- UW wraps up strange spring with victory (April 30, 2007)
by Greg Schmitz
Monday, November 26, 2007
For five
seniors — Taylor Reineke, Jackie Simpson, Jocelyn Wack, Megan Mills and Amanda
Berkeley — this weekend marked the final time they will wear a Wisconsin
uniform during a regular season match.
For most
of them, it really has not yet sunk in that their time is almost up.
"It's
really weird, that's what I keep telling people," said Wack after Friday
night's win against Iowa. "It hasn’t quite set in yet. We’re
definitely going to go into [Saturday] with a great attitude, … pumped up and
ready to play Minnesota. It’s great to play them every time. Being the last Big
Ten home match, it’s crazy. That’s all I can say.”
In their final match on Saturday,
the seniors stepped up their play in guiding Wisconsin to another three game
sweep of Minnesota. Simpson led the Wisconsin offense by distributing the ball proficiently,
tallying 35 assists. Reineke led the offensive charge with 14 kills and Wack had
two service aces to go along with 13 digs.
"Being the last match for five of us out there, it was
really important for us to come out strong and just play Wisconsin volleyball,"
Simpson said. "(We wanted to) show what we've learned over the past four
years."
DuPont, Salow step up
After
sharing time on the left side with freshman Allison Wack to start the season,
sophomore Caity DuPont has started to see the court more frequently as of late.
"I think being in more does build my
confidence," DuPont said. "Now when I go on the court I’m not second-guessing
myself. I know what I’m supposed to do. I know what I can do. Confidence is a
big thing.”
Because of the increased playing
time and confidence from DuPont, her numbers have started to go up as well.
DuPont has reached double-figure kills four times in the last eight matches,
including a career-high 16 kills against Iowa Friday night.
Junior outside hitter Morgan Salow
has also seen her playing time increase down the stretch. However, this weekend
Salow found herself in a different position. With middle blocker Audra Jeffers
out with a foot injury, Salow stepped into the middle with ease.
"Initially
I wasn't as comfortable as the outsides, but I've been playing every spot since
I've came here, so I overall got a lot of experience in every one of them,"
Salow said. "I felt really good about coming in for [Jeffers]. I was pretty
confident and I had to do it for the team."
On the weekend Salow tallied 12 kills and hit at .267 clip.
She also chipped in with five blocks.
Wisconsin home until
the Final Four
When the
NCAA tournament bracket was announced Sunday night, the Badgers received the
news they wanted to hear: They will be hosting the first and second rounds of
the tournament. Coupled with the fact the Field House was already selected to
serve as a regional host for the tournament, that means the Badgers will not
have to leave Madison until the Final Four, should they make it that far.
"It says
a lot not just for our level of play the last couple of years but it says a lot
for our fan support," said Waite of Wisconsin's selection as a host for the first
and second rounds. "[Attendance] has been fantastic, and it's up another 500 or
600 from last year's average.
"We are
having a great time in the Field House. It just raises our level of play
another 20 to 25 percent from what we normally do when we are on the road."
Wisconsin
will see familiar foes come to Madison for the first- and second-round matches.
Wisconsin will face Northern Iowa, a team it swept earlier this year at the BYU
Invitational, in the opening round of the tournament on Friday. Game time is
scheduled for 7 p.m.
Iowa
State and San Diego — both teams Wisconsin defeated last season — face off in
the other opening-round match, which begins at 5 p.m.
"We know
these teams very well," Waite said. "It's strange how things work out. Last
year we played at San Diego, so we will get to see their team. Iowa State,
obviously we know Christy Johnson and we've seen them in spring ball and last
year here. Northern Iowa we played this year. For whatever reason it worked out
that we're familiar with these teams, and that's always nice."
Should
Wisconsin make it to the Elite Eight, it could mean a matchup against defending
national champion Nebraska. It would also be Nebraska head coach John Cook's
first trip back to Madison since 1998, when he left to take the coaching job at
Nebraska. From 1992-'98, Cook coached the Badgers to a 161-73 record and won
the 1997 Big Ten title.
"[Nebraska
is] the defending champions and they have the last two National Players of the
Year on their team," Waite said. "They are very strong, but I would rather see
them here than anywhere else."
Tickets for the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament are available in a three-game package through the UW Athletic Ticket office for $10.
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