The Wisconsin volleyball team took a broom to the court once again as the Badgers swept their sixth team in a row and collected their ninth consecutive win against No. 14 Nebraska.

The match was filled with vigorous play by both teams consisting of nine tie scores and four lead changes. But in the end, the Badgers were able to earn a historic win against Nebraska; something that Wisconsin has not done for 36 years.

In Wisconsin’s journey toward doubling its all-time win total against the Huskers, setter Lauren Carlini was a huge contributor to the Badgers’ three-set win.

“I thought [Carlini] owned the match today. I thought she was totally in control,” head coach Kelly Sheffield said. “She executed the game plan great. She announced her presence with authority offensively. I thought she did a masterful job in all aspects.”

Carlini was on fire from the get-go Sunday afternoon. The sophomore was aggressive at the net and utilized the second contact to her advantage as she amounted eight kills off tips, which gave her the team’s best hitting percentage at .643. Carlini even had one kill off a big swing from a Nebraska overpass during the second set, which raised her total to nine kills overall.

“It’s always awesome to get overpasses,” Carlini said. “It felt good to be able to attack, but it also feels good to be able to set my hitters and have them get kills at the same time. So while I’m being effective, they can also be effective.”

Carlini did more for her team than just convert points off tips. She served at 100 percent, which included one ace due to the error of Nebraska’s libero to close out the second set for Wisconsin. As a setter, Carlini also contributed 34 assists in addition to three of Wisconsin’s eight total blocks.

“That’s a tough team because those outsides will tool your block like there’s no tomorrow,” Sheffield said. “I know that was a big challenge for [Carlini] and Courtney [Thomas] out there on the right side today, and I thought that they did a great job of rising to the challenge.”

Blocking helped the Badgers hold the Cornhuskers to 37 team kills and a .132 hitting percentage, compared to their own 46 kills at a .265 hitting clip. Wisconsin did not go error-free at the net, but the Badgers did not make any unforced blocking errors, whereas Nebraska tallied four.

Defense covered the entire floor all afternoon.

In the back row players scrambled everywhere just to get even a touch on any balls coming their way during rallies. Throughout the game, it was rare to observe a rally without witnessing at least two players hit the floor in either an attempted or successful dig for Wisconsin.

Freshman Kelli Bates and the senior Thomas both passed at 94 percent and senior Deme Morales contributed five passes of her own at 100 percent accuracy off Nebraska’s serves, as Wisconsin finished the match passing as a team at 94 percent.

The Badgers dug 56 balls against the Cornhuskers. Libero Taylor Morey was responsible for more than half of these. She continues to maintain her title as the Big Ten leader in digs per set with an average of 5.33. But Sunday, Morey eclipsed her usual numbers after she ended the first set with 13 digs.

Her efforts do not go unnoticed by her fellow teammates.

“It creates so much more momentum for our side,” Carlini said about her teammate. “When we see her get these crazy good ups it makes every one else so excited for it and it makes us want to transition and kill immediately. So just knowing that she’s working her butt off for us it makes us want to work harder for her.”

Morey tied her career high with 29 digs and set the UW record for a three-set match, but the entire team contributed on the defensive end of things. Whether it was blocking, passing or picking up any ball they could, the Badgers worked the net and the backcourt leaving few balls unaccounted for.

When asked about her accomplishment of tying her career-high since her match against Colorado State, Morey gave credit to her blockers. She said they make her job easier in the backcourt and that she could not have done so well without the help of her team.

“Some people shrink when the lights get a little bit brighter. Taylor Morey is not one of those [people],” Sheffield said. “You’re seeing a player who’s getting better and better and more and more confident.”