Last weekend in the University of Wisconsin-Madison Field House, the Wisconsin women’s volleyball team proved that it is once again a major contender in the NCAA as the team pulled off three straight wins in the InnTowner Invitational.
The teams in the tournament consisted of 17th-ranked Texas A&M with a record of 4-1, Illinois State University (2,3), 16th-ranked University of Wisconsin (4,1) and the University of Montreal (exhibition).
Texas A&M was the only team that posed a serious threat to the Badgers. Last year, in the 2001 NCAA regional semi-final match, these two teams met and the Aggies defeated the Badgers 3-0 to advance to the regional final, where they lost to Stanford University. After the 2001 season, the Badgers lost two All-Americans and three starters and the Aggies lost one All-American and five starters.
When these two teams, both in the process of rebuilding, met again Saturday night, they both knew the importance of the match. In the first game, the Badgers came out strong on both the defensive and offensive ends. Setter Morgan Shields provided the first two kills of the game, followed by another by Lori Rittenhouse. Rittenhouse ended up with eight kills and three defensive digs for the game as the Badgers pulled off a 30-23 win.
In the second game, it was time for Texas A&M to shine. The team tied the game up early and took the lead through strong hitting from veteran Tara Pulaski. The Aggies managed to hold on to a 15-8 lead despite great defensive play and hustle from the Badgers and eventually won the game 30-25.
The third and fourth game went like the first–with Badger domination. Despite the cheering crowd, the Aggies managed to keep the score tied throughout most of the game. Later the Aggies struggled with net violations, giving the Badgers a 9-7 lead in the third game.
Erin Byrd went on to prove why she is the Badgers’ team captain, providing consistent serving, seven kills and four defensive digs to open up a 19-14 lead. In the end, the Aggies’ mental errors cost them the third game, 30-25.
In the fourth game, the Badger defense proved to be too much for the Aggies. Wisconsin simply refused to let the ball hit the ground, out-digging the Aggies 18-14. Shields showed she is also an offensive threat, as she added 10 kills throughout the match–an unheard-of amount for a setter. Byrd’s final kill was the game winner as the Badgers defeated the Aggies 30-28.
Head coach Pete Waite could not have been more thrilled with the outcome of the match.
“That is just a great win for our program. After a slow start to the season and a new group on the court that is just starting to find themselves, that game was a great test with Texas A&M, and there were people that stepped up for us at critical times and pulled us through. I am very happy with that win,” Waite said.
The Badgers also defeated the Illinois State Redbirds Friday night in three games, 30-21, 30-24 and 30-17. Jill Odenthal led the team in hitting with a career high of 65 percent. Lisa Zukowski trailed with 11 kills with Byrd adding 14 of her own. Shields added three service aces and Byrd had four of her own for the match.
“We just have to keep getting better,” Waite said. “If we continue to do that we’ll be ready for the Big Ten.”
Saturday afternoon, the Badgers defeated the University of Montreal Carabins in three games, 30-16, 30-16 and 30-24. All matches against the Carabins are exhibitions, as competitions against foreign teams do not count towards a team’s record.
Byrd led the team with nine kills, Shields contributed eight and Korie Gardner sparked the Badger defense with four digs.
The weekend turned out to be a successful one for the Badgers as they head into the regular season looking to once again pose as a threat in the race for the Big Ten title.
