Usually when UW faces Minnesota it is guaranteed to be a good match due to the intense rivalry, but this Friday, when the No. 14 Badgers take on the No. 6 Golden Gophers, the winner of the game may determine which team has the upper hand on the road to the Big Ten championship.
Minnesota (15-2, 2-0) has come out firing on all cylinders this season, dominating its competition and surging to a No. 6 rank in the national volleyball rankings.
After losing star setter Lindsey Berg and hitter Stephanie Hagen to graduation, many thought this would be a slow year for the Gophers. Much to the surprise of the volleyball world, Minnesota has become one of the dominant teams in the nation.
“I think they have surprised a lot of people, and I think their chemistry looks really good,” Badger setter Morgan Shields said. “I think they are very solid all the way around. They have some amazing defensive players, and it’s really [hard] to put the ball down against them. They have a good offense, and when you put the whole thing together it makes them a really hard team to stop.”
Pete Waite, head coach for UW, agreed with his captain and explained that Minnesota has some great jump servers, big blockers, a fast offense and a solid defense, all factors which make the Gophers a difficult team to beat.
Leading the way for the Gophers is junior outside hitter Cassie Busse, who currently ranks second in the Big Ten in kills with 5.17 per game. This past week, Busse was named Big Ten Player of the Week, marking the second time this year she has received the honor.
“Busse is really dominating at the net, and we are going to try and slow her down,” senior outside hitter Erin Byrd said.
It is likely that Byrd herself or junior outside hitter Lisa Zukowski will be the ones to step up to the challenge Busse poses at the net.
In addition to Busse, sophomore setter Lindsey Vander Well has been playing extremely well this season. She has been named to five all-tournament teams and averages 12.33 assists per game.
The last player of whom the Badgers are well aware is freshman Paula Gentil, who comes to Minnesota from Fortaleza Ceara, Brazil. Gentil is currently sixth in the nation in digs per game with 4.82 and first in the Big Ten in digs.
After a poor showing this past weekend, UW looks to come back out with a new intensity this weekend, as a few more early-season loses could quite possibly end the team’s chances of three-peating as Big Ten champions.
Last weekend, the Badgers lost in four games 24-30, 30-25, 30-25 and 30-24 to an unranked Illinois team.
“We just have to realize that we are not a team that can just come into a match and can take it easy for the first couple of points and games, and then when the other team starts fighting against us, then we say, ‘Oh, OK,’ and then start to fight back,” co-captain Byrd said. “We are trying to make these comebacks when we are down 10 points, and that is impossible.”
Coach Waite also said quite a few players did not bring their best game, and in the competitive Big Ten, there is no room for a night with more than one player playing below average.
In addition to facing Minnesota this weekend the Badgers will also host Iowa (6-5, 2-0) Sunday. While the Hawkeyes are not a significant threat to the Badgers, the team will still have to be on its toes.
“Iowa is kind of the team that brings the unexpected,” Coach Waite said. “They change their people in the lineup a lot, even during a game. You just never know with them; it’s the kind of team who has been taking some games off the better teams in the Big Ten.”
All in all, the Badgers have a huge weekend ahead of them. The team is feeling lucky, however, to have the chance to go after Minnesota at home in front of a supportive crowd donning the red and white.
“[Playing at home] makes a huge difference,” tri-captain Morgan Shields said.
“We have already shown we are not that strong of a team on the road yet, but coming home into the comforts of the [UW] Field House against a ranked team is a much better situation than trying to go play them in Minnesota when we are still working on an identity.”
