[media-credit name=’UW Athletic Communications’ align=’alignnone’ width=’648′][/media-credit]The Wisconsin volleyball team entered the weekend in a tie for sixth place in the Big Ten. Thanks to wins over Indiana and Purdue, it now sits in a three-way tie for fourth. The Badgers (11-5, 5-3) defeated the Hoosiers 3-2 Friday night, then took care of the Boilermakers 3-1 Saturday.

"This weekend, it was big for us to come out with two wins," outside hitter Aubrey Meierotto said. "That's what we wanted to do, that's what we talked about doing."

Middle blocker Sheila Shaw was the offensive hero in both matches for UW, recording 39 kills over the weekend.

Saturday saw the Badgers rebound from an inconsistent Friday performance to top the Boilermakers 30-24, 30-28, 25-30, 30-18. Jackie Simpson made her first start in three weeks at setter and ran the Wisconsin offense effectively, tallying 50 assists.

"The biggest thing is always trying to have that same mentality," Simpson said. "No matter if you start, if you come in off the bench or if you come in for the last point, you always have the same mentality."

The Badgers started the match strong, hitting .333 in the first game. Shaw and Maria Carlini led the offensive charge with six and five kills, respectively. Trailing 20-19, UW tied the game on a Taylor Reineke kill, part of a 5-0 run that allowed the Badgers to take the opener.

Game two was also closely contested. With the score knotted at 28-28, Wisconsin turned to Meierotto. The junior outside hitter hammered a kill to give UW the lead, then recorded game point with a solo block on Purdue's Melanie Ukovich.

"That was great, they did a nice job," Wisconsin head coach Pete Waite said. "We were trying to be stronger in the last third of each game."

Down 2-0, the Boilermakers bounced back to take game three by out-hitting the Badgers .349 to .174. The tables quickly turned in the fourth and final game, as the Wisconsin frontline dominated play at the net. UW registered 7.0 total team blocks and held Purdue to a -.067 hitting percentage. The Badgers claimed the game 30-18 and the match 3-1. In the match, Wisconsin recorded 17.5 blocks to Purdue's 7.0.

"Our block has really come around and it's really causing some problems for opponents," Waite said.

Shaw led UW with 17 kills and hit .571 in the match. Meierotto added 11 kills as the only other Badger in double digits.

"I'm really happy with the win," Waite said. "It's a great day for Badger athletics — a lot of good wins for a lot of sports. Purdue was a team we saw earlier in the year at our tournament. I thought they were playing some great ball and were hungry."

While not at its best, Wisconsin took care of Indiana Friday evening three games to two, 31-33, 30-23, 30-16, 22-30, 15-9. Fourteen service errors and shaky passing hurt the Badgers, who were led by Shaw's 22 kills.

"We didn't play our best and we got the match," Waite said. "That's good because we know we can play much better."

UW had a chance to claim the first game, serving for game point at 30-29. However, the Badgers were unable to take advantage, and the Hoosiers took the opener thanks to back-to-back kills from Tasha Arsenych and Mandy Eberle.

"I wish we would have just finished that one right then," Waite said. "I think it would have been a much different match. But that's what we have to learn as a team: how to finish it out and not get behind in the first place."

After his team posted a .127 hitting percentage in game one, Waite replaced starting setter Katie Lorenzen with freshman Jackie Simpson in the second game. Both setters endured their share of struggles, as Lorenzen also saw time in the end of game four. Lorenzen registered 22 assists, while Simpson recorded 41.

"Both setters had trouble locating the ball tonight, so they both got some court time and helped out when we needed help each time," Waite said.

The Badgers rebounded to take the next two games behind the play of Shaw. The junior middle slammed eight kills in the second game and five more in the third to help UW take a 2-1 lead in the match. Shaw finished with a season-high 22 kills.

Wisconsin was unable to close out the match in game four, as Indiana forced a fifth game by holding UW to a .022 hitting percentage.

Game five was dominated by the Badgers, who jumped out to a 4-0 lead before the Hoosiers could react. Meierotto slammed three kills in three attempts and Wisconsin escaped with a 3-2 win.

Reineke recorded a career-high 12 blocks and Jill Odenthal tallied her second double-double of the year with 12 kills and a career-best 17 digs. Meierotto and Carlini also finished in double figures with 14 and 12 kills, respectively.

"I'm happy we came away with the win," Waite said. "We played well in the fifth, it wasn't really close there. We were just a little inconsistent during the match."