The University of Wisconsin women’s volleyball team dominated the Green Bay Phoenix in an early spring matchup at the UW Field House Saturday.
Although spring volleyball mainly fosters early team improvement, the team already looked to be in mid-fall form, winning 4–0 against a Green Bay squad that made it to the NCAA Tournament last fall.
Led by redshirt sophomore Danielle Hart — who finished with a match-high seven — the Badgers achieved a 12–8 advantage in blocks.
Wisconsin also outhit Green Bay .276 to .037 respectively, leading to a victory in straight sets, 25–14, 25–11, 27–25 and 25–17.
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Offensively, the Badgers were led by junior Madison Duello, who had 14 kills, and sophomore Grace Loberg who added 12 of her own.
Sophomore setter Sydney Hilley finished just short of a double-double, putting up 35 assists to go along with her nine digs.
Returning libero Tiffany Clark recorded a team-high 13 digs in the back row for the Badgers. Clark will look to improve on an American Volleyball Coaches Association All-American Honorable Mention season in 2018.
Head Coach Kelly Sheffield was proud of his team’s ability to translate from practice to the big stage.
“The players have been pretty busy for two days straight with the coaching clinic and to be able to come in here and do things we’ve worked on in practice, I think they really tried to bring that out tonight,” Sheffield said. “It was a good night all the way around.”
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In front of more than 2,000 fans, the Badgers were able to come away with a dominant victory against the same Green Bay Phoenix team they beat in the first round of the NCAA Tournament last season.
The Badgers outplayed the Phoenix in nearly every major statistical category on their way to a W.
“Two thousand people being here for a spring match on a Saturday where the weather is fantastic — this is an unbelievable volleyball community. It means an awful lot to be able to play in front of it,” Sheffield said.
Wisconsin will continue their spring season with a match against in-state rival Marquette April 12. The game will be played at Milwaukee Sting Volleyball Club in Menomonee Falls with first serve at 7 p.m.
Wisconsin will then conclude their spring trio of games with a match against Purdue in Indiana April 20.
