Friday’s loss had to be in the rear-view mirror for the Badgers to show up to win Saturday. Despite quickly taking the first two sets against Kansas, No. 25 Wisconsin lost the next three to the Jayhawks, with the fifth set ending in dramatic fashion on a double match point. However, the team demonstrated how dwelling on the loss Friday would be for the weak and weary and wouldn’t allow it to affect their game plan Saturday.
“It’s hard not to be proud of [the team],” first-year head coach Kelly Sheffield said. “That’s tough to lose 17-15, and then have to come back [Saturday] morning and play. I thought we really showed up to play [Saturday] morning and evening.”
The biggest question going into Saturday was whether Sheffield would have a healthy roster to start the day. Senior Annemarie Hickey was out for the tournament after suffering an ankle injury in practice Wednesday and starters Courtney Thomas and Dominique Thompson battled through injuries of their own as well.
“I’m not someone to talk about injuries a lot because those things happen in sports, but we’ve been hit awfully hard,” Sheffield said. “I thought we showed up to play this morning and this evening we weren’t sure that Courtney and Dom [Thompson] were going to be able to play. They were in a lot of pain [but] they’re begging the training staff to let them play. They’re warriors. It’s hard not to respect a team that’s going to compete like that.”
The Badgers (8-1) topped UW-Milwaukee in the morning game three sets to one and later that night swept Bowling Green in straight sets. The last game against the Falcons though was easily the most impressive for Wisconsin as they dominated throughout. With the score close at 19-17 towards the end of the first set, all-tournament selection setter Ellen Chapman rallied to score the last three points for Wisconsin.
And she wasn’t done after that. Finishing the night with 13 kills, Chapman served seven straight in the second set to give the team a convincing lead at 21-12. In the third set, with the Badgers up one point, the 6-foot 4-inch junior again proved why she was deserving of the tournament honors with a kill and a block to end the match and get the sweep. But she was also quick to give her teammates credit as well.
“I think we did a really good job this weekend terminating the ball,” Chapman said. “Deme [Morales] did a great job passing, stepping in with Anne’s injury. Courtney, Taylor Morey and Deme did a fantastic job getting the ball to the target, which made it much easier for the hitters. Lauren [Carlini] did a good job running the system. Everything just meshed well this weekend.”
Along with Chapman, junior outside hitter Morales, replacing the injured Hickey, also received an all-tournament selection and finished Saturday with eight kills and eight digs. It was her performance Friday, however, that earned her the much-deserved recognition, ending the night with career highs in kills (17) and digs (13). Believing they showed true resiliency, Sheffield was proud of the way his team played this weekend, and that their efforts didn’t go unnoticed.
“These guys want it so bad and you see the performances of some players, like Ellen growing in front of our eyes and you’re seeing Deme Morales having such a monster weekend and filling a role she hasn’t even practiced,” Sheffield said. “You want to win. You do everything you can to win. I think what you take out more from this weekend is how we played rather than what our record is.”
The Big Ten powerhouse was also very happy playing in front of their home crowd for the first time this season and was pleased with the high attendance for all three games.
“It was an awesome feeling,” Chapman said. “It’s a new year and we want all the fans to come back and support us because we have the greatest fans in the country in my opinion.”
Wisconsin looks to face NC State, Virginia Commonwealth and Colgate next weekend Sept. 20-21 in the upcoming NC State Invitational Tournament.
