While the University of Wisconsin volleyball team is coming to the sobering realization that a Big Ten title might be out of reach this season, there is still much left to play for.
The No. 13 Badgers will face No. 25 Michigan this Friday at 7 p.m. at the UW Field House. Another win over a ranked opponent would certainly boost the Badgers’ stock in the AVCA rankings, giving them better seeding come NCAA tournament season.
But the Wolverines have the ability to pester Wisconsin, as they’ve done in a 3-2 loss against No. 5 Penn State, and 3-1 losses against No. 4 Nebraska and No. 6 Ohio State. Yet, they are more often outmatched against high-rated opponents, evidenced by sweeps at the hands of No. 20 Purdue, No. 21 Illinois, Michigan State and North Carolina.
Perched at seventh place in the Big Ten with a 6-6 conference record and 16-7 overall, Michigan is within striking distance to make up ground against the Badgers (8-4 Big Ten, 16-6 overall) with eight games remaining.
A misstep against Michigan could be costly for Wisconsin, who need to play Michigan one more time after this match and No. 12 Ohio State, No. 16 Purdue and No. 18 Illinois to end the regular season. This tough remaining schedule for the Badgers could provide Michigan with the insurance it needs to make up that ground should they prevail Friday.
“Michigan is a really good team that we were in a couple of battles with,” UW head coach Kelly Sheffield said. “I think we were two points away from losing at their place in five last year, so we know how talented they are and how many different attackers they bring.”
Riding a four-game winning streak that has seen the tandem of Tionna Williams, a freshman middle blocker, and Haleigh Nelson, her junior counterpart at middle blocker, dominate opponents — Wisconsin has everything to lose.
The Badgers’ mid-season rise has put them in place similar to 2013, when they reached the final of the NCAA tournament. Every game is now important, no matter who the team is playing, and every player knows it, Nelson said after Sunday’s win over Indiana.
The Wolverines do not boast a standout offense or defense and among the seven major team statistics (hitting percentage, opponent hitting percentage, assists per set, kills per set, blocks per set, digs per set and aces per set) they average a ranking of ninth place out of 14 in the Big Ten.
But this is no time for Wisconsin to rest on its laurels as they must continue to improve upon an impressive weekend where they defeated Indiana and No. 16 Purdue.
Friday’s match will be available on BTN Plus and broadcasted on 92.1 The Mic.
