The No. 6 University of Wisconsin women’s volleyball team (21-5, 15-2 Big Ten) defeated No. 16 University of Minnesota Gophers (17-10, 10-7) at the Wisconsin Field House Wednesday, Nov. 20. In partnership with Chasing Greatness, the Wisconsin volleyball program announced their inaugural Silent Set match.
The Silent Set Match’s goal was to raise awareness for the resources needed for the hard-of-hearing community.
Chasing Greatness, founded by former Penn State volleyball player Jonni Parker, aims to empower children and inspire them to pursue their dreams without limitations.
Honoring Parker’s college uniform number nine, the first eight points scored by the Badgers were celebrated in American Sign Language. As the Badgers scored their ninth point, fans cheered as loud as possible, and continued to do so for the remainder of the match.
Both teams and officials talked and cheered as normal, but fans were asked to remain quiet.
The last match between Wisconsin and Minnesota was Sep. 25, where the Gophers managed to take the match after five hard sets.
First set
The first set began with a strong 7-2 Gopher lead, as Wisconsin struggled to move their defense fast enough. With the bench cheering her on, graduate student Carly Anderson scored the first ace of the night, bringing the score 7-5 in favor of Minnesota.
Still, though, the Badgers had lost momentum as they were down 9-6. Finally, at eight points, senior Anna Smerk laid down a cross-court kill, and the fans in the Field House went wild.
Wisconsin had its energy back. Fifth-year Sarah Franklin sent a back-row hit too quick for Minnesota’s defense. Senior Julia Orzol immediately followed suit with another perfect kill, bringing the score to 12-11 Minnesota.
With another Orzol kill, as well as great defensive work from redshirt freshman Saige Damrow, the Badgers earned a 2-point lead.
High spirits in the arena kept the energy up for the squad. After a few violations, fifth-year Devyn Robinson sent the ball cross-court for a kill giving the Badgers their 20th point of the night.
After a kill made by Minnesota, head coach Kelly Sheffield challenged and won bringing the score to 22-18 for Wisconsin. At 24-21, Orzol took the opportunity to get one final kill to win the set for the Badgers, 25-21.
Second set
Immediately starting the second set, Franklin had two kills, with Smrek adding another to make the score 3-0.
Minnesota was able to take the lead for this set, as the Badgers hitting percentage fell to .167, the exact percentage the squad had during the second set of the Sep. 25 match, as well as 10 hitting errors for the set.
A simple side set by freshman Charlie Fuerbringer caused commotion throughout the night, resulting in a Gopher point because of a setting violation.
Franklin continued to hit kills, but it was too little, too late, as it gave the Badgers only their 10th point of the set, with Minnesota leading 20-10. Minnesota continued to have a strong offense, upsetting the Badgers, final score of the set 25-11 for the Gophers.
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Third set
To start the set, Damrow was able to throw down a saving pancake that set Franklin up for the kill, putting pressure on the Gophers that led to a service error, giving Wisconsin an early 2-1 lead.
Tying the game at 10-10, Franklin sent over another kill, with Orzol following shortly after with a great back row placement for another Wisconsin point.
Damrow covered the court and saved the ball, allowing Smrek to get a tip-over kill. Then, another Orzol kill tied the set at 13-13. Following that play, a block by the Badgers set Orzol up for yet another back row hit giving the Badgers their 14th point and the lead.
The Gophers took the third set 25-22 after a failed block by the Badgers.
Fourth set
With the score 2-1 in Minnesota’s favor, the Badger squad really needed to put it together, and they did just that. Starting it off for Wisconsin, Orzol sent over the perfect serves to get Franklin and Robinson two strong blocks, tying the score at 2-2.
Two kills from Franklin and Smerk brought the score to 4-3 Wisconsin. A few more kills, and another block by the Badgers later on, Wisconsin sat with a 9-4 lead.
The Badgers weren’t satisfied, though, as they continued to fill the set with kills. First, junior Carter Booth shot one over for the 10th point, following kills by Franklin, Orzol, Fuerbringer and Smerk, bringing the score 15-13 in the Badgers’ favor.
At 20-14, Damrow managed to send a perfect serve, following a slide under the net to save the ball as well as a backrow save from Franklin to make the 21st point.
Fifth year CC Crawford got a kill to make it 22-18 for Wisconsin, and Robinson followed that up with the 23rd point. Franklin smacked down another for 24, and finally Robinson took one last swing to end the set 25-20 and tie the match at two sets apiece.
Fifth set
After four long sets, the final set was not any shorter. The entirety of the set was a back-and-forth battle. All Badgers really shone through, hit after hit, ace after ace, and finally after 38 long points, Wisconsin took the match with an ace by Anderson. Final score of the set 20-18.
Postgame
The next game for the team could decide the outcome of their season. The Badgers play Nov. 23 in Lincoln, Nebraska against the No. 2 University of Nebraska. The Cornhuskers are undefeated in Big Ten play and sit first in the standings, and swept the Badgers in their previous matchup at the beginning of November.