While the rest of the fall sports teams seem to be mired in mediocrity as we speak, there’s one Wisconsin Badgers team who is impressing every time out. On Saturday, the No. 5 Wisconsin volleyball team took to the UW Fieldhouse and swept border rival No. 23 Minnesota in dominating (25-19, 25-15, 25-1) fashion.
The win was Wisconsin’s seventh of the conference season and seventh in a row since a loss in the Big Ten opener to Penn State. With the win the Badgers moved to 16-2 (7-1 B1G) on the season and showed why they are going to be a tough out at home or on the road.
A sellout crowd witnessed the Badgers defense dominate the game, helping to lead to the lopsided set scores on the day. Wisconsin outblocked the Gophers, who were the top blocking team in the conference, by a margin of 9-5.
The Badgers weren’t just dominate on the defensive side either, as Wisconsin finished hitting .224 while Minnesota hit .017. UW had 36 kills in 107 attempts with 12 errors.
Haleigh Nelson had perhaps the most important game of her season in this one, with a team-high 10 kills and six blocks. She was also second on the attack for the Badgers, hitting .429 for the match.
The usual rock that is Lauren Carlini was just what you’d expect as well, with 29 assists and two aces on the day.
Dominique Thompson also was efficient on the offensive end, hitting .667 (6-of-9) to lead the Badgers offense in hitting percentage.
Most importantly, the win secured the full 40 points for the Badgers in the all-sports Border Battle with the Gophers. UW previously swept the Gophers earlier this week in Minneapolis.
Wisconsin will host Iowa and Nebraska next week as the final two matches in a crucial three match home stand.
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