Wisconsin volleyball places three on All-Big Ten team

No. 3 Wisconsin placed three players on the All-Big Ten team Tuesday. Senior setter Lauren Carlini, sophomore middle blocker Tionna Williams and senior middle blocker Haleigh Nelson were all selected after stellar seasons. Senior middle blocker Tori Blake received the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award.

Carlini, who is fifth in the NCAA in assists, averaging 11.77 assists per set, recently passed the 5,000 career assists mark. It was her school-record fourth selection to the All-Big Ten team. Williams hit .338 on the year and led the team in blocks at 1.29 per set. Nelson hit .375 on the year, averaging 2.43 kills per set and 1.07 blocks per set.

Freshman outside hitter Molly Haggerty, who led the team with 3.43 kills per set, was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year. She is the fourth Badger to receive the award; Carlini and Williams also received it in their freshman years. Haggerty was a five-time Big Ten Freshman of the Week and was also named Big Ten Player of the Week twice in 2016.

Wisconsin hosts Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference champion Howard (26-5) at the Field House on Thursday in the first round of the NCAA tournament. The match starts at 7:30 p.m., following Marquette-Washington State. As the No. 3 overall tournament seed, the Badgers are set to host the first/second-round games as well as the third/fourth-round if they advance to the second weekend.