The Sett, Week 2 - Marquette and Baylor

Let’s see how the Big 10 fared against the ACC before four different conferences attend the HotelRed Invitational at the Field House this weekend.

W (3-0) vs. Florida State

The first two sets were defined by Badger runs. Molly Haggerty and Dana Rettke had some personal kill streaks to help turn a 7-all match into a 21-11 Badger lead. The second set was Dana Rettke, who again is 6-8, playing stellar defense in the back row. A pair of digs spurred a 10-0 run as Rettke notched a kill and an ace as well. Florida State was able to respond with two 4-0 runs, and forced four set points before the Badgers finally closed it out.

In the third set, neither team was ever able to get a long run going or establish a large lead. A 15-11 Badger because a 15-all tie four Seminole points later. It was neck-and-neck down the stretch, with ties from 17 to 22 all, until the Badgers strung together 2 more points to finally get the breathing room needed to take the set and sweep the match.

W (3-0) v North Carolina

Wisconsin hit above .350 in all 3 matches, including a stellar 18-2-22 .727 line from Dana Rettke, to convincingly beat the Tar Heels. Freshman Izzy Ashburn started the team well with her serves, getting two aces early in the first set during a 9-0 Badger run.

Other Notable Results

Hopes can’t get much higher than that. Florida State moved to No. 22 in the polls, and Minnesota dropped to No. 8. Hey, that gives the Badgers a ranked win already!

Thursday, September 5th - No. 11 Marquette (3-0)

In-state hate for the home opener, as the Golden Eagles travel down I-94 to the Field House. Marquette comes off a big win against then No. 9 BYU (currently No. 13) in Provo. A confident rival is a dangerous one, and it will be an excellent measuring stick for the Badgers. They’ll need to key on stopping a potent attack, as Marquette’s Allie Barber, Kaitlyn Lines and Hope Werch all have over 30 kills and a hitting percentage above .380.

Friday, September 6th - No. 17 Baylor (2-0)

Baylor’s attack in the first two games was simple - have Hannah Lockin set up Yossiana Pressley. She had the team-high 19 kills in both matches, with nobody else cracking double digits once.

There matches in the Field House against Syracuse (thanks for stopping by Orange!) and Wisconsin in the HotelRed Invitational will prepare them for their next weekend’s hotel-based invitational, the Hampton Inn & Suites Waco North Baylor Invitational. Please do not confuse the Hampton Inn & Suites Waco North Baylor Invitational with the Baylor Classic - that’s the following weekend.

How To Follow

Both games will be on television - Thursday’s 7 pm CT showdown will be on FS1, with the Friday 8 pm CT game on BTN. Radio on 100.9 FM in Madison, or on iHeartRadio.

Other Matches of Note

No. 1 Stanford, No. 3 Texas, No. 7 Florida and No. 8 Minnesota all play a round-robinish setup. Wednesday has Minnesota at Texas and Stanford at Florida, with weekend matches of Florida at Minnesota and Stanford at Texas.

Also, No. 2 Nebraska travels to San Diego Saturday night, and No. 16 Washington plays No. 5 Illinois in a Big 10 - Pac 12 challenge that Iowa’s hosting.

Most importantly, Howard attempts to exact revenge for what happened to their football team.