MADISON, Wis. — Eighth-ranked Wisconsin (7-3, 1-1 B1G) returns home to host two Big Ten opponents this weekend in the UW Field House. On Friday, the Badgers serve off against No. 12 Penn State (12-1, 1-1). First serve is at 8 p.m. live on the Big Ten Network. UW continues its home stand on Sunday when Illinois (7-5, 2-0) comes to town for a 1 p.m. match. The match streams live on B1G+.
1. HART OF THE BADGERS: Graduate student Danielle Hart has hit .545 or better in four out of the last five matches to up her season hitting percentage to a team-best .438. In Big Ten play, the 6-foot-4 middle blocker leads the conference with a .611 hitting percentage. Sophomore Julia Orzoł ranks seventh at .383 while junior Devyn Robinson sits ninth at .345. Orzoł also leads the Badgers in conference play with 3.83 kills per set, which ranks seventh in the Big Ten.
2. SERVING UP AN ACE: In Big Ten play, Wisconsin leads the conference with 2.50 service aces per set. Against Northwestern last Friday, junior MJ Hammill had a career-high five service aces while at Minnesota on Sunday, redshirt sophomore Sarah Franklin had a career-best five aces. Franklin ranks second in the Big Ten with 1.00 aces per set while Hammill ranks third with 0.83 aces per set.
3. BADGER BLOCK! Wisconsin continues to be one of the nation’s best blocking teams, ranking fifth with 2.97 blocks per set. Graduate student Danielle Hart ranks second nationally and second in the Big Ten with 1.67 blocks per set. Junior Caroline Crawford adds 1.31 blocks per set, which ranks eighth in the conference.
4. GREAT GULCE: Freshman Gulce Guctekin has recorded double-figure digs in the last eight matches in a row, averaging 4.04 digs per set over the stretch. On the season, the libero ranks eighth in the Big Ten with 3.71 digs per set. In Big Ten play, Güçtekin ranks fifth with 4.00 digs per set.
5. 141 CONSECUTIVE POLLS: Wisconsin dropped two places to eighth in the AVCA Top-25 Coaches’ Poll released Monday. Texas (10-0) remains first for the fifth week in a row while Louisville (11-1) stays second. Nebraska (10-1) and San Diego (11-1) continue to be ranked third and fourth, respectively, while Purdue (11-1) jumps up six spots to fifth. The Big Ten leads the poll with six teams in the top 25 and one team receiving votes. Wisconsin has been ranked in the AVCA…
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