Haleigh Nelson (13)
The 10th ranked Wisconsin women’s volleyball team knocked off 18th ranked Illinois in a five-set Big Ten thriller on Wednesday night in Champaign, Illinois.
The Badgers earned a 25-22, 10-25, 25-22, 26-28, 15-12 victory, their ninth straight win.
“This has got to be our best win of the year,” UW Head Coach Kelly Sheffield said. “It was kind of an ugly match, a very defensive match. We came out there in game two and got pummeled, but in the locker room we said ‘hey, we haven’t been challenged in a while, let’s embrace that and this will feel way better if we can stay with the fight.'”
Wisconsin junior Haleigh Nelson, the Badgers overcame offensive struggles to find a way to win. Wisconsin (21-6, 13-4 Big Ten) hit .160 (65 kills – 35 errors – 188 total errors) against a stingy Illini defense while Illinois hit .200 (63-26-185).
At the net, Nelson totaled seven blocks to pace the Badgers, who will look to extend their win streak to 10 matches when they host 16th ranked Ohio State on Sunday at 1pm at the UW-Field House.