(UW ATHLETICS) LOS ANGELES, CA – The No. 6 Wisconsin volleyball team tallied six blocks in the final set to propel the Badgers to a 25-18, 25-19, 25-12 sweep of No. 23 USC on Thursday night.
The Badgers hit .333 (40 kills – 10 errors – 90 attempts) as Sarah Franklin finished with a match-high 13 kills. Carter Booth was one short of double figures with nine kills.
USC hit just .079 (28 – 20 – 101) with outside hitter Ally Batenhorst leading the team with eight kills.
Both teams looked to get their footing early as they exchanged six ties. The Badgers (19-5, 13-2 B1G) jump started a 4-0 run with a kill from Sarah Franklin followed by back-to-back aces from her as well. UW led 13-10 as USC (17-8, 9-6 B1G) called a timeout. Out of the break, the Trojans scored two points to bring it back within one (13-12), but Wisconsin didn’t let USC get too comfortable, notching two kills and forcing two USC hitting errors, grabbing an 18-13 lead. USC rallied to bring it back within four (21-17), but couldn’t break through. Wisconsin took set one 25-18.
Wisconsin created some distance early in set two as Devyn Robinson and Franklin went kill for kill and forced a USC timeout, trailing 4-9. USC slowly chipped away, capitalizing off three kills from Jadyn Livings and two team service aces as the Trojans now faced only a 15-14 deficit. USC inched closer again at 17-16 but failed to tie it up. The Badgers finished off set two on a 5-1 run to take it 25-19.
Wisconsin started out set three on a 7-1 run highlighted by back-to-back blocks from Anna Smrek and Booth to prompt a USC timeout. The Trojans scored two points out of the break, but Wisconsin quickly took over again. Julia Orzol went on her own 4-0 run with two kills in a row, followed by two aces in a row to give UW a 15-5 lead. USC scored three points to get it within seven (16-9). From there, the Badgers allowed only three more points as they won the final set 25-12.
In her homecoming, Charlie Fuerbringer was one dig short of her third-straight double-double with nine digs and 35 assists. The freshman also tallied two service aces. The Badgers recorded seven service aces total, with Franklin adding two, Orzol adding two and Gulce Guctekin adding one.
Lola Schumacher led the team with 10 digs. UW outblocked USC 9.0-2.0 with six of them in the final set. Smrek finished with six total
Notes to know
- For the ninth time this season, the Badgers held it’s opponent under a .100 hitting percentage. USC hit just .079 (28-20-101).
- Also for the 15th time this season, Wisconsin hit .300 or better. The Badgers put up a .333 hitting percentage (40-10-90).
- Outside hitter Sarah Franklin hit a season best .632 hitting percentage with 13 kills, just one error, on 19 attempts.
- Sarah Franklin recorded a double-figure kill total for the 22nd time this season.
- Entering the third set, the Badgers doubled their amount of blocks going from just three blocks to totaling nine for the match.
Up next
The Badgers will remain in LA to take on UCLA on Saturday night. First serve is set for 9:30 p.m. CST.
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