Grace Egan sets tone with five service aces in first set
Wisconsin Badgers coach Kelly Sheffield discusses win over Milwaukee
Here’s what Wisconsin coach Kelly Sheffield said after the Badgers’ three-set sweep over UW-Milwaukee on Sept. 9 at the Field House.
- Grace Egan, an Ohio State transfer, set the tone with five service aces in the first set.
- Wisconsin’s middle blockers dominated at the net, contributing to an 11-3 advantage in total blocks.
- Oregon transfer Mimi Colyer led the offense with 16 kills, more than the entire Milwaukee team.
MADISON — Wisconsin volleyball “gave up a lot of points based on hesitation” in its first weekend, as head coach Kelly Sheffield saw it.
“Serve-receive hesitation,” Sheffield said. “Defensively, who’s going to step in there and take the second ball when the dig or the pass goes awry.”
The Badgers’ Sept. 9 match against UW-Milwaukee at the UW Field House was a much different story, as Wisconsin swept its in-state foe, 25-7, 25-15, 25-11.
“Tonight I didn’t see any of that,” Sheffield said. “I saw a team that was swarming to the ball and just making really aggressive moves. And I think that’s a sign of a team that’s growing and getting a little bit more comfortable with each other.”
Wisconsin hit .457 in the win. Milwaukee, on the other hand, hit minus-.014.
“Any time that you’re holding your opponent to negative, I think that’s doing a pretty good job,” Sheffield said.
Here are three other takeaways from the Badgers’ fourth win of the season:
Grace Egan excels with early serves
Grace Egan quickly gave the 5,934 fans at the Field House something to cheer about with three service aces in Wisconsin’s first six points, including back-to-back service aces that prompted a Milwaukee timeout.
During her time serving, Wisconsin’s lead in the first set ballooned from 2-1 to 8-1.
“Grace set the tone for this match behind the service line,” Sheffield said.
The Ohio State transfer finished the set with a whopping five service aces. The Wisconsin record for service aces in an entire match in the 25-point rally scoring era is six, which has happened four different times.
Egan did not have any more service aces in the three-set win, but she had other excellent serves that set up her teammates in the low-stress win. One of her serves from the second set, for example, does not count as a service ace in the box score, but it had so much power on it that the attempted dig perfectly set up an Alicia Andrew kill.
“When I’m going back to serve, I’m like (to Andrew), ‘Get ready for the overpass, we’re going to set this up,’” Egan said with a laugh.
Wisconsin’s middle blockers have presence at net
The Badgers had a clear advantage over Milwaukee at the net, thanks in large part to outstanding performances from middle blockers Carter Booth and Alicia Andrew.
“I thought we did a really good job of setting up our block, getting across, being physical up at the net,” Sheffield said, “and then our backcourt was picking everything else up.”
Wisconsin finished the night with an 11-3 advantage in blocks. The Badgers had as many blocks against Milwaukee as it had in the three-set wins over UC Davis and Chicago State combined.
“That’s quite a bit in three sets, but there’s times that you don’t get very many blocks, but you’re blocking well. It’s positive touches, or you’re making them hit shots they don’t want to hit.”
Booth had a team-high eight block assists along with four kills. Andrew had three block assists and an efficient eight kills on 10 total attacks (.800). Andrew, a Baylor transfer, has recorded eight-plus kills in three of UW’s first five matches of the season and is hitting an exceptional .547.
“Her preseason was one level, and once we got into match play, it’s a totally different level from her,” Sheffield said of Andrew.
It’s not a total surprise, as Andrew ranked fifth in the Big 12 last year in hitting percentage. But it has impressed Sheffield, nonetheless.
“She loves to compete,” Sheffield said. “She doesn’t panic out there on the court. She cleans up any overpasses, makes herself available, hits with range. … It’s fun to watch. She’s a great player.”
Mimi Colyer’s diverse scoring threat on display
Oregon transfer Mimi Colyer, a 2024 second-team All-American, once again had a starring role in the Badgers’ win.
She had 16 kills – more than all of Milwaukee’s roster combined – while having only one attack error. Her .600 hitting percentage trailed only Andrew’s .800 and Charlie Fuerbringer’s .750, and that was with a much higher volume of attacks.
“This was a really strong match for Mimi,” Sheffield said.
Colyer sees value in her “extensive range” as teams can scout the Badgers better deeper into the season.
“If I can’t hit shots A and B, then I need to go to C, D, E and so on,” Colyer said. “And I think Charlie does a really good job on giving me all those options on every single attempt that I take.”
