7:03 pm
December 16

Women’s Volleyball Championship: #1 Louisville v. #4 Wisconsin

Who will WIN this matchup?

#1 Louisville Cardinals (32-0)

#4 Wisconsin Badgers (29-3)

 

Current odds:

Louisville Cardinals: (-225)

Wisconsin Badgers: (+162)

 

The Cardinals continue the best season in program history, advancing to the Final Four for the first time ever. UofL has earned a 32-0 record this season, the third most wins in a single season. Louisville’s offense features five players with 200-plus kills, four of which are over 230. Anna DeBeer is the Cards top hitter with 323 kills and is hitting .262 on the year with 247 digs, 44 blocks and 29 aces. Anna Stevenson is second on the team with 298 kills and 142 blocks and is hitting .430 for the year. Claire Chaussee has recorded 281 kills this season and is hitting .274 with 107 digs and 24 blocks. Aiko Jones has a team-high 37 aces and has tallied 236 kills with a .252 hitting percentage and 124 blocks. Amaya Tillman has racked up a team-high 146 blocks and has 205 kills with a .366 hitting percentage. Rounding out the Cardinals’ starters, Tori Dilfer leads the team with 1,165 assists while adding 191 digs, 28 aces and 60 blocks with Elena Scott recording a team-high 402 digs and 32 aces, second most on the team.

As a team, Louisville is first in the ACC in aces per set (1.71), first in the ACC and second in the country in blocks per set (3.03), first in the ACC and fifth in the country in hitting percentage (.300), first in the ACC and fifth in the country in opponent hitting percentage (.137), first in the ACC in total aces (185) and first in the ACC and ninth in the country in total blocks (327).

Aiko Jones– 6th in ACC with 1.15 blocks per set; 4th in ACC with 37 total aces, 6th in ACC with 124 total blocks
Tori Dilfer– 3rd in ACC with 10.79 assists per set; 2nd in ACC with 1,165 total assists
Amaya Tillman– 2nd in ACC, 7th in NCAA with 1.39 blocks per set; 4th in ACC with .366 hitting percentage; 2nd in ACC, 13th in NCAA with 146 total blocks
Anna Stevenson– 4th in ACC with 1.34 blocks per set; 1st in ACC, 7th in NCAA with .430 hitting percentage; 4th in ACC with 142 total blocks
Anna DeBeer– 13th in ACC with 3.23 kills per set
Elena Scott– 8th in ACC with 402 total digs

 FINAL FOUR FACTS: Wisconsin is 3-1 in NCAA national semifinals, including a 2-1 mark under head coach Kelly Sheffield. The Badgers are also 2-1 against No. 1 teams in the final four. In 2019, the Badgers defeated No. 1 Baylor, 3-1, in the semifinals. In 2013, UW downed No. 1 Texas, 3-1, in the semifinals. In 2000, Wisconsin fell to No. 1 Nebraska, 3-2, in the championship match.

THIRD TIME’S THE CHARM? The Badgers are the only team making their third-straight appearance in the final four. In 2019, Wisconsin fell to Stanford, 3-0, in the championship match while in 2020, UW fell to Texas, 3-0, in the semifinals.

ALL-TOURNAMENT ACCOLADES: Setter Sydney Hilley was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Wisconsin Regional, running the Badger offense. The 6-foot Hilley averaged 12.17 assists, 4.33 digs and 0.83 blocks per set while setting UW to a .301 team hitting percentage and 15.67 kills per set. Middle blockers Dana Rettke and Devyn Robinson was also named to the all-tournament team.  Rettke averaged 3.83 kills per set while hitting .476 and added 0.83 blocks per set. Robinson averaged 3.17 kills and 1.67 blocks per set while hitting .375.

SETTING UP FOR SUCCESS: Wisconsin has not lost a set in NCAA tournament play and has won its last 18 sets, its longest set-winning streak of the season. The Badgers have also won the last nine matches in a row.

IZZY ACE-BURN: Junior Izzy Ashburn broke her own season record for service aces under 25-point rally scoring. The 5-foot-11 serving specialist has 48 aces this season, besting her mark of 47 set in 2019.

STACKED AT THE NET: Wisconsin has a balanced offensive attack in NCAA play, with five hitters averaging 2.0-or-more kills per set. Dana Rettke leads the Badgers with 3.58 kills per set while Grace Loberg adds 3.00 kills per set. Julia Orzoł (2.75) Devyn Robinson (2.67) and Anna Smrek (2.17). Rettke hits a team-best .468 while Robinson connects on .431.

Robinson has a team-best 1.42 blocks per set while freshman Anna Smrek adds 1.00 blocks per set. Sydney Hilley puts up 12.75 assists per set while adding 3.25 digs per set in running the Badger offense. Lauren Barnes has a team-best 4.92 digs per set while Izzy Ashburn leads the team with 0.50 service aces per set.

5/10
Confidence
StreakSmarter Pick
#1 Louisville Cardinals