University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Host No. 5 Wisconsin Wednesday
10/14/2014 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
| Minnesota (13-4) hosts Wisconsin (14-2) | |
| Wednesday, Oct. 15 | Minnesota vs. Wisconsin (6 p.m.) |
| BTN/BTN2Go | | Live Blog | |
| Location | Sports Pavilion |
| Tickets | MyGopherSports.com |
| Travel | Local Weather | Parking | Preferred Hotels |
| Official Site | Minnesota | Wisconsin |
| Social Media | @GopherVball | Facebook |
MINNESOTA HOSTS WISCONSIN
The University of Minnesota competes in a rare home-and-home week against Wisconsin, Wednesday and Saturday nights. After the two teams battle Wednesday night at 6 p.m., in the Sports Pavilion, Minnesota travels to Madison, Wis., to take on the Badgers at the Fieldhouse on Saturday, at 7 p.m. Wednesday's match marks the second time the Badgers have visited the Sports Pavilion this year as they competed in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge to start the season, Aug. 29-30.
ON THE DOCKET
Minnesota plays another Wednesday night match next week as the Nebraska Cornhuskers come to town, Oct. 22 for a 6:30 p.m. start. The Gophers then host Iowa, Oct. 25, also at the Sports Pavilion, at 7 p.m. The match against the Huskers will be televised live on the Big Ten Network, while the Iowa match will be streamed live through BTN Plus.
FOLLOWING THE GOPHERS
Wednesday's match against the Badgers will be televised live on the Big Ten Network. Saturday's match will be streamed on BTN Plus through BTN2Go. A subscription is needed for BTN Plus. The matches will also have a live blog as well as live stats available on gophersports.com.
ABOUT THE BADGERS
Wisconsin enters the week with a 14-2 overall record and a 5-1 mark in Big Ten play. Wisconsin's two losses of the 2014 season came back-to-back against Washington (3-2) and Penn State (3-0). The Badgers are riding a five-match win streak, including sweeps against conference opponents Northwestern, Rutgers and Maryland and a four-set win over Illinois. The Badgers have five individuals with triple-digit kills, led by Ellen Chapman with 167. Setter Lauren Carlini leads the Big Ten in assists per set (11.55) with 635 assist this season. As a team, the Badgers lead the conference in digs per set (16.24) and assists per set (13.65), and are second in kills per set (14.84) and 12th in blocks per set (2.13).
ALL-TIME SERIES
Minnesota holds a 43-33 all-time advantage over Wisconsin, dating back to 1975. Minnesota and Wisconsin split action last year, each earning a win on its home court.
LAST WEEKEND'S RECAP
Minnesota added two wins against Maryland and Rutgers last weekend as the Golden Gophers swept the two opponents. Daly Santana contributed 31 kills and averaged 5.17 kps as she hit .354 on the weekend. Middle blockers Hannah Tapp and Molly Lohman each hit .417 on the weekend as they also added 13 blocks. Alyssa Goehner had a team-high 18 digs as she played both the libero and outside position. Katie Schau also had 66 assists, two aces and 15 digs.
GOPHER ALUM HELPS USA WIN GOLD
Gopher alum Tori Dixon (2010-13) was a member of USA Volleyball's world championship team that won the gold medal this past weekend in Italy. The win was a historic event as the U.S. Women had never before won gold at any of the three major international volleyball events: World Championship, World Cup or Olympic Games. Dixon is coming off an excellent rookie season with USA Volleyball. As a member of the gold medal team, Dixon also competed at the Pan American Cup and the FIVB World Grand Prix. In a span of one year, Dixon was a first team All-American for the Gophers in 2013, competed with Rabita Baku in Azerbaijan and competed with USA Volleyball this spring and summer. She was also the youngest member of the World Championship team and one of two rookies to make the squad.
GOLDEN GOPHER BLOCK PARTY
Minnesota leads the league in blocks and blocks per set. As a team, the Gophers have 183.5 blocks to average 3.06 per set. The Tapp and Tapp tandem alone, rank first and second in the Big Ten Conference as the duo has 85 and 84 blocks, respectively. Minnesota finished the 2013 season as the second-best blocking team as former Gopher Tori Dixon averaged 1.69 bps, while Hannah Tapp had 1.28 bps. The Gophers in 2012 ranked ninth in the league and improved seven spots in just one year.
WHERE THEY STACK UP
Daly Santana ranks first in the overall Big Ten statistics in points (4.75 per set), second in kills (4.08 ps) and third in aces (0.41 ps). Paige Tapp holds the league's ninth-best hitting percentage (.361), while she and her sister, Hannah, lead the league in blocks.
RIVALRY DAY TICKET PACKAGE
University of Minnesota is set to offer a Rivalry Day ticket package for Oct. 25 as women's hockey takes on North Dakota at 4 p.m., while volleyball hosts Iowa at 7 p.m. Fans can purchase a women's hockey general admission ticket, a volleyball reserved ticket and a $5 concession voucher, all for just $15. The match also marks Minnesota's annual Dig Pink event and also marks an autograph night.
