Temi Thomas-Ailara, Joslyn Boyer lead Wisconsin volleyball past Iowa on Senior Night

Temi Thomas-Ailara didn’t miss on Senior Night.

The outside hitter finished with 11 kills and a career-high .647 hitting percentage for the Wisconsin volleyball team in a sweep of Iowa at the UW Field House on Saturday night.

The 6-foot-2 Thomas-Ailara, who is  a graduate student, was one of six seniors honored after the 25-21, 25-10, 25-16 victory that allowed the Badgers to complete the regular season with a 26-3 overall record and a 17-3 mark in the Big Ten.

Temi Thomas-Ailara, five other seniors honored on Senior Night

Thomas-Ailara recorded kills on the final three points of the first set. She had five kills in the second set, when the Badgers hit .542.

Iowa, which finished winless in the Big Ten, pushed the Badgers into nine ties and four lead changes during the first, but UW never trailed during the final two sets.

Thomas-Ailara was honored after the match along with setters MJ Hammill and Izzy Ashburn, middle blocker Gabby McCaa and defensive specialists Joslyn Boyer and Sydney Reed.

Ashburn and Hammill finished with 19 and 17 assists, respectively. Boyer and Reed tied for the team high with two aces. McCaa recorded a kill.

Boyer was behind the service line in the second set when UW took control of the match. She served eight straight points in a 9-0 run that turned a tight match into a 13-4 lead.

“I thought that turned the entire energy of the Field House around,” UW coach Kelly Sheffield said of the run. “She’s got that ability, coming in and putting in a lot of good serves and stretching out the lead and we were off and running all of a sudden. Some people have a little bit more spring in their step all of a sudden, a little bit better defensive intensity.”

Sarah Franklin, Devyn Robinson and Caroline Crawford, who recorded her 500^th career block in the match, are also seniors, but they plan to use their COVID year of eligibility and return next season.