Wisconsin

Maryland women’s volleyball toppled by No. 9 Wisconsin in straight sets

Published

1 year ago

October 12, 2024

Maryland women’s volleyball toppled by No. 9 Wisconsin in straight sets

Trailing 4-2 in the opening set, defensive specialist Ally Williams went behind the service line looking to spark a Maryland comeback against No. 9 Wisconsin and get the eighth-best serving team in the nation going.

Instead, Williams recorded the first of four service errors for the Terps in the set, establishing the tone of the match. Serving struggles were evident early on, as Maryland failed to record a service ace in the opening set for the first time all season. The Terps fell to the Badgers in straight sets.

“This is one of the better passing teams in the Big Ten, and we knew that would be one of the challenges,” head coach Adam Hughes said. “When you go strength on strength, you always wonder who is going to win the battle. I think it’s a bit tougher to serve when you’re on the road and not as comfortable.”

Wisconsin middle blocker Anna Smrek recorded back-to-back kills to get her team out to a quick 2-0 lead they never relinquished. Pin hitter Samantha Schnitta, the Terps’ leader in kills with 196, tallied a kill to put Maryland on the board. However, another kill from Smrek and middle blocker CC Crawford extended the Badgers lead to 7-2.

Middle blocker Anastasia Russ and outside hitter Sam Csire cut the Wisconsin lead to one. But two service aces from Badgers freshman sensation Charlie Fuerbringer and two team blocks sparked a Wisconsin run, moving the score to 14-8.

Outside hitter Sydney Bryant tried to give Maryland some momentum with a kill, but the Badgers responded just like they had done all set. Middle blocker Eva Rohrbach and setter Sydney Dowler each tallied a kill late in the set, but that wasn’t enough. Wisconsin closed out the set, 25-15.

The second set shaped up just like the previous one, as Maryland fell behind early, 4-2. Dowler knotted the score at six apiece as she recorded the Terps’ first service ace of the match. But outside hitter Sarah Franklin, the reigning AVCA National Player of the Year, recorded back-to-back kills, giving Wisconsin the lead back.

Russ stopped the bleeding and a potential Wisconsin run with a kill, but two more kills from Franklin pushed the score to 10-8. A kill from Schnitta cut the Maryland deficit to one. That was the closest the Terps ever got as Wisconsin went on a massive run.

With Badgers libero Lola Schumacher behind the service line, Wisconsin rattled off eight consecutive points, including four more team-blocks and service ace from Schumacher. It closed out the second-set victory, 25-11, with its ninth block of the set.

Csire recorded the opening point of the third set with a kill. However, this was short-lived, as Franklin responded with a kill and service ace. Schumacher got behind the line and sparked another Badgers’ run, helped by back-to-back kills from Crawford.

Down 8-2, Schnitta hoped to give the Terps some life with another kill, but she had an attack error in the next point. Service aces from outside hitter Julia Orzol and Crawford extended the Wisconsin lead to eight. A kill from Csire and service ace Rohrbach stopped the Badgers’ run at three.

Franklin recorded Wisconsin’s 11th service ace of the match, moving the score to 17-9. Maryland battled late in the set, hoping to muster up a comeback, but three more kills from Franklin shut the door, as the Terps fell 25-15.

“The big message we talked about at the end is in the third set, we were definitely more competitive,” Hughes said. “They had some point runs that were pretty big where it kind of puts it away immediately. I was proud we didn’t surrender there and kept battling against a good team.”

Three things to know

1. Service woes. Maryland recorded just three service aces in the match, its lowest mark. Coming off an impressive 10 aces in the last match, the Terps were unable to find any sort of serving momentum. Seven service errors also led to Maryland’s struggle.

2. First straight-sets loss of the season. In every match so far this season, the Terps pulled off at least one set, even against No. 3 Penn State. However, Maryland was never within striking distance in any of the sets to position itself to earn a set victory.

3. Terps were out-blocked 13-1. Up against a very physical team, Maryland was dominated at the net. In a department that the Terps found some success early on in the season, the recent blocking struggles continued. Maryland had a hitting percentage of just 4.3%.

“They have a balanced offense and it’s hard to get anyone set up in good places,” Hughes said. “On the other side, we were out of system a fair amount, and that puts their physicality on full display. We had to find this balance of staying aggressive.”

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Wisconsin

Wisconsin loses starting offensive lineman to the transfer portal

Published

6 hours ago

December 11, 2025

Press Room

Wisconsin loses starting offensive lineman to the transfer portal

In a bit of a surprise, Wisconsin Badgers starting center Jake Renfro is using a medical hardship year and entering the transfer portal for his final season of eligibility.

Renfro, a sixth-year senior in 2024, battled numerous injuries this season, limiting him to only four games after having season-ending surgery. He was a full-time starter for Wisconsin in 2024 after missing the entire 2023 season except for the team’s bowl game due to injury.

Prior to his time at Wisconsin, Renfro had played for head coach Luke Fickell at Cincinnati for three seasons. He played in seven games as a freshman in 2020, making six starts at center. He then was the full-time starter as a sophomore in 2021, earning All-AAC honors before missing the entire 2022 season due to injury.

Now, he’s set to come back to college football for a seventh year, rather than turn pro, and will look to do so at another school.

“I want to thank Coach Fickell, the entire coaching and training staff, my teammates, and the University of Wisconsin for everything over the past three seasons,” Renfro wrote. “I am grateful for the support, development, friendships, and memories I have made during my time in Madison. After much prayer and consideration, I have decided to enter the transfer portal and use a medical hardship year to continue my college football journey. I will always appreciate my time as a Badger.”

Renfro was one of the biggest supporters of Fickell publicly, being a vocal leader on the team as the starting center.

With his departure, Wisconsin could need a new starting left tackle, left guard, and center next season, depending on whether Joe Brunner heads to the NFL or returns for another season.

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Wisconsin

Wisconsin’s match vs Stanford puts Alicia Andrew across net from sister

Published

18 hours ago

December 11, 2025

Press Room

Wisconsin’s match vs Stanford puts Alicia Andrew across net from sister

Sisters Alicia and Lizzy Andrew will face each other in the NCAA volleyball tournament regional semifinals.
Alicia is a redshirt senior middle blocker for Wisconsin, while Lizzy is a sophomore middle blocker for Stanford.
Alicia and Lizzy Andrew have similarities on and off the court as they each contribute to college volleyball powerhouses.

MADISON — It did not take long for Alicia Andrew to text her younger sister after watching the NCAA volleyball selection show with her Wisconsin teammates in a lounge area in the south end zone of Camp Randall Stadium.

“I was like, ‘Girl!’” Andrew said. “She’s like, ‘I know! I’ll see you in Texas! And I was like, ‘I’m so excited!’”

Andrew will not see her younger sister in the Gregory Gym stands like any other family members, but rather on the court as an opposing player in the Badgers’ NCAA tournament regional semifinal match against Stanford.

Alicia Andrew is a 6-foot-3 redshirt senior middle blocker for Wisconsin. Lizzy Andrew is a 6-foot-5 sophomore middle blocker for Stanford. The sisters will play against each other for the first time with a spot in the NCAA regional finals on the line.

“Certainly when you’re having two high-level Division I starters on teams that are top five, top 10 in the country playing the same position, that’s pretty unique,” Wisconsin coach Kelly Sheffield said. “They’re both talented and competitive. But I also know that the players aren’t going to make it about themselves or the person that’s on the other side of the net. They’re parts of teams that are trying to move on and move forward and play great volley.”

Alicia has naturally fielded questions about the sibling rivalry, but she is “not reading too much into rivalry stuff and just playing this sport.”

“It’s another game,” she said after a recent UW practice. “Yes, it’s her across the net. But it’s a business. We both want to move on to the next round.”

Both players have played key parts in their respective teams’ path to this stage.

Alicia, after transferring from Baylor, is the only UW player to appear in all 98 sets this season and one of five to appear in all 30 matches. She is second on the team with 111 blocks, barely trailing fellow middle blocker Carter Booth’s 119.

“Really wants to be good for the people around her,” Sheffield said of Alicia. “Wants to do her job. Takes pride in her job. There’s a maturity, but yet there’s a playfulness that is a really good balance for her. Love coaching her. She’s wired the right way. She really is.”

Lizzy, meanwhile, ranks seventh in the country with a .441 hitting percentage in 2025 after earning a spot on the all-ACC freshman team in 2024. She also has experience playing with the U.S. U21 national team.

“I’m so proud of how hard she worked and her journey to Stanford,” Alicia said. “She puts in so much work, and she just loves the sport of volleyball. And I have loved watching her grow. It’s been fun to see her get better and better every year. And this past season, she’s been playing lights out.”

That pride has turned Alicia into a frequent viewer of ACC volleyball, of course whenever it has not conflicted with the Badgers’ own matches.

“We try to watch as many of each other’s games as we can, and I always just love watching her play,” she said. “I’m so proud of her. She’s just worked her tail off at Stanford, so to see her excel has been so fun.”

The Andrew sisters — Alicia, Lizzy and Natalie, who is on the rowing team at the U.S. Naval Academy — competed together in high school. (They also have a younger brother, William.) Competing against each other is a new concept for them, though.

“We’re not huge trash talkers, neither one of us,” Alicia said. “So I think that she’s going to play her game. I’m going to play my game. We’re going to have our heads down. There might be some looking across and smiling because we make the exact same expressions and quirky faces and reactions.”

The sisters don’t look the same – Lizzy has blonde hair and Alicia has brown hair. But Alicia quickly sees the resemblance with those on-court mannerisms.

“If there’s a silly play or if there is like a really unexpected dump or something, she’ll turn around and make the exact same face that I will,” Alicia said. “And it’s funny watching her on TV because I’m like, ‘Wow, that looks scary familiar.’”

They have some similarities off the court, too.

“We’re just goobers,” Alicia said. “We just like to have a good time together. Obviously she’s my little sister, but we have always been a close family — like all the siblings — so I feel like we’ve done all the things together growing up in all the sports.”

The Andrew parents are perhaps the biggest winners of the NCAA tournament bracket.

“My parents were super excited,” Alicia said. “They don’t have to split the travel plan, so they can save some frequent flyer miles there and both be in Texas. … They’re always trying to coordinate all the schedules.”

The Andrew family made T-shirts for the unique sisterly matchup. (Alicia thinks she is getting one considering they asked her and Lizzy for their shirt sizes in the family group chat.) The shirts are black, too, so there is no favoritism between Wisconsin and Stanford’s variations of cardinal red.

“They have a Stanford ‘S’ and a tree on it and then a Wisconsin ‘W’ and a little Badger on it, too,” Andrew said. “They’re really excited about these shirts. They’re being non-biased; they’re repping both daughters.”

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Wisconsin

8-year-old dies in hospital after icy Wisconsin crash

Published

1 day ago

December 10, 2025

Press Room

8-year-old dies in hospital after icy Wisconsin crash

RICHMOND TOWNSHIP, Wis. (FOX 9) – A crash in western Wisconsin killed an 8-year-old boy and seriously injured a 27-year-old Wednesday morning.

Fatal crash in Richmond Township, Wisconsin

What we know:

According to St. Croix County, just before 10 a.m., deputies responded to a crash on the 1500 block of County Road A.

Authorities say that a 27-year-old woman was driving a van southbound, and lost control on an icy curve and collided with another vehicle.

The woman suffered serious injuries from the crash and was taken to the hospital to be treated, law enforcement said. The boy was critically injured, and was also taken to the hospital, where he later died.

Both were wearing seat belts during the crash.

The driver of the other vehicle was treated for minor injuries at the scene and was released.

This is the 10th traffic fatality in St. Croix County.

What we don’t know:

The current condition of the woman is unknown.

The Source: A press release from St. Croix County Sheriff’s Office.

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