Wisconsin
Wisconsin volleyball sweeps Indiana, Kelly Sheffield becomes program’s all-time wins leader
Wisconsin volleyball unveils Final Four banner inside UW Field House
The Badgers unveiled the banner from their 2023 Final Four appearance before their exhibition match against Bradley on Aug. 20.
The Wisconsin volleyball team extended its winning streak to eight matches Thursday night and made a bit of history.
The Badgers, who are ranked eighth in the country by the American Volleyball Coaches Association, swept Indiana, 25-23, 25-18, 25-13, at Wilkinson Hall in Bloomington, Indiana, to give coach Kelly Sheffield his 306th victory as UW coach. That allowed him to pass Pete Waite as the program’s all-time leader in victories.
The milestone came on a night when the Badgers overcame a slow start to hit over .300 for the seventh time in nine Big Ten matches while recording their sixth straight match with double-digit blocks (14).
Senior outside hitter Sarah Franklin finished with 15 kills, four blocks and a .314 hitting percentage for UW. Seniors Anna Smrek (10 kills, .429, seven blocks) and Caroline Crawford (nine, .412 and eight blocks) did the job at the net offensive and defensively. Crawford recorded her 600th career block in the second set. Senior Devyn Robinson added eight kills, didn’t post a hitting error and finished with a .615 hitting percentage and five blocks.
UW (14-4, 8-1 Big Ten) hit .474 during the final two sets. Indiana, which played without all-American setter Camryn Haworth and junior opposite hitter Avry Tatum, never led.
The Hoosiers ran a two-setter offense without Haworth. Sophomore Luca Fickell, daughter of Wisconsin football coach Luke Fickell, finished with a career-best 10 assists.
Staff continuity has been key for Wisconsin coach Kelly Sheffield
Sheffield’s journey to 306 wins hasn’t been done alone. Associated head coaches Brittany Dildine and Gary White have been with him throughout his tenure at Wisconsin. So has director of volleyball operation Jess Williams.
Other staff members such as Annemarie Hickey, who is in her ninth year with the program, have long associations with the program as well.
Sheffield noted those people when asked about the milestone on the Badgers post-match radio show.
“My first year at Albany I didn’t have assistants. We didn’t have a trainer that came to practice. I drove the vans. I was the strength coach. When we did study hall I was the one who oversaw that. I did the class checks and that is not what we have here,” he said.
“It’s a lot of support (here). This sport is really important to our university, to our fanbase and they make decisions that have allowed us to go out and get really good people.”
A look at Wisconsin volleyball’s all-time coaching leaders
1. Kelly Sheffield (2013-present) – 306-65 .825, 12th season; 182-40 .820 Big Ten.
2. Pete Waite (1999-2012) – 305-147 .675, 14 seasons; 170-110 .607 Big Ten.
3. John Cook (1992-98) – 161-73 .688 seven seasons; 89-51 .636 Big Ten.
4. Steve Lowe (1986-90) – 106-63 .627 five seasons; 46-44 .511 Big Ten.
5. Kristi Conklin (1978-80) – 88-46-6 .650 three seasons; 3-9 Big Ten .333.
6. Pat Hielscher (1975-77) – 83-42-6 .645 three seasons; 11-8 .579 Big Ten
(This story was updated to correct information)
FROM THE ARCHIVES: Kelly Sheffield, Wisconsin volleyball have achieved elite status with help from cohesive coaching staff
About 1,000 animal welfare activists who tried to gain entry on Saturday to a beagle breeding and research facility in Wisconsin were turned back by police who fired rubber bullets and pepper spray into the crowd and arrested the group’s leader.
It was the second attempt in as many months by protesters to take beagles from the Ridglan Farms facility in Blue Mounds, a small town about 25 miles (about 40 kilometres) southwest of Wisconsin’s capital, Madison.
Dane County Sheriff Kalvin Barrett said in a video statement that 300 to 400 protesters were “violently trying to break into the property” and assault officers. He said protesters have ignored designated areas for peaceful protest and blocked roads to prevent emergency vehicles from entering.
“This is not a peaceful protest,” Barrett said.
The sheriff’s department said a “significant” number of people were arrested out of about 1,000 protesters at the site but did not give an exact total as they were still being processed as of the afternoon.
Protesters tried to overcome barricades that included a manure-filled trench, hay bales and a barbed-wire fence. Some protesters did get through the fence but were unable to enter the facility, where an estimated 2,000 beagles are kept, the Wisconsin State Journal reported.
Wisconsin guard Andrew Rohde reflects on early March Madness exit
Wisconsin guard Andrew Rohde said the Badgers ‘thought we could do so many things’ in the NCAA Tournament before it ended abrupty with an upset loss.
Wisconsin men’s basketball has added a sharpshooting wing via the transfer portal.
Miami (Ohio) transfer Eian Elmer has signed with the Badgers, the team announced April 18. The 6-foot-7 wing will join UW with one year of eligibility remaining.
Elmer averaged a career-high 12.7 points and 5.9 rebounds while shooting 49.8% from the field and 42.9% from 3-point range in 2025-26. His production helped the RedHawks go 32-2 and earn an at-large NCAA Tournament bid.
“We are really excited to add another excellent addition to our spring signees,” UW coach Greg Gard said in a release. “Eian brings a wealth of experience and scoring punch as a 6-7 wing. … A terrific shooter, his skillset and production fit excellently into our plan as we build out next year’s team. Throughout our evaluation process, our staff loved his size, power and skill and truly believe he will thrive in our system.”
Elmer is Wisconsin’s third transfer portal addition since the end of the 2025-26 season, joining former George Washington guard Trey Autry and former Hofstra forward Victory Onuetu. UW also added Australian guard Owen Foxwell.
The additions of Autry, Onuetu and now Elmer leave Gard’s staff with three more roster spots to fill ahead of the 2026-27 season.
The Badgers are looking to replace much of their production from a 2025-26 team that went 24-11. Nolan Winter is expected to be the team’s only returning starter after John Blackwell and Aleksas Bieliauskas entered the transfer portal and Nick Boyd and Andrew Rohde exhausted their eligibility.
MILWAUKEE – Friday’s severe storms have passed. And with that, the threat of any severe weather has also passed for the immediate future as no storms or rain are expected for several days.
However, plenty of damage remains across southeastern Wisconsin as of Saturday morning, in addition to the ongoing flooding threat.
Several area rivers are at flood stage, and there are multiple river flood warnings in effect.
FOX6 Weekend WakeUp on Saturday begins at 6 a.m.
On the scene in the morning
What we know:
Farmstead damage in Franklin
FOX6’s Hayley Spitler is in Franklin on Saturday morning, April 18, getting a daylight look at the damage from last night’s storms.
Storm damage in Caledonia
Friday’s storms left quite the mark across southern and southeastern Wisconsin, including at L and L Farms and Greenhouse in Caledonia.
FOX6 Weather Extras
Local perspective:
Meanwhile, FOX6Now.com offers a variety of extremely useful weather tools to help you navigate the stormy season. They include the following:
FOX6 Storm Center app
FOX LOCAL Mobile app
FOX Weather app
Maps and radar
We have a host of maps and radars on the FOX6 Weather page that are updating regularly — to provide you the most accurate assessment of the weather. From a county-by-county view to the Midwest regional radar and a national view — it’s all there.
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School and business closings
When the weather gets a little dicey, schools and businesses may shut down. Monitor the latest list of closings, cancellations, and delays reported in southeast Wisconsin.
FOX6 Weather Experts in social media
The Source: Information in this post was compiled by the FOX6 Weather Experts.
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