No. 1 Wisconsin takes down Marquette in front of record crowd

 

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- Volleyball fans in Wisconsin packed Fiserv Forum on Wednesday to watch Marquette take on No. 1 ranked Wisconsin. A record-setting 17,037 fans were in the seats for the largest indoor crowd for a regular season volleyball match.

"It's incredible to look around, especially before the game, taking it all in and just seeing the growth of the sport," said Izzy Ashburn, Wisconsin graduate student setter.

"It was cool. It was really cool to see," said Hattie Bray, Marquette junior middle blocker. "No matter who scored a point, the whole arena was erupting."

The product on the court matched the excitement of the special venue as well. The first set went extra points in favor of the Badgers, 28-26.

Marquette jumped out to 17-8 lead in the second and held on for a 25-20 win to even the match at 1-1.

The Golden Eagles nearly took a 2-1 sets lead, before Wisconsin racked off five straight points to win 26-24. The top team in the nation then closed things out in the fourth 25-18.

"Sure, there was quite a few people that this was their first volleyball match. I can't believe that this would be their last one with what they saw," said Kelly Sheffield, Wisconsin head volleyball coach.

"It's awesome seeing 17,000 people and a majority of them being high schoolers or girls that want to be us one day. I like being there to show them what they can do," said Aubrey Hamilton, Marquette senior outside hitter.

The Badgers were led by 15 kills each from Sarah Franklin and Anna Smrek. The Golden Eagles were paced by 16 kills from Aubrey Hamilton.

Next…The 8-0 Badgers next face third ranked Florida on the road Sunday, Sept. 17 at 2 p.m.

Marquette looks to end its five-match losing streak against UW-Milwaukee on Thursday, Sept. 14.