The Badgers outlast the Aggies in a five-set thriller to advance to the Elite Eight

The Wisconsin Badgers overcame slow starts, periods of error and a crowd full of rivals trying to spoil their fun, but the No. 2 seed secured a five-set win (25-21, 18-25, 25-19, 23). -25, 15-13) over the No. 6 seed Texas A&M Aggies and, thanks to timely, courageous plays, their stars reached the Elite Eight for the program’s seventh consecutive year.

Senior outside attacker Sarah Franklin led Wisconsin with 21 kills on 66 shots, with no kill more important than the one that clinched the fifth set win, 15-13.

In the final frame, Franklin had four kills and an ace, giving Wisconsin a 9-6 lead over the Aggies. Although she looked exhausted, she took the ball to serve for a 7-6 lead and led the Badgers with a 4-0 serve run to extend the Wisconsin lead to 11-6 in the fifth set, where it looked like UW would take control.

On the other hand, A&M junior Logan Lednicky was the one who wanted to stop the Badgers’ win. In a close fourth set, Lednicky scored the Aggies’ final four points as they fed off the Nebraska crowd, which suddenly became 12th Man North as they settled into their seats. Lednicky had 23 kills, meaning she had over 20 in all three NCAA Tournament games.

She stopped the Badger run in the fifth, cutting the score to 11-7 before freshman setter Charlie Fuerbringer’s second-touch kill and then Franklin’s 20th kill gave UW a seemingly insurmountable 13-7 lead.

But the Badgers had been in this spot before, where it looked like they had all the momentum and the Aggies were finding their way back into the game.

In the opening set, UW fell behind early, but took a 13-11 lead thanks to a block from Anna Smrek (senior) and Carter Booth (junior). The Aggies took a 17-16 lead, but Franklin tied the set at 17 and then got her sixth kill of the frame to make it 20-18 UW. In the red zone of that set, Smrek had three kills in the final five points, helping Wisconsin to a 25-21 win in the opening set. The Badgers had no errors and hit .543 in the frame.

But everything fell apart for Wisconsin in the second set. UW had eight offensive errors and looked out of shape as Texas A&M improved their blocking, serving and passing. The Aggies were able to find their middle blockers during this period and they were deadly efficient. Morgan Perkins had 13 kills while Ifenna Cos-Okpalla had eight, hitting .565 and .389, respectively. When A&M got going, it was often quick sets from Maddie Waak to the middle shots, and the Aggies secured the win in the second set.

Wisconsin rallied in the third set. Despite a slow start that went down 3-1 and forced a timeout from head coach Kelly Sheffield, UW found its footing and went up 10-8. The game was characterized by long, tough rallies that made the defense in the back row work. But A&M’s block also calibrated and made a big block that gave the Aggies a 15-13 lead. Some aggressive plays from Wisconsin helped make it 17-1 thanks to an improbable bump kill from Booth from the net, and UW was able to gain momentum, take an 18-17 lead and force a TAMU timeout. The Aggie block responded before Smrek took matters into his own hands.

Like the rest of the Badgers, the 6-foot-11 Canadian had an up-and-down night, but she came out on top and ensured Wisconsin won the third set. With the score tied at 19, Smrek had two kills and two blocks as part of a 6-0 run, with Fürbringer helping UW close out the set 25-19. Smrek finished with 10 kills, nine blocks and five digs, with her best performance coming in crunch time at the end of the first and third sets.

The Aggies took a 10-6 lead in the fourth set, but Wisconsin’s block helped the comeback. Booth, who finished the night with 14 kills and nine blocks, was huge for Wisconsin, and a block from her and Smrek made it 11-10. Lednicky started to burn in the fourth set and the Aggies went on a run to take a 16-12 lead. UW fought back with two straight kills from senior CC Crawford as part of a 3-0 run, making the score 16-15 and forcing a TAMU timeout.

After the timeout, the Aggies built a 3-0 lead with kills from the middle. Senior Devyn Robinson had a kill to break the run, but Perkins’ 10th kill gave A&M a 20-16 lead. The twin towers of Smrek and Booth had a block that tied the set at 21-1 before Lednicky scored the aforementioned four straight points for A&M to help the Aggies force a fifth set.

It was Lednicky who chipped away at the Badgers’ commanding lead in the fifth set. With the score at 13-8, the Aggies went on a 4-0 run with Lednicky getting the kills at 13-11 and 13-12. That final goal forced a Sheffield timeout and the Lincoln crowd swarmed the adoptive Aggies.

Booth killed a quick set from Fürbringer to give UW match point at 14-12, but Lednicky kept A&M alive with her 23rd kill. But Franklin had the game-winning kill that quieted the crowd and propelled Wisconsin to the Elite Eight for the seventh straight year.

In a heated match that lacked consistency on offense – UW hit .543, .097, .222, .189 and .222 per set, a line that was a roller coaster ride – the Badgers’ defense was on the back foot Series incredible. Freshman libero Lola Schumacher had 24 punches, while junior Gülce Güçtekin had 13 punches as she was still battling the injury that kept her out late in the season – she was kept on the sidelines with some sort of massage/heating pad around her Hull shown when she wasn’t in it.

The Badgers struggled against the Aggies and showed some of the Wisconsin-level determination that fans are used to. It wasn’t always pretty, but the stars came up big when they needed to, and that means Wisconsin is still in the NCAA Tournament.

UW next takes on the winner of No. 1 Nebraska and No. 2 seed Dayton for a spot in the Final Four. This game takes place in Lincoln on Sunday at 2 p.m. It airs on ABC.