Roster breakdown: No. 1 Badgers volleyball team has lots of familiar faces, plenty of newcomers (2024)

DENNIS PUNZELFor the State Journal

When the University of Wisconsin volleyball team takes the court Friday in the delayed season opener against Purdue, the lineup will have a familiar ring to it.

The Badgers return eight mainstays, including four All-Americans, from the team that advanced to the NCAA championship match in 2019 — a major reason the nation’s coaches voted them No. 1 in the AVCA preseason poll.

But the 2021 spring season Badgers also have a majority of new faces, as 11 of the 20 players on the roster have yet to play in a UW match and eight are new to the program.

Here’s a look at how the roster shapes up.

Setter

Sydney Hilley, 6-0, senior; Izzy Ashburn, 5-11, sophom*ore; M.J. Hammill, 6-0, freshman

Hilley has proven to be a worthy successor to Lauren Carlini as she has developed into perhaps the top setter in the nation. She was a first-team All-American and Big Ten Conference Setter of the Year in 2019, leading the conference in assists per set as the Badgers led the Big Ten with a .290 team hitting percentage. She ranked fourth nationally in assists per set and set a program record with 78 assists in a four-set victory at Minnesota.

Hilley also has been durable, starting all 98 matches in her first three seasons. But if needed, the Badgers have plenty of depth with Ashburn, Hilley’s former high school teammate, and Hammill, who figures to be next in line at the position. Barring injury, Ashburn’s primary role will be as a server and defensive specialist.

Outside hitter

Molly Haggerty, 6-1, redshirt senior; Grace Loberg, 6-3, senior; Deahna Kraft, 6-0, senior; Julia Wohlert, 6-7, redshirt sophom*ore; Liz Gregorski, 5-10, redshirt freshman; Devyn Robinson, 6-2, freshman; Jade Demps, 6-2, freshman; Lauren Jardine, 6-3, freshman

The left pin is in experienced, veteran hands, while the right side is up for grabs with three newcomers to the program competing to fill the void left by Madison Duello. Haggerty and Loberg return on the left side, each coming off her best season. Fully recovered from back surgery after her freshman season, Haggerty had career bests with 3.54 kills per set and a .266 hitting percentage to earn second-team All-American honors. Loberg also had career bests of 3.07 kps and .249 as she was named All-Big Ten and honorable mention All-American.

The right side, however, has been an open competition between Robinson, Demps and Kraft, and if coach Kelly Sheffield has made his decision he’d like Purdue to learn of it when the lineups are introduced. All three contenders figure to see plenty of action. Robinson also could see time at middle if needed, Demps provides depth on the left and Kraft, a transfer from Pepperdine where she was a top beach volleyball player, can play either pin as well as the back court. Robinson and Demps are potentially dynamic players who have come on strong after missing some practice time in the fall. Wohlert, whose strength is her blocking, adds depth on the right side as well as in the middle, while Gregorski, who sat out her freshman season following knee surgery, is healthy and working on the left side. Jardine, a fall-2021 recruit from Utah, graduated early from high school to train with the team but is not eligible to play this spring.

Middle blocker

Dana Rettke, 6-8, senior; Danielle Hart, 6-4, redshirt junior; Nicole Shanahan, 6-2, senior; Courtney Gorum, 6-3, redshirt freshman; Anna Smrek, 6-9, freshman

Rettke, a three-time first-team All-American and reigning Big Ten Player of the Year and Female Athlete of the Year, would have to be regarded as the favorite for national Player of the Year honors. After a hectic year in which she also played for the U.S. National Team, Rettke is rested and primed for a big senior season. Add in Hart, coming off a breakout season and second team All-Big Ten honors, and the Badgers have the premier middle combination in the nation.

Shanahan has proven an able contributor when called upon in the past and Gorum offers future promise after missing her freshman season with an injury. Smrek, like Jardine, is an early enrollee from Welland, Ontario, who isn’t eligible until the fall.

Libero/defensive specialist

Lauren Barnes, 5-6, senior; Giorgia Civita, 5-6, senior; Anna MacDonald, 5-8, sophom*ore; Sydney Reed, 5-6, freshman

The biggest area of loss for the Badgers is in the back court with the graduation of libero Tiffany Clark and defensive specialist M.E. Dodge. Barnes, after three seasons at DS — two with Minnesota and one with UW — finally gets her chance to wear the libero jersey and has been among the most impressive players in practice. Civita, a transfer from Wichita State, where she was American Athletic Conference Libero of the Year in 2018, got off to a slow start in the fall as she recovered from her third knee injury but has come on strong in the past couple weeks and is expected to play a significant role. MacDonald saw limited action as a freshman but also has stepped up recently to put herself into the mix at DS, where Ashburn figures to play regularly. Reed is the most recent addition to the team, transferring from North Carolina, where she played in eight matches in the fall season. She is not eligible to play this spring.