This Week In Badger Athletics: Sept. 17-23
Women's soccer returns to McClimon for its conference home opener, while volleyball and men's soccer open Big Ten play

<b>Big Ten Co-Defensive Player of the Week Chase Rau and the men's soccer program open Big Ten play at home on Friday.</b>


Big Ten Co-Defensive Player of the Week Chase Rau and the men's soccer program open Big Ten play at home on Friday.

Sept. 17, 2012

WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY
This week: The No. 29th-ranked Badgers travel to Earlysville, Va., for the Virginia Invitational on Saturday.

Last week: Wisconsin took the Warhawk Invitational team title after six runners finished in the top-20. 

Good to know: Complete results will be available at UWBadgers.com following Saturday’s race.

FOOTBALL (2-1)
This week: No. 24 Wisconsin concludes it non-conference schedule by welcoming UTEP to Camp Randall Stadium on Saturday on ESPN2. 

Last week: The Badgers defeated Utah State, 16-14, in comeback-fashion, extending its home winning streak to 17 consectuive games.

Need to know: On just his second career punt return, Kenzel Doe recorded an 82-yard TD, sparking the eventual comeback and recording the longest punt return TD since 2000, when Josh Hunt returned a punt for an 89-yard TD.

Good to know: Fans can watch Saturday’s broadcast live on ESPN2, while the Badger Sports Network radio broadcast is also available online and on mobile devices on iHeartRadio. Live stats and the live Gameday Blog can be found at UWBadgers.com.

• Gameday Live  |  @BadgersLive  |   Listen Live http://grfx.cstv.com/images/icons/audio.gif  |  Watch Live Small Video Graphic 

MEN'S GOLF
This week: The Badgers opened the season with a 9th-place finish with at 299-291-305—895 at the Wolf Run Intercollegiate in Zionsville, Ind.

Last week: Wisconsin continues fall tournament play at the D.A. Weibring Intercollegiate on the D.A. Weibring Golf Course in Normal, Ill.

Good to know: Chris Meyer, who led the Badgers at Indiana, returned to last year’s form when he led UW in two of the last three tournaments in the spring. 

MEN’S SOCCER (2-2-3)
This week: The men’s soccer team returns home this weekend for a single match against Penn State on Friday night. Preceded by the women’s soccer match against Michigan State, the game will serve as the annual “PAC The MAC” for both soccer teams.

Last week: After conceding 10 goals in the first five games, the Badgers continued to show improvements on defense at the UIC Soccer Classic in Chicago. Wisconsin played to a scoreless draw against Western Illinois on Sept. 14, before knocking off IUPUI, 2-0, on Sept. 16. Freshman goalkeeper Chase Rau made a total of eight stops on the weekend, recording his first two shutouts of his collegiate career.

Need to know: Friday’s “PAC The MAC” event kicks off at 5 p.m. with the women’s soccer game against Michigan State and continues at 7:30 p.m. with the men’s game against Penn State. UW students receive free admission, and $1 tickets will be offered to the general public.

Good to know: Fans can follow the games with live stats and a live Gameday Blog at UWBadgers.com. A video stream will also be provided through UWBadgers.com.

• @BadgerMSoccer   

• Live Stats: Penn State  

WOMEN’S SOCCER (6-2-0)
This Week: The No. 13 Badgers (5-1-0) return to the McClimon Complex this weekend as they welcome a pair of Big Ten foes. UW will host Michigan State on Friday in its conference home opener during the annual "Pac the Mac" event at 5 p.m. The Badgers will then have a day off before welcoming Michigan on Sunday at 1 p.m.

Last Week: Wisconsin finished the week 1-1 after a pair of road games. The Badgers outlasted Milwaukee, 2-1, in overtime on Wednesday and fell at No. 11 Penn State by the same score in the Big Ten opener.

Need to Know: The Badgers are 4-0-0 at the McClimon Complex this season.

Good to Know: Fans can follow live stats of Friday's match at www.UWBadgers.com.

• @BadgerWSoccer  |  GameTracker  |  Watch Live Small Video Graphic

VOLLEYBALL (12-1)
This Week: The Badgers (12-1) open the Big Ten Conference season this weekend on the road. Wisconsin travels to Northwestern (11-0) for a 7 p.m. match in Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston, Ill. UW has a day off before taking on No. 23 Illinois (6-4) on Sunday at 1 p.m. from Huff Hall in Champaign, Ill.

Last Week: Wisconsin won the Georgia Southern Eagle Invitational last weekend with a 4-0 record to wrap up its non-conference season 12-1. The Badgers swept Savannah State before edging Georgia Southern 3-2. On Saturday, UW swept Jacksonville and secured the tournament title witha  3-1 win over South Alabama.  

Senior Mary Ording was named the Eagle nvitational MVP while junior Annemarie Hickey and senior Alexis Mitchell earned all-tournament honors. A 6-3 right-side hitter, A 6-3 middle blocker, Ording averaged 2.87 kills per set while hitting an impressive .544 on the weekend. She also added a team best 1.13 blocks per set

Need to Know: Head coach Pete Waite won his 300th win at Wisconsin against South Alabama on Sept. 15. Waite is the all-time winningest coach at Wisconsin both in wins and winning percentage. He is 300-132 in his 14th season at UW and 566-234 in his 25th season overall.

Junior Annemarie Hickey picked up career dig No. 1,000 against South Alabama on Sept. 15. Hickey becomes just the 12th Badger player to tally 1,000 digs in a career.

Good to Know:  Sunday's match against Illinios will be broadcast live on BTN.com.  

• @BadgerVBall  

• Live Stats: Northwestern  |  Illinois