MADISON, Wis. — The top-ranked Wisconsin volleyball team saw its undefeated Big Ten Conference streak come to an end, falling to No. 3 Minnesota, 25-20, 25-18, 25-14, at the UW Field House Wednesday night.

"I think you move up to No. 1 for the first time and then you get your butt kicked by anybody and you can sit there and think it's the easy thing to say 'Hey we were full of ourselves' or whatever," UW head coach Kelly Sheffield said. "But that had nothing to do with this particular match. It certainly can happen, but that wasn't what tonight was. … that would be unfair to Minnesota to say that that was the reason, but also because I know my team and we just got outplayed tonight, period."

Wisconsin (14-2, 6-1 Big Ten) hit a season-low .050 percent (37 kills - 27 errors - 101 attempts) as Minnesota held the Badgers to a negative hitting percentage in both the first and third sets.

The Gophers hit an opponent season-high .323 (45-13-99) hitting percentage, led by 6-1 senior outside hitter Sarah Wilhite and 6-2 senior middle blocker Hannah Tapp with 12 and 11 kills, respectively.
Minnesota (14-2, 6-1 Big Ten) narrowly outdug the Badgers 37-33 but recorded 14 blocks to Wisconsin's three.

Junior Kelli Bates led the UW offense with 10 kills, sophomore Tionna Williams added six kills, and senior Haleigh Nelson recorded five kills and notched the Badgers' only service ace of the night.

"I thought Kelli [Bates] did a great job," Sheffield said. "Her hitting numbers were a little lower because she got blocked there a little bit at the end but I thought she was great, her whole game tonight was really solid. I thought our passers did a really good job. I thought Lauren (Carlini) was making the most of the choices that she wanted to make.

"They beat us at the net and part of that was due to our serving, but that wasn't a match that shows the separation of two teams. That was a match that shows the separation of two teams in that particular match, so we'll get back to work."

Sophomore Amber MacDonald saved a team-high nine digs, while freshman M.E. Dodge made seven saves. Senior Lauren Carlini's three blocks led the squad, as well as her 28 assists. Williams added two block assists.

In set one, the Badgers hit a negative .029 (11-12-35) attack percentage and were out blocked 6-1 by the Gophers. Wisconsin started the set strong, gaining a 6-4 lead before Minnesota responded with a 10-5 run, taking an 11-6 advantage. The teams traded two-point and three-point runs and Wisconsin held off three set points, but the deficit was too much for the Badgers to overcome as Minnesota took the first set, 25-20.

"Our serving, we already had talked about, was not tough enough," Bates noted. "They were in system the entire match and they are a very hard team to stop when they are in system. They have all weapons from every single position and they run really fast (offense) and that's what makes them so good. That is what we struggled with and we will get better at that. That is something we need to adjust quicker to next time that opportunity comes."

UW hit a much stronger .267 percent (14-6-30) in the second set, despite the Gophers pulling away to a 20-9 lead. Wisconsin went on a 6-2 run late in the set to cut the Minnesota lead to 24-18, but the Gophers grabbed the second set, 25-18, off a kill and took a 2-0 set lead.

The final set started much like the first, with the teams battling back and forth for the first few points. Wisconsin trailed 12-9 after a block from Carlini and Williams, keeping close tabs on the Gophers through the period. Minnesota widened its lead to 21-11 with a 9-2 run, taking that momentum through the final points to take the final set of the match 25-14

"We are used to it," Bates said of the mindset of moving on and preparing for what's next. "It is what we do day in and day out. Now we have to focus on Michigan. This game is passed. It is just what we are used to. We are going to prepare for Michigan now and when that game is over, we are going to prepare for Nebraska. That's just how we do things and that's just how we are going to learn and get better."

The Badgers continue Big Ten play on Saturday, traveling to Michigan. First serve for the matchup with the Wolverines is set for 6 p.m. (CT) from Cliff Keen Arena in Ann Arbor, Michigan.