It was a tough start to the season for the No. 6 Wisconsin Badgers, as they faced four top-10 teams in their first four games: No. 3 Kentucky, No. 7 Louisville, No. 5 Stanford, and No. 4 Pitt. Wisconsin went 1-3 in that stretch, getting swept by both Pitt and Kentucky, while sweeping Louisville.
But in their opener at the UW Field House last week, the Badgers started to build some momentum with wins over No. 17 Florida (3-2) and Auburn (sweep), improving to 3-3 on the year. That earned them the No. 6 ranking in the country, with two high-profile matches ahead this week.
Wisconsin headed to College Station to face No. 19 Texas A&M on Friday, pulling off another 3-2 thriller, but this time, it came via a comeback. Wisconsin won 18-25, 25-23, 23-25, 25-22, 15-11, finding their way through several close sets for a big win.
The Badgers got off to a very slow start in the first set as Texas A&M led 9-2 early. The Badgers clawed back to tie things at 12 apiece and even briefly took the lead, but the Aggies finished the set strong for a commanding 25-18 win.
Wisconsin got off to a better start in set 2, but that one was another highly contested set, with several ties coming throughout the set. That carried all the way to 23 apiece before Wisconsin capitalized on a pair of Texas A&M errors to take set two.
The third set was much the same, with both sides tied at 20 heading into the final stretch. This time, Texas A&M took a late lead, and although the Badgers brought it within one, they fell 25-23.
A hot start in the fourth set was a good sign for the Badgers, although Texas A&M did well to minimize the lead, tying things at 21 apiece again. But Wisconsin ended on a 4-1 run to take things to a fifth and final set.
As expected, the last frame was no different, as both sides were neck and neck at 10 apiece. Then the turning point came, as Wisconsin rattled off five points in a row to secure a key win.
Next up, the Badgers face Texas on Sunday, giving them yet another tough non-conference schedule game. First serve is at 2:00 p.m.
