If You Like Defense (And Who Doesn't?)

Check out this highlight "twitvid" of Iowa State's AVCA first-team All-American Ashley Mass (Muskego '07).

Just a Few Days Away from a Match Between Those Two Old Rivals, Eau Claire and El Salvador

The Blugolds are about to take off on a trip to Nicaragua, where they'll be doing good and playing volleyball, including a match against the national team from El Salvador. Here's the story. And here's a link to coach Kim Wudi's trip blog (no posts just yet).

Wisconsin Badgers Are Big 10 Attendance Leaders (Again)

Congratulations to everyone who helped make Wisconsin Badgers volleyball number one in Big 10 attendance for the fourth straight season. Nicely done.

Muskego Alumna First Libero to Be Named First Team Division I All American Since 2004

Here's a link on the accomplishment by Iowa State's Ashley Mass (Muskego '07). More later.

Still Dancing (Sweet Sixteen Edition)

As previous posts have indicated, two teams with Wisconsinites on them are still among the final 16 Division I teams in the country. Here's who and when they're playing tonight.

• Colorado State will face Minnesota in Minneapolis at 7 p.m. CST tonight. This link should hook you up with live video. Wisconsinites on the roster are Megan Plourde (Somerset '08), Michelle Smith (Burlington Catholic Central '09) and Lisa Parlich (Delavan-Darien '09).
• Iowa State will face Nebraska in Omaha, also at seven tonight. Here's your link for that match. Wisconsinites on the roster are Ashley Mass (Muskego '07), Debbie Stadick (Watertown '08), as well as coaches Joe Lynch (UW-Milwaukee) and Trudy Vande Berg (Waupun and UW-Milwaukee).

Go, Wisconsinites, go.

Somerset Alumna Named to AVCA All West

Here's a nice article about tomorrow night's Sweet 16 game between Minnesota and Colorado State, which includes some quotes from AVCA All West player and Wisconsinite Megan Plourde (Somerset '08). We'll get you match streaming info soon.

Muskego Alumna Keeps Winning Accolades

Iowa State's Ashley Mass (Muskego '07) was named one of CVU.com's top performers for her efforts last weekend in helping the Cyclones reach the Sweet Sixteen for the third straight season. Just today, she was also named first-team AVCA All-Central Region. Congrats and good luck to Ashley and the other Wisconsinites on Iowa State this Friday as they take on the Nebraska Cornhuskers at 7 p.m. CST. We'll try to hook you up with online streaming info when we find a link. Go, Wisconsinites, go.

$16,404

Impressively, WIAC raised that much money through its various "Dig for the Cure" events this past October. Here's the release. And here's hoping it's twice that amount in October 2010. Well done.

Still Dancing (And When)

Here are teams with Wisconsinites who have Saturday second-round games in the NCAA Division I tournament:

• Ohio v. Michigan, 6:30 p.m. CST, Round One Story
  
• Wichita State v. Iowa State, 6:30 p.m. CST, Round One Story (video highlights above)
  

And, of course, the Colorado State Rams have already advanced to the Sweet 16 courtesy of a huge upset over No. 6-seeded Washington. Megan Plourde (Somerset '08) had six kills and three block assists in the victory. They'll play again next weekend and we'll have more on that early next week.

Go, Wisconsinites, go.

Two Senior Shout Outs to Kellye Zaporski and Lauren Felsing

UW-Milwaukee's amazing, late-season run ended last night in a five-set heartbreaker to Dayton, one of the top-ranked teams in country. Congrats on a courageous effort to all of the Panthers, including seniors Kellye Zaporski (Kettle Moraine Lutheran '06) and Lauren Felsing (Wisconsin Lutheran '06). Good luck in all of your future endeavors.

Division I Tournament Centrals for Friday

The links below should take you to the various "tournament centrals" for Friday matches that involve Wisconsinites. Many offer live video. And this link should take you back to our earlier post which lists Wisconsinites in the tournament.

• Ohio v. Notre Dame 4:30 p.m. CST (we didn't mention Ohio head coach, Madison native and UW-Milwaukee alum Ryan Theis in our previous post, but now we are)
• Kentucky v. Michigan State 6:00 p.m. CST
• Tennessee v. Duke 6:00 p.m. CST
• Binghamton v. Penn State 6:30 p.m. CST (and how cool would it be if Lindsey Mueller, 2007 graduate of West Bend West, and the Bearcats pulled off the upset of the millennium?)
• Iowa State v. George Mason 7:30 p.m. CST (Iowa State is the No. 7 overall seed of the 64 teams in the tournament)
• Colorado State v. Washington 8:00 p.m. CST

Go, former Wisconsin prep stars and Wisconsinites who are coaching some of these teams, go.

The Next Wisconsinite to Watch: Colorado State's Megan Plourde

The game starts at 8:30 p.m. CST. Here's the link that will take you there. And while you're on the Colorado State site, why not cast a vote for Megan Plourde (Somerset '08) as Rams MVP? There's an online poll.

Note: Michelle Smith (Burlington Catholic Central '09) and Lisa Parlich (Delavan-Darien '09) are also on the CSU roster, but not listed in the team's season stats.

Go Morgan, Samantha, Mary Beth, Lauren H, Maddie, Kellye, Kerri, Jena, Lauren F, Natalie C, Melissa, Natalie S, Anna and Mackenzie

Here's the link for stats and video. Here are the match notes. First serve is just a few short hours away. Go UW-Milwaukee Panthers volleyball, go!

UPDATE: PANTHERS FALL IN FIVE SETS. CONGRATS ON A GREAT SECOND-HALF RUN.

Greendale Alum Playing in the Division II Quarterfinals Right Now

Morgan Mutranowski (Greendale '09) and the rest of her Golden Lions teammates are warming up for the Elite Eight matchup as we type. You might need to sign in or register for a free account, but this link or this link should help start the process of getting you there. Check it out over the lunch hour. Go Dowling!

UPDATE: Flagler defeats Dowling in three.

Cheese & Iowa State: A Closer Look at Wisconsin Connections on the No. 7 Seed in the DI Tournament

The Iowa State Cyclones are easily enjoying their best season in program history. They've won 25 games, the most ever at the school. They're ranked fifth in the latest AVCA poll. They're the only school to beat No.-2 ranked Texas this season and they ended a 75-game (!) losing streak to Nebraska. They also have several Wisconsinites to thank for a great deal of their success:

• Trudy Vande Berg, Assistant Coach (Waupun '95, UW-Milwaukee '99) is in her first season as an assistant with the Cyclones
  
• Joe Lynch, Volunteer Assistant (UW-Milwaukee '98) is in his fifth season
  
• Christy Johnson-Lynch, Head Coach (and former Badgers assistant) was recently named Big XII Coach of the Year
  
• Ashley Mass (Muskego '07) played in all 98 sets this season. She's the only libero ever to be named first-team All Big XII. And she was also just named Big XII libero of the year for the second straight season.
• Debbie Stadick (Watertown '08) played 95 of 98 sets. She recorded 224 kills and led the Cyclones with 95 total blocks.

Best of luck in the tournament -- unless, of course, you're up against the UW-Milwaukee Panthers, but looking at the brackets, that can't happen until the championship game ;)

Former Wisconsin Prep Stars in the NCAA Division I Tournament

Here's what we know. Let us know who (if anyone) we've missed. We've also included a link to each team's season stats.

• Anna Bartz, UW-Milwaukee (Burlington '09) Season Stats
  
• Jena Berg, UW-Milwaukee (Westosha Central '06) Season Stats
• Elizabeth Egerer, Michigan State (Sheboygan Christian '09) Season Stats
  
• Lauren Felsing, UW-Milwaukee (Wisconsin Lutheran '06) Season Stats
• Lauren Hintze, UW-Milwaukee (Menomonee Falls '07) Season Stats
• Melissa Jansen, UW-Milwaukee (West Bend West '08) Season Stats
• Ashley Mass, Iowa State (Muskego '07) Season Stats
• Mackenzie Millis, UW-Milwaukee (Black River Falls '08) Season Stats
• Lindsey Mueller, Binghamton (West Bend West '06) Season Stats
• Mary Beth O'Brien, UW-Milwaukee (Appleton Xavier '08) Season Stats
• Lisa Parlich, Colorado State (Delavan-Darien '09) Not listed in Season Stats
• Megan Plourde, Colorado State (Somerset '08) Season Stats
• Morgan Potter, UW-Milwaukee (Stoughton '08) Season Stats
• Natalie Schmitting, UW-Milwaukee (Neenah '07) Season Stats
• Kerri Schuh, UW-Milwaukee (Kaukauna '07) Season Stats
• Michelle Smith, Colorado State (Burlington Catholic Central '09) Not listed in Season Stats
• Debbie Stadick, Iowa State (Watertown '08) Season Stats
• Brittany Staffeil, Duke (DeForest '06) Season Stats
  
• Maddie Sueppel, UW-Milwaukee (Cedarburg '06) Season Stats
• Jane Sytsma, Ohio (Madison Memorial '06) Season Stats
  
• Sam Trawitzke, UW-Milwaukee (Burlington '08) Season Stats
• Kellye Zaporski, UW-Milwaukee (Kettle Moraine Lutheran '06) Season Stats

UW-Milwaukee Panthers to Play Dayton in First Round of NCAA Division I Playoffs

Once again this year, the Panthers are heading back to Champaign, Illinois to play their first round game in the NCAA Division I playoffs. This year, however, they won't have to face the Illini -- at least not right away. Their first round opponent will be the Dayton Flyers at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday. Here's the official release.

And here are a few quick facts about the Panthers' incredible race to the finish:

• They've won 11 consecutive games
• The streak started with a five-set thriller over Illinois-Chicago on October 16
  
• They fought off two game points against UW-Green Bay in the Horizon League quarterfinals
  
• Lauren Felsing (Wisconsin Lutheran '06) was named MVP of the Horizon League Tournament. Maddie Sueppel (Cedarburg '06) and Natalie Schmitting (Neenah '07) were also on the Horizon League all-tournament team
  

Good luck, Panthers. This is your year.

Two Senior Shout Outs

Brittney Dolgner (Waupun '06) and Caity Dupont (Muskego '06) will be playing their final collegiate games tonight and tomorrow in Madison. Both have been fixtures in this state for more than half a decade and we wish them all the very best in their future endeavors.

Congrats, UW-Milwaukee, Part I: The Match

WI in the DII: Wisconsin Connections in the NCAA DII Tournament

Here's who we know about and how they ended up:

• Morgan Mutranowski, Dowling (Greendale '09) is in the Elite Eight, which will be played on December 3. Here are her season stats. Good luck from C&V.
• Lauren Radix (Wisconsin Heights '09), Nastassia Hegyi, Truman (Waunakee '08), Allison Barker, Truman (Racine Lutheran '07) lost in the first round to West Texas A&M.
• Hillary Hughes, Washburn (Wisconsin Heights '09) lost in the second round to West Texas A&M (enough with the West Texas A&M already -- maybe Dowling will take care of them in the final four).
• Claren Harris, Gannon (South Milwaukee '08) lost in the first round to Wheeling Jesuit.
• Kelly McMahon, Nova Southeastern (Madison Edgewood '09) lost in the first round to Eckerd.
• Mary Groth, Southwest Minnesota State (Kettle Moraine Lutheran '09) lost in the first round to Metro State.
• Michigan Tech's Alex Schwalbe, (Montello '08), Rachel Glisch (Muskego '09), Kaitlin Wiza (Cedarburg '07), Skylar Paffenroth (Fox Valley Lutheran '09) and Alicia Schneider (Janesville Parker '06) lost in the first round to Indianapolis.
• Minnesota-Duluth's Rachel Lamers (Kimberly '07), Brenda Hansen (Weyawauga-Fremont '07), Katie Kuffel (Brookfield Central '07), Allison Fanta (Hillsboro '08), Jamie Lakatos (Menomonie by way of, er, West Texas A&M) and Kalli Lochner (Wisconsin Heights '09) lost in the second round to Metro State.
• Northern Michigan's Amy Andersen-Goldsworthy (Madison Memorial '06), Rebecca Feuerherd (Madison Edgewood '08), Madeline Ogden (Sheboygan North?), Andree Ring (Madison Edgewood '09) and Emma Wolfe (Madison Edgewood '09)

Let us know if we've missed anyone (please check the comments below for a few names we'll add if we can find the time).