Not many players get the chance to play against one of their favorite teams growing up. Not even on four separate occasions. The number of players who get to do so, essentially in their own backyard, is even lower.
But Natalie Ring isn’t like most players.
Right out of the gate in her first-year with the program, she got a chance to play in the UW-Fieldhouse in just her third-ever collegiate game. Then, Ring and the Golden Eagles traded in a chance to play just another home game at the Al McGuire Center for a record-breaking night on the mainstage at Fiserv Forum.
Last year, it was back to Madison as Marquette traveled to the Kohl Center for another sold-out game, again at a venue virtually within walking distance from the Ring household.
So, while Marquette volleyball’s highly-anticipated match against No. 7 Wisconsin at Fiserv Forum on Wednesday may not be a quick jaunt for the Ring family, it’s still a game that runs much deeper than volleyball.
“[Natalie and her sister Rebecca] grew up watching Wisconsin play,” Natalie’s dad Joe said. “As a little girl, you’re always thinking, ‘Can I ever play on that court?’ ‘Will I get to ever play on that court?’ So, getting to see [Natalie] play and fulfill that dream is a lot of fun and exciting.
“She’s not playing for Wisconsin, but she gets to play and compete against them, so it’s a lot of fun.”
But for the Ring family, the connections run deeper than just living in Madison. Joe played golf at UW-Madison, where his wife and Natalie’s mother Christen also went to school.
Christen and Joe still go to Wisconsin hockey games and the occasional football game at Camp Randall when they can. And of course, they attend Badger volleyball games when Marquette is playing.
“It’s a change to root against them,” Joe laughed.
While Natalie was growing up, it would’ve been hard for her or her parents to envision volleyball getting to the spot that it’s in today. In fact, the top-10 most attended Division I women’s volleyball games ever have all happened in the last eight years, illustrating that the game of volleyball is gaining real momentum.
“No, not at all,” Natalie answered in response to being asked if she ever could’ve imagined playing volleyball in an NBA arena. “It’s an awesome opportunity.
“For me, growing up in Madison and going to (Wisconsin) games, that felt like it would be an amazing crowd to get to play for, so just see how it’s grown and getting to set a record at Fiserv Forum two years ago and now getting to go back, we never would’ve guessed that volleyball would grow this much, especially in Wisconsin.”
The first time Marquette played Wisconsin at Fiserv, Eliza Butler, the coach in charge overseeing the entire Edgewood high school volleyball program that helped develop Natalie and her sister Rebecca, who now plays at North Carolina State, bought 70 tickets to the game. It allowed the entire program, including Rebecca at the time, to watch Natalie and another former player, Ella Foti, perform on the big stage.
“I have a lot of family that lives in Madison, a lot of aunts and uncles,” Natalie said. “(Eliza) has been great, she always brings the entire team when we play Wisconsin, they’ve been really great in supporting us even after we graduate.”
Ring is currently in the middle of a breakout senior season for the Golden Eagles. The outside hitter leads the team in kills (137), kills per set (4.72), attacks (354) and services aces (13).
The biggest difference between this year’s game at Fiserv and the one two years ago is that she went from a redshirt sophomore who didn’t even step on the floor to a senior leader who will be arguably one of the best players on the floor.
“It’ll be exciting to actually play in front of that many people and to have the Marquette crowd behind us,” Natalie said. “It’s just a big testament to the university and the athletic department and their support for volleyball.”
This story was written by Matthew Baltz. He can be reached at matthew.baltz@marquette.edu or on Twitter/X @MatthewBaltzMU.