With the No. 12 University of Wisconsin volleyball team (15-3, 8-2 Big Ten) across the country, fans still gathered in the heart of campus to celebrate their love for women’s sports with a watch party.
It all came together thanks to LOVB Madison, 5wins, University Recreation and Wellbeing and the Wisconsin Unions.
LOVB Madison is the first professional women’s volleyball league based out of Madison, WI, while also being a part of LOVB Pro — a national franchise. The organization strives to create a bigger platform for women’s professional volleyball that connects players with junior clubs in the area to build community.
LOVB Madison features former Badger volleyball players like setter Lauren Carlini, right-side hitter Temi Thomas-Ailara and assistant coach Annemarie Hickey.
Whereas 5wins uses the power of community to support women’s college sports by integrating athlete-centered initiatives to build community to promote women’s sports as a whole. Co-founder and CEO Alanna Goldman is a UW alum who graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in journalism and Spanish.
Goldman said she has been a Wisconsin fan her entire life, and her dedication and love of the team drove her to create 5wins, while holding her head high with the hope of empowering young girls to chase their dreams.
“When I turned the TV on in 2013, the Badger Volleyball team was having its storybook Cinderella season where they just had a new coach [Kelly Sheffield] and a brand new setter [Carlini], they played in the national championship, and I was so drawn in,” Goldman said.
Coach Sheffield had just started his first season as the Wisconsin head coach in 2013 and people were skeptical of the success he could bring to the program. Fast forward to today, Sheffield is one of the most successful coaches in Wisconsin Volleyball history, with an overall record of 333-71.
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For Goldman, seeing the success of the Wisconsin team had a big impact on her.
“Watching that season and getting into Wisconsin Athletics and women’s volleyball as a whole, and then just the world of women’s college sports, I felt so empowered,” Goldman said.
5wins and LOVB Madison came together to sponsor a watch party at Union South.
Fans of all ages rallied together to watch the Wisconsin Volleyball team from 2,000 miles away. But, the watch party wasn’t just watching, there were giveaways from both 5wins and LOVB Madison, drawing a lot of attention to the event. Lucky winners even had the chance to win free tickets to a LOVB Madison match and Badger Volleyball tickets.
Though Wisconsin faced a tough first set, falling to the Oregon Ducks (13-7, 4-6 Big Ten), the fight continued on.
Despite it being the Badgers first time playing in Eugene, OR, it was a big game for both teams. As Wisconsin outside hitter Mimi Colyer returned to Oregon for the first time since transferring to Wisconsin in early 2025.
Colyer put on an outstanding performance in her old home, playing all four sets and racking up 18 kills and a hitting percentage of .146%. Wisconsin held a 6-0 scoring run against the Ducks, but that’s when Oregon picked up the pace, going on 7-0 scoring run.
But, Colyer wasn’t the only standout, Oregon’s freshman outside Alanah Clemente, gave Wisconsin a run for their money. Clemente had 17 kills, three assists and two serving aces, helping put the Ducks over the Badgers in the first set, 28-26.
As the second set approached, Wisconsin knew this would be a hard-fought win.
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Beginning the second set was a consistent back and forth between the Ducks and Badgers, but only one could power through this set.
Senior middle blocker Carter Booth had kill after kill, helping Wisconsin stay ahead. But, Booth wouldn’t have been able to put down kills without freshman setter Addy Horner. Horner had two kills, 44 assists and one block attempt, earning a hitting percentage of .667%.
But the fight for the second set wasn’t over yet, Oregon came back with a 4-0 scoring run, putting them over Wisconsin 14-11. The Ducks ended the second set on a Badger set point with a serving error, putting Wisconsin above Oregon 25-23.
Tied 1-1, both Oregon and Wisconsin knew there was only an uphill battle left.
The Ducks started slow in the third set, only gaining points from Badger errors. On the other hand, Wisconsin was on fire, starting strong with a kill from Booth, assisted by Horner.
Once again, the Badgers were hot, having a 4-0 scoring run against the Ducks, closing out the third set with Wisconsin on top, winning 25-22.
With Wisconsin up two sets to one, Oregon knew the fight wasn’t over, but they couldn’t keep up with the heat from the Badger front row.
Wisconsin started the fourth set hot, with a kill from freshman outside Madison Quest, assisted by Horner. Quest racked up three kills and one block assist in the four sets against Oregon.
The intensity Wisconsin brought to the front row was unmatched by Oregon. The Badgers had 56 kills, gaining a hitting percentage of .290%, whereas the Ducks had 63 kills and a hitting percentage of .282%.
But, Wisconsin still remained on top, ending the fourth set in true Badger fashion with a kill from Colyer, setting the final score to 27-25, putting the Badgers over the Ducks 3-1.
The Badgers are set return to the UW Field House Oct. 31 at 8 p.m., facing their longtime rival, No. 1 Nebraska Cornhuskers. The Cornhuskers currently lead the all time series against the Badgers 23-13-1. Right now, Wisconsin has a three game losing streak against Nebraska.