A record crowd took in a volleyball match between Marquette and Wisconsin at Fiserv Forum, but the sport could get even bigger
There was a telling moment in the third set of top-ranked Wisconsin's 28-26, 20-25, 26-24, 25-18 victory over Marquette on Wednesday in front of a record volleyball crowd at Fiserv Forum.
The Badgers had just scored three straight points to even the score at 24-24, prompting Golden Eagles head coach Ryan Theis to call a timeout. The UW fans among the 17,037 people in attendance - a new regular-season indoor record for an NCAA volleyball match - erupted into a "Let's go Badgers!" chant. The MU supporters, perhaps jolted by so many loud, red-clad fans in the home of the school's men's basketball team, responded with a roar of their own.
UW took the next two points to win the set, and then the Badgers pulled away to continue their undefeated start to the season. But the ear-throbbing decibel levels during those few minutes signaled something more important: that volleyball is a force to be reckoned with in the state.
"What it felt like was it wasn't just people who were just there to watch a spectacle," UW head coach Kelly Sheffield said. "It felt like fans were into the match and really getting into it, which is what you hope.
"I'm sure there were quite a few people where this was their first volleyball match and I can't believe this will be their last one with what they saw."
Theis' team hung tough with the nation's No. 1 team, but even with all the back-and-forth points and long rallies, the head coach took a moment to soak in the atmosphere.
"There was two or three times, whether it was a challenge or just a lull, I just looked around and took it all in," Theis said. "It's pretty special."
More: Top-ranked Wisconsin beats Marquette in front of record volleyball crowd at Fiserv Forum
Inspiring to the next generation of volleyball fans
The raucous crowd was filled with teams of young girls in volleyball jerseys. The significance of that was not lost on MU's Aubrey Hamilton and Hattie Bray, both Wisconsin natives.
"I think it's awesome to see 17,000 people and the majority of them being like high schools or even like young girls who want to be us one day," said Hamilton, a former Arrowhead High School standout. "I like being there to show them what they can do."
Bray had a special moment after the match.
"I had about 23 girls waiting for me upstairs from my home team in Wautoma," Bray said. "They all had these cute little shirts made with 'Hattie Bray' on the back.
"It was so awesome to see them all. There was about three or four girls that I played with back in high school, who were freshmen on varsity. That was a big thing for a small town. It's really cool to see all of them here.
"They all made it out on a school night to come to Milwaukee and watch a game. So I love just the fact that we can be on the big stage and build up volleyball in the state of Wisconsin."
Sheffield and Theis want to keep the momentum going
Theis had some ideas about what comes next after this monumental match.
"Really, if our sport can be on TV more," Theis said. "The fans, the youth participation, it's there.
"And to be on TV more, I'm not the person that makes those decisions, but if we can keep putting crowds out there like this, hopefully those people start to put it on more.
"Whether that's channels, whether its ESPN, whether it's TV deals between conferences and networks, whether it's a tweak in our schedule so maybe we're not competing against college football. Whatever it is, we ought to be in front of more eyes. The fans are out there and it can continue to grow. We'd love to be the most popular women's sport in the country."
Sheffield, ever the coach, took a beat when asked the same question about what comes next.
"Florida," he said, referring to the next tough opponent on the Badgers' schedule. "We got a match on Sunday."
Then the UW coach went more philosophical.
"I tell you what I told the team earlier today," Sheffield said. "When you come out here and you have 17,000 or 18,000 or whatever it is, take it in.
"Take it in and then block it out and then worry about what's on the court. But I said at some point when they come back here, when they're alums, they'll come back and this won't be special anymore. This will be something that will be more commonplace.
"If you draw a line over the last decade of where this sport is going, that doesn't seem like that's ludicrous. That's where we're heading. And so as special as what tonight was - and it was - I think we will see a lot more tonights down the road."
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin and Marquette set new indoor NCAA volleyball match at Fiserv Forum
