Volleyball Central: Wisconsin

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – A return to the friendly confines of Wilkinson Hall is on the horizon for the Indiana Volleyball team (9-9, 2-6 B1G) during the final week of October. After playing three of four on the road, IU will welcome the home crowd for top-10 Wisconsin on Thursday (Oct. 24) night.

Connor Onion (PxP) and Emily Ehman (Color) will have the call on FS1 as IU plays its first ever match on the channel. FOX has picked up the rights to select conference matchups as part of a television agreement with the league this year.

This will be IU's sixth match of the season against a ranked opponent and the fifth against a program in the top-11 of the AVCA Rankings. It will also be IU's eighth match of the season against a team currently in the top-40 of the RPI rankings, further bringing to light how difficult the schedule has been for the Hoosiers.

Despite a tough run of form in the league, IU has greatly benefited from the outstanding defensive play of sophomore libero Ramsey Gary. She racked up the 13th 20-dig match of her young career against Purdue, the second time she's hit the 20-dig plateau in a three-set contest.

Among players in Power Four conferences, she's 10th in the nation with 4.33 digs per set. She's second among all underclassmen in the nation's best conferences, behind only Ella Larkin of Kansas State (4.40). The Pendleton, Ind. native has the most digs per set among Big Ten players in conference only matches (4.82).

Senior setter Camryn Haworth moved into the top five in program history in assists, passing the 3,500 threshold during her storied tenure. Among setters in IU history, she is top five in aces (195), kills (331), digs (842), blocks (160) and assists (3,513). She needs just three aces to break the program's all-time record.

Gary (816) and junior outside hitter Candela Alonso-Corcelles (800) each reached 800 in digs and kills respectively for their careers. The two players will come close to, or pass, 1,000 in the respective categories this season. Gary is on pace to become the fastest to 1,000 digs in program history.

Wisconsin has won 16-straight matches in the series; a streak IU would love to break this week. Thursday's match will begin at 7:00 PM and will be IU's 'Mental Health Awareness' night. Both teams will wear green ribbons in an ongoing effort to support student athletes and their well-being.

Gameday Info
vs. #8 Wisconsin (Thursday, October 24th - 7:00 PM ET)
Live Video: t.ly/7fEB8
Live Stats: t.ly/Nc8eP

Stat Notes
• Candela Alonso-Corcelles and Avry Tatum are one of three Big Ten duos to each average over 3.30 kills per set. Penn State and Purdue have the other duos. Alonso-Corcelles and Tatum are each averaging career highs in kills per set to lead the IU offense.

• Ramsey Gary has been one of the league's prolific liberos this season. She is second in the Big Ten with 4.33 digs per set. During conference play, she's leading the league with 4.82 digs per set.

Notable
End of a Tough Streak
• IU will play its fifth game in a five-game streak against top-30 RPI teams. IU began the streak at No. 14 Minnesota and has played No. 3 Penn State, Illinois and No. 10 Purdue since. The streak ends with a home match against No. 9 Wisconsin in Wilkinson Hall.

Wilkinson Hall Magic
• The Hoosiers got off to a 7-0 start at Wilkinson Hall in 2024 after a pair wins over Michigan State and Ohio State. The 7-0 start, which ended after a tight loss to No. 3 Penn State, was the best start to a home campaign in program history. Over the past two seasons, IU is 17-4 inside the confines of its home gym. Three of those four losses were to top-5 teams.

Gary Gets Going
• Sophomore libero Ramsey Gary has been quietly as good as anyone in the Big Ten. She's second in the league with 4.33 digs per set. In conference games only, she leads the league with 4.82 digs per set.

• She recorded her 13th career 20-dig match against Purdue (Oct. 19). It was the second time in her young career with 20+ digs in a three-set contest. She's surpassed 800 digs for her career and is well on her way to becoming the fastest in IU history to 1,000.

Shared Connections on Both Sides
• There are multiple deep connections between Indiana and Wisconsin this season. Both liberos in the match on Thursday are products of Munciana. Lola Schumacher (Wisconsin) and Ramsey Gary (Indiana) shared the court in 2023 before Gary graduated and went to Bloomington.

• As well, Mady Saris (Indiana) and Anna Smrek (Wisconsin) are longtime friends who have grown up together in the Canadian youth system. The two played together at the 2019 FIVB Girls' U18 World Championship in Egypt.

1,000 Kills for Saris
• Mady Saris tallied five kills at No. 14 Minnesota on Friday (Oct. 11) night to reach 1,000 kills for her fantastic college career. She became the 20th player in IU history to hit the threshold and is the first since Breana Edwards (2021) to do so.

Haworth Chases 200
• Indiana setter Camryn Haworth has been of the most prolific servers in Big Ten rally-era history over the past four seasons. Haworth (195) will become the third or fourth Big Ten player, to play all four years in the league, in rally-era history (since 2001) to record 200 career aces. She will join Micha Hancock (339, Penn State) and Emily Danks (230, Ohio State) and Raina Terry (Illinois) in the club.

Alonso-Corcelles Raises Level
• Junior outside hitter Candela Alonso-Corcelles has developed nicely in the IU program. She averaged just 1.89 kills per set as a freshman (2022) but has jumped up to 3.46 per set during her junior campaign (2024).

Scouting the Opponent
Wisconsin (13-4, 7-1 B1G)
• Wisconsin is running a seven-game winning streak into Thursday's matchup. After losing a five-set thriller to Minnesota in the conference opener, it hasn't been touched since. Three of its four losses have come to top-10 teams.

• Sarah Franklin is the reigning Big Ten and AVCA National Player of the Year and has stepped her game up in her senior season. She averages 4.43 kills per set and is hitting .303. She is arguably the best passing outside hitter in the entire league, making her an outstanding six-rotation hitter.

• Charlie Fuerbringer is among the best freshmen in the entire country. She averages 10.49 assists per set and is leading the Badgers to a collective .303 hitting percentage. Three different players average over 2.00 kills per set.

• The Badger block is as effective as any team in the country. With a rotating cast of characters in their lineup, Wisconsin has four players with at least 60 blocks this year. Carter Booth holds a narrow advantage with 66.0 total blocks this season.

Inside the Series
Wisconsin
• Wisconsin has controlled the all-time series, especially since Kelly Sheffield took over the program. IU has lost 16-straight games to the Badgers. The Hoosiers have been swept in 12 of the past 14 matchups. In 2022, IU pushed Wisconsin to a tight-four set defeat in Madison. IU had a lead in the fourth set and let it slip away. Overall, the Badgers lead 60-24 in 84 all-time contests.

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Players Mentioned

Candela Alonso-Corcelles

Ramsey Gary

Camryn Haworth

Mady Saris

Avry Tatum

Indiana University Athletics