Kristen Simon's memorable kill caps off Wisconsin's win at Illinois
Wisconsin volleyball started Big Ten play against five ranked opponents – and now has five more ranked wins on its résumé.
The seventh-ranked Badgers picked up their latest win over No. 24 Illinois in three sets, 25-18, 25-19, 25-22, on Oct. 8 at Huff Hall in Champaign, Illinois.
It was UW’s 14th consecutive Big Ten win in a streak that goes back to last year, and it was UW’s 13th consecutive win in the all-time series against Illinois. Aside from a late spurt from the Illini in the third set, it was not particularly close either.
Here are three takeaways from the win:
Wisconsin has efficient (and balanced attack)
Audrey Flanagan, the Big Ten’s freshman of the week, unsurprisingly led the Badgers with 12 kills while hitting an efficient .417. That marked Flanagan’s fourth 12-plus-kill performance in UW’s last five matches and her second time hitting above .400 in UW’s last three matches.
But Flanagan was far from the only offensive threat for the Badgers.
Five UW players finished with at least five kills against the Illini, and it largely was an efficient attack as well. Jaela Auguste had nine kills while hitting .467. Eva Travis had nine kills as well while hitting .398.
The Badgers’ .361 hitting percentage was their third-highest in a match this season, trailing only UW’s .382 hitting against then-No. 20 Oregon and .369 against Marquette. Both those matches were at the UW Field House.
Wisconsin passes admirably against Illini
Wisconsin’s efficient performance started with its passing.
Illinois aced the Badgers only one time, and that was not until the third set at 20-18.
UW’s passing was evident in other ways as well. The Badgers sided out 69% of the time against the Illini (and an especially high 84% in a first set that swung the momentum in UW’s favor for the whole night).
The passing also helped Charlie Fuerbringer set up the aforementioned balanced attack. The top five UW players in kills each had at least 12 total attacks, and no UW player exceeded 24 swings.
Kristen Simon delivers late highlight with third career kill
Wisconsin’s 46th and final kill may be the most memorable one.
After going to her left earlier on the play, defensive specialist Kristen Simon dove toward her right and behind her to try to save a ball near the end line. She got off a swing right before hitting the floor.
It had just enough power for the ball to hit the top of the net and land on the Illinois side for a Wisconsin point.
Simon’s kill – her second of the season and third of her career – flipped the momentum in the third set.
Before her herculean effort, Illinois turned a 19-14 deficit into a 22-22 tie. After her go-ahead kill, Illinois committed another two attack errors to finish off the Badgers’ latest ranked win.
ALL-OUT effort from Simon! 🙌#OnWisconsinpic.twitter.com/b0B7YEmH7z
— Wisconsin Volleyball (@BadgerVB) October 9, 2026
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Kristen Simon's memorable kill caps off Wisconsin's win at Illinois
