Spirited Effort Falls Short for TCU vs. No. 3 Wisconsin in 2022 Season-Opener

Friday, August 26

Fort Worth, Texas

7 PM

TCU

0-1,0-0Big 12

Wisconsin

1-0,0-0Big Ten

Wisconsin

TCU

Spirited Effort Falls Short for TCU vs. No. 3 Wisconsin in 2022 Season-Opener

8/26/2022 10:45:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score Photo Gallery

Horned Frogs return to action Saturday at 7 p.m. vs. No. 5 Minnesota

FORT WORTH – Even in defeat, snippets of a new vision and a brighter future for TCU volleyball were on display on Friday inside Schollmaier Arena.

Ultimately, the Horned Frogs fell 3-0 to No. 3 Wisconsin in set scores of 25-11, 25-18 and 25-16 to commence the Big Ten/Big 12 Challenge and 2022 season.

The effort, though, left first-year head coach Jason Williams, and many of the 2,431 spectators in attendance, encouraged.

"We had a couple people out, so it kind of changed our lineup," Williams said. "To play a team like that – they're confident, they're big – I felt like we didn't shy away. We were aggressive, and that's kind of our game plan right now. We just have a lot of work to do."

The Horned Frogs easily could have folded. A 12-4 run midway through the first frame helped the Badgers separate from TCU at 20-8 en route to an eventual set victory.

But TCU rallied to keep sets two and three competitive vs. the reigning NCAA Volleyball Champion. The Horned Frogs built early leads in both frames.

Four straight kills from Julia Adams fueled a 6-1 spurt to begin set two that staked TCU to its first advantage of the night at 9-8. Cecily Bramschreiber, who earned her first career start at outside hitter, then rattled off two of her own to level the score at 10. Adams' eighth strike of night kept the Horned Frogs within a point of the Badgers.

Set three saw TCU jump out to edges of 3-1 and 4-2, then stay within two points of Wisconsin at 10-8 on the strength of two more kills from Bramschreiber.

Decisive mid-set runs again proved costly. The Badgers scored four straight points in set two to make the score 18-13 and stymie TCU's bid to even the scoreboard. Wisconsin swelled a tight 10-8 set three score into a 21-12 hole and effectively sew up the match.

The Horned Frogs' season-opener featured a number of notable performances.

Adams lived up to her Preseason All-Big 12 Team billing. She landed a match-high 13 kills to pair with five digs.

"I think she'll be an all-conference player," Williams said. "I think she can be an All-American this year. She's turned the corner in her game. I think she's excited about what our offense is. She's going to be huge for us."

Bramschreiber added seven kills of her own, which were made more impressive by the fact the 5-9 sophomore found open court over a Wisconsin lineup that started four players 6-2-or-taller.

"She really encompassed the aggressive nature we want in our offense," Williams said. "5-9 is a stretch for her, and she had some kills against their 6-9 blocker [Anna Smrek]. That's just the point. If you're aggressive, and you go for it, it doesn't matter who's across the net."

McKenzie Nichols led TCU with 10 assists off the bench while fellow setter Callie Williams dished out nine dimes of her own. Keagan Polk tallied a team-high nine digs in her TCU debut.

A tall Badgers block and the errors tally loomed large in dictating the final result. Wisconsin finished with 14 blocks compared to one for TCU. The Badgers landed 32 kills against just four errors for a .337 hitting percentage.

The teams were level in digs at 39 apiece.

The announced crowd signified the fourth-highest attended match in program history.

"I love the Frog Fam," Williams said. "We want to make the game fun. We're trying to promote the sport. I think tonight, fans saw what we can do as a volleyball program, and I'm excited about the future."

Stat of the Match

40: Adams' 13 kills was the 40^th multi-kill performance of her four-year Horned Frog career

Notable

Polk earned the starting nod at libero in her first collegiate indoor volleyball match. The second-year freshman transferred at TCU from Baylor and was a member of the Horned Frogs' beach volleyball program in 2021-2022.
Adams is 21 kills shy of reaching 800 for her career.
The Horned Frogs were nearly level with Wisconsin in kills, as they concluded the three-set affair with 31.
Friday's contest drew the second-largest crowd for a TCU volleyball match inside Schollmaier Arena.

Up Next

TCU draws its second American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) top-five opponent in as many nights when it concludes the Big Ten/Big 12 Challenge vs. No. 5 Minnesota at 7 p.m. on Saturday at Schollmaier Arena. The Golden Gophers defeated No. 16 Baylor 3-1 (23-25, 25-16, 25-23, 25-17).