Season snapshot
- Record:
- 14-6
- Last result:
- W 3-1 vs Michigan · Sun, Oct 25
- Next match:
- TBA
- Remaining ranked opponents:
- 2
- Schedule sites:
- 14 home · 18 away · 5 neutral
Independent fan guide · Big Ten
Follow the Badgers on their journey to championship glory. Get the latest schedules, roster updates, and game information.
Last updated · Sources & updates
Wisconsin match dates, TV channels and results. All times are as listed. View schedule.
Match dates & results
Scores checked Oct 31, 2026 · Times as listed
15 upcoming matches · Times shown as listed
Penn State on Nov 8; Big Ten Tournament on Nov 20; Big Ten Tournament on Nov 25. Start times are not confirmed in the schedule.
Original analysis of the Wisconsin Badgers program, coaching staff, and 2026 outlook.
Wisconsin opens at No. 6 with a roster that looks almost nothing like the one that reached the 2025 national semifinal. The elite senior class is gone - Mimi Colyer and Carter Booth among them - and Kelly Sheffield replaced it with the No. 1 overall recruiting class in the country: nine freshmen, including four top-10 ranked athletes in Audrey Flanagan, Lynney Tarnow, Halle Thompson and Isabelle Hoppe. The continuity is at setter. Junior Charlie Fuerbringer returns as a First Team All-Big Ten selection and an AVCA National Player of the Year Watch List pick; she put up 63 assists against Kentucky in last December's semifinal.
Joining her on that watch list is Jaela Auguste, an All-American middle who transferred in from Florida. Senior Eva Travis arrives from UC Santa Barbara as a two-time All-Big West honoree. Sheffield tested the group immediately with a rematch against No. 3 Kentucky, the team that ended Wisconsin's 2025 season, followed by No. 7 Louisville the next night. The Badgers dropped the first and swept the second, holding Louisville to .234 while freshman Audrey Flanagan led all Wisconsin hitters with 13 kills in her second collegiate match.
One structural change reshapes the whole year: the Big Ten has cut conference play from 20 matches to 17 and added its first-ever postseason tournament, November 20-25 in Fishers, Indiana. For the first time in league history the Big Ten champion will be crowned on a court rather than in the standings - and Wisconsin plays Nebraska only once, in Lincoln.
Wisconsin won its first NCAA championship in 2021, beating Nebraska 3-2 in front of an NCAA-record crowd of 18,755 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus. The Badgers have remained a fixture at the top of the sport since, reaching the 2025 NCAA National Semifinal before falling to Kentucky 3-2. The UW Field House, opened in 1930, is one of the most difficult environments in college volleyball, with a raised student section directly behind the service line. All 12 Wisconsin home matches in 2026 are played there.
Kelly Sheffield is in his 14th season at Wisconsin, having arrived in 2013. He delivered the program's first NCAA championship in 2021 with a 3-2 win over Nebraska in front of an NCAA-record crowd of 18,755, and has returned to multiple Final Fours since, most recently the 2025 national semifinal. His 2026 recruiting work is the story of this season: the No. 1 overall class in the country, with four top-10 ranked athletes, arriving to replace an elite graduating group. Six Badgers - Auguste, Egan, Flanagan, Fuerbringer, Halle Thompson and Wardlow - trained at USA Volleyball's Women's National Team Championship Training in Colorado in February.
Under the Big Ten's new single round-robin, Wisconsin and Nebraska meet only once in 2026, on October 10 in Lincoln - one night for the rivalry that produced the 2021 national championship match. Penn State visits the UW Field House on November 8 in the biggest home date of the schedule. The Opening Spike Classic in Pittsburgh on August 28 and 30 stacks No. 5 Stanford and No. 4 Pittsburgh into a single weekend on Pitt's floor, and the September 13 trip to No. 2 Texas at Moody Center closes a Texas swing that includes Texas A&M two days earlier. The season then ends somewhere new: the inaugural Big Ten Volleyball Tournament, November 20-25 at the Fishers Event Center, where 15 of 18 teams qualify.
Schedule and scores checked October 31, 2026 · Official source: uwbadgers.com
The 2026 Wisconsin volleyball schedule runs 27 matches - 10 non-conference and 17 in the Big Ten - from the season opener against Kentucky in Milwaukee on August 21 to the regular-season finale at home against Northwestern on November 17. Twelve are at the UW Field House, and every Wisconsin home match this season is played there. The Big Ten then holds its first-ever conference tournament, November 20-25 at the Fishers Event Center in Fishers, Indiana, where 15 of the league's 18 teams qualify. The No. 6 Badgers open Kelly Sheffield's 14th season.
The conference has cut league play from 20 matches to 17 and moved to a single round robin, which means Wisconsin faces every Big Ten opponent exactly once - including Nebraska, and that meeting is in Lincoln on October 10. Non-conference play is unusually front-loaded: Kentucky and Louisville at the Jeep AVCA First Serve in Milwaukee on August 21 and 22, Stanford and Pittsburgh at the Opening Spike Classic in Pittsburgh on August 28 and 30, Florida and Auburn at home for the Big Ten/SEC Challenge on September 2 and 3, then Texas A&M and Texas in Texas on September 11 and 13. Big Ten play opens at home against Oregon on September 24. Full dates, times, TV assignments and results are below.
Under the new single round-robin, this is the only Wisconsin-Nebraska meeting of 2026, and it is on the road. The rivalry that produced the 2021 national championship match gets one night.
The biggest home date on the schedule, against the Big Ten's other perennial contender, at the UW Field House.
Preseason No. 2 Texas at Moody Center in Austin, closing a Texas swing that also includes Texas A&M two days earlier.
No. 5 Stanford and No. 4 Pittsburgh in the same weekend, on Pitt's floor. As hard an early-season road test as exists.
The first conference tournament in Big Ten volleyball history, at the Fishers Event Center in Fishers, Indiana. Fifteen of eighteen teams qualify.
Junior and the anchor of a reloaded roster. First Team All-Big Ten in 2025 and an AVCA National Player of the Year Watch List selection, she recorded 63 assists against Kentucky in last December's national semifinal.
Junior All-American who transferred in after two seasons at Florida, and the second Badger on the AVCA National Player of the Year Watch List.
Freshman ranked No. 4 overall in the class of 2026 by PrepVolleyball and No. 5 by Prepdig, and a 2025 AVCA First Team All-America honoree in high school. She led all Wisconsin hitters with 13 kills in her second collegiate match.
Senior transfer from UC Santa Barbara, the 2024 Big West Freshman of the Year and a 2025 All-Big West Second Team selection.
Wisconsin opens at No. 6 nationally after reaching the 2025 NCAA National Semifinal, where Kentucky won 3-2. This is a reload rather than a return: the elite senior class that included Mimi Colyer and Carter Booth has graduated, replaced by the No. 1 overall recruiting class in the country with nine freshmen and two transfers. The floor is another NCAA Tournament appearance behind an All-Big Ten setter in Charlie Fuerbringer and an All-American middle in Jaela Auguste. The ceiling depends on how fast the freshman class matures, and the schedule forces the answer early.
One new variable: the Big Ten champion will be decided at the conference's first postseason tournament in November rather than in the standings.
The leadership behind Wisconsin Badgers volleyball success
Kelly Sheffield is in his 14th season at Wisconsin, having arrived in 2013. He won the program's first NCAA championship in 2021, beating Nebraska 3-2 in front of an NCAA-record crowd of 18,755 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, and has returned to multiple Final Fours since, including the 2025 national semifinal.
Everything you need to know about Wisconsin Badgers volleyball
The Wisconsin Badgers play their home volleyball matches at UW Field House and Kohl Center in Madison, Wisconsin, providing an electric atmosphere for every home match.
Tickets can be purchased through the Wisconsin Athletics website, at the arena box offices, or through authorized ticket resellers.
Doors typically open 60 minutes before the scheduled match time. We recommend arriving early for the best seating options.
Wisconsin competes in the Big Ten Conference, facing teams like Nebraska, Penn State, Minnesota, and Purdue in conference play.
The complete 2026 Wisconsin volleyball schedule with every Badgers match, opponent, date, time and location is listed on this page above. It is updated whenever the athletic department confirms new times, TV assignments or venue changes.
Wisconsin opens the 2026 volleyball season in late August with non-conference play, then rolls into Big Ten matches from mid-September through November. The full 2026 slate leads into the NCAA Tournament in December.
Wisconsin plays home volleyball matches at UW Field House in Madison. The arena hosts every home date on the 2026 schedule, and doors typically open about an hour before first serve.
Most 2026 Badgers matches air on Big Ten network partners (ESPN, ESPN+, Big Ten Network, ACC Network, SEC Network or FS1 depending on the game). Each row on the schedule above shows the confirmed TV or streaming outlet as soon as it is announced.
The 2026 schedule features Big Ten rivalry matches plus marquee non-conference tests. See the schedule table on this page for every Badgers opponent, dates and locations for the full 2026 season.
Meet the 15 athletes on the Wisconsin Badgers volleyball team
Wisconsin faces the toughest conference in the nation, battling rivals like Nebraska, Penn State, Minnesota, and Purdue throughout the Big Ten season.
Experience the electric atmosphere at UW Field House where Wisconsin volleyball draws record-breaking crowds and creates an unmatched home court advantage.
Follow Wisconsin's journey through the NCAA Tournament as the Badgers compete for their second national championship and another Final Four appearance.
The Wisconsin Badgers women's volleyball program is one of the most successful in NCAA history. The Badgers won the 2021 NCAA Championship and have consistently been a Final Four contender.
Under head coach Kelly Sheffield, Wisconsin has produced numerous All-Americans and has established themselves as a dominant force in the Big Ten Conference. The program's commitment to excellence has made Wisconsin a destination for top recruits.
Wisconsin volleyball has created one of the most passionate fanbases in college volleyball. The Badgers regularly lead the nation in attendance and create an unmatched home court advantage.
Address: 1440 Monroe St, Madison, WI 53711
Capacity: 10,000+ fans
UW Field House, 1450 Monroe St, Madison, WI 53711. The building opened in 1930 and seats 7,052 for volleyball. All 12 Wisconsin home matches in 2026 are played here - none move to the Kohl Center this season. The raised student section directly behind the service line makes it one of the toughest environments in the country.
Doors typically open an hour before first serve.
Networks: Big Ten Network, ESPN, ESPN2
Streaming: B1G+, ESPN+
Big Ten conference matches are split across Big Ten Network, FS1, FOX, Peacock and B1G+. FOX is broadcasting 35 college volleyball matches this season, including Wisconsin's win over Louisville on August 22. Non-conference dates have appeared on ESPN - the Kentucky opener aired there - and ESPN2. BTN is available on most cable systems plus Fubo, YouTube TV, DirecTV Stream and Sling Blue with the Sports add-on, while B1G+ carries matches not picked up for linear broadcast.
Individual assignments are confirmed shortly before each match; the table above is updated as they are announced.
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