The Wisconsin Badgers have named junior Amber MacDonald the captain of the women’s volleyball team for the 2017 season. The 5’4″ defensive specialist is the shortest player listed on Wisconsin’s roster, but has stood tall enough to earn her teammates’ respect.
“Amber was unanimously voted on by the team to be our captain this fall,” said Sheffield. “Over and over again, I heard the same thing from current players as well as our recent graduates ‘Amber epitomizes what a Badger is.’ People trust her. She is selfless, works hard to bring out the best in others, is resilient, open to learning, and passionate. Leadership comes from a lot of different places within our program, but I have confidence that Amber will be a great captain for this team.”
She has played in 63 matches for Wisconsin in 2 seasons and is averaging 1.89 digs-per-set in that period. That includes 16 games with double-digit digs and a career high of 15 in just her 3rd collegiate varsity match against Colgate as a freshman.
“It’s a huge honor to be chosen to be the captain of such a prestigious program,” said MacDonald. “I have been very fortunate to have played with great leaders who have taught me what it means to be a Badger. Now my job is to help protect and pass on the winning UW culture that has been built on years of hard work by the coaches and players, and supported by our fans.”
Wisconsin finished 3rd in the Big Ten last season with a 17-3 conference record and were 28-5 overall on the year. That included a run to the Elite 8 of the NCAA tournament where they lost to eventual NCAA Champions Stanford in front of a sold-out crowd of 6,012 at the Wisconsin Fieldhouse. The team has graduated its most visible player, VolleyMob First Team All-American setter Lauren Carlini, to graduation, as well as All-American middle blocker Haleigh Nelson and starter Romana Kriskova.
Leave a Reply