After a stellar start to her career with Wisconsin, Dana Rettke has been selected as the 2017 VolleyMob Women’s Freshman of the Year.
Rettke was a key instrument in the Wisconsin offense this season as the 6’8″ Riversdale, Illinois native ranked third in the nation in hitting percentage with a .443 hitting clip on the year while putting down an average of 3.42 kills per set. Rettke also amassed a 1.37 blocks per set average that ranked her 23rd in Division I play.
Rettke made an immediate impact for the Badgers as she posted 15 kills in her NCAA debut against North Carolina, along with five block assists and one solo block. These strong numbers continued throughout the season, with her season-best 22 kills coming against Minnesota and 10 blocks against Northwestern. She was also a threat from behind the service line, putting down a season-best five aces against Michigan and 25 aces on the year.
The 2017 season was not the season that the Badgers had in mind, falling to Stanford in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. This was a step behind their 2016 season, as they advanced to the Elite Eight, to which they lost to Stanford in five.
Rettke played a part in the team finishing 12th in the AVCA final ranking of the 2017 season and 14th in VolleyMob’s final rankings.
Rettke’s 2017 awards
- AVCA Freshman of the Year
- AVCA Northeast Regional Freshman of the Year
- AVCA First Team All-American
- VolleyMob Second Team All-American
- Big Ten Conference Freshman of the Year
- 9 Big Ten Freshman of the Week (record)
- 2 Big Ten Player of the Week
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