The Badger faithful got another ominous update regarding star sophomore setter Charlie Fuerbringer on Monday. Fuerbringer was injured in the match against Michigan, and has yet to return to the court after taking the hard fall on her shoulder.
Initially coach Kelly Sheffield seemed somewhat optimistic immediately after the match, saying “We’ll get a little bit more information this evening and see how long she’s out for. Hopefully, we’re talking weeks and not months, but we’ll see.” But now a few weeks later, his tone on the matter has changed.
"Do we have a timeline or anything--we're nowhere near that," said Sheffield. "It would be nice to get her back this season, but I would say that's TBD at this point. There's no practicing that's happening right now."
Wisconsin may be without Fuerbringer for the remainder of 2025
It's not a great update to hear as UW now heads into the middle of their conference schedule. Since the injury, Wisconsin dropped all three sets to Penn State, and won all three against Maryland. Freshman Addy Horner has filled in for Fuerbringer quite well, setting a career-high 36 assists against the Terrapins, and looks like she might need to continue to do so for the foreseeable future.
Without Fuerbringer the Badgers will need to rely on other players to step up. Whether or not she returns this season still seems up in the air, but until then, Horner will need to continue to grow. Wisconsin will play UCLA on Friday the 17th at the UW-Field House.