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CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The University of Wisconsin volleyball team is one step away from a trip to the NCAA final four. But that last step figures to be a doozy.

The sixth-seeded Badgers advanced to the Elite Eight with a dominating performance in sweeping San Diego 25-13, 25-16, 25-10 Friday at Huff Hall.

Their reward is another match against Big Ten Conference rival Illinois, the No. 3 seed, which moved on with an equally convincing sweep of Marquette in the first semifinal match Friday.

Round 3 for the Badgers and Illini comes Saturday at 3 p.m., with the teams having split their two conference meetings, each team winning on the road.

It is the matchup fans of both teams have been anticipating ever since the tournament bracket was announced, while the coaches and players from each side were consumed with the matches they needed to win to get to this point.

“We’ve done zero talk with our team about Illinois,” UW coach Kelly Sheffield said. “The fans should have a lot of fun. These are two teams that are playing their best volleyball of the year and that’s certainly what you want.