Volleyball Visits Redbirds, Sycamores on Road Trip
10/8/2008 11:45:00 AM | Volleyball
This Weekend
Creighton (6-7, 3-2 MVC) returns to the Missouri Valley Conference road this weekend when it plays matches at Illinois State and Indiana State. Creighton plays Illinois State (9-8, 3-3 MVC) on Friday. First serve is set for 7 pm at Redbird Arena (10,200) in Normal, Ill.
Creighton then travels to Terre Haute, Ind., to play Indiana State (7-11, 1-5 MVC) on Saturday night. First serve at ISU Arena (500) is set for 7 pm Eastern (6 pm Central).
This Weekend
October 10 7 pm Creighton at Illinois State Normal, Ill. (Redbird Arena)
October 11 6 pm Creighton at Indiana State Terre Haute, Ind. (ISU Arena)
Radio Broadcast Information
Friday's match will be broadcast on the internet by Illinois State. A link to that broadcast can be found at www.gocreighton.com and heading to the Creighton volleyball schedule page, or going directly to http://www.stretchinternet.com/isu/live.html.
Saturday's match will not be broadcast on radio.
Video Webcast Information
Both matches this weekend will be video webcast by the host school. Fans can sign up for matches individually by going to the Illinois State site (goredbirds.com) or the Indiana State site (gosycamores.com).
Live Stats Information
Both matches this weekend should have live stats. Visit www.gocreighton.com and click on the Live Stats tab on the left-hand side of the page for the exact links.
Scouting Creighton
Creighton is 6-7 this season and 3-2 in the MVC while playing one of the nation's toughest schedules to date. Six of the seven teams Creighton has lost to are getting votes in this week's AVCA poll, with preseason No. 18 Iowa State the lone exception.
Senior setter Korie Lebeda (10.35 aps.) is a two-time first-team all-MVC pick and ranks 10th in MVC history with a school-record 4,719 career assists.
One of the team's biggest strengths is its offensive diversity, as seven different players own 250 or more career kills. Jessica Houts is one of six players averaging at least one kill per set this year, leading the way so far with 3.60 kps. She was named to the all-Tournament Team in both events this fall and also tops the squad with 1.15 blocks per set.
Defensively, senior libero Bianca Rivera (4.17 dps.) set school records for single-season digs and digs per set last fall. She owns 10 or more digs in 39 of 44 career matches at Creighton, reaching 20 or more digs on 19 occasions.
Coming off back-to-back 21-10 seasons, Creighton was picked third in the preseason MVC poll.
Creighton hits .218 as a team and averages 12.94 kills, 0.94 aces, 15.90 digs and 2.68 blocks per set.
Scouting Illinois State
Illinois State enters the weekend with a 9-8 record, including a 3-3 mark in Missouri Valley Conference play. The Redbirds returned five starters and a libero from last year's team that finished 21-12 overall and reached the NCAA Tournament.
Illinois State has played a formidable schedule, including wins over Louisville and Wisconsin-Milwaukee this fall. Among the teams to beat ISU this fall have been Iowa State, Mississippi, Penn State and Illinois.
Leading the way this fall has been OH's Peggy Riessen (3.78 kps., 3.15 dps.) and Mallory Leggett (3.13 kps., 2.90 dps., 0.33 saps.). MC Richmond is also a factor on offense, as the all-Valley selection averages 2.20 kills and 2.67 digs per set.
Senior Erin Lindsey (10.17 aps., 2.78 dps.) is in her fourth season as the Redbird setter quarterbacking the ISU offense. Libero Kasey Mollerus (4.10 dps.) headlines the Redbird defense.
Illinois State averages 13.05 kills, 1.28 aces, 16.90 digs and 2.02 blocks per set while hitting .191.
Scouting Indiana State
After going 8-77 (1-53 MVC) in the previous three seasons, Indiana State has changed coaches and is off to a greatly improved 7-11 (1-5 MVC) start.
The Sycamores nearly pulled off the MVC's biggest upset of the fall last Friday at Missouri State, but could not convert on five match point opportunities in the third set and ultimately lost in five sets to the Bears.
Jodilynn Stoker averages a team-high 2.93 kills per set while also hitting .174. Kelli Whitaker (2.28 kps.) also averages more than two kills per set.
Whitney Fromm (9.19 aps.) tops the team's setters and is second on the club with 2.23 digs per set. The top defender for ISU is libero Kristy Cox, who averages 4.56 digs per set and is one of two players to play in every set this fall.
Indiana State averages 11.59 kills, 1.13 aces, 15.13 digs and 1.35 blocks per set. The Sycamores also hit .173 as a team.
The Sycamores are 3-1 at home this season, including a four-set win over SIU-Edwardsville on Tuesday.
Series History vs. Illinois State
Though Illinois State leads the all-time series with Creighton by a 23-8 margin, it's been all Bluejays of late. The Jays have won the past five meetings in the series -- all in four sets -- since snapping an 11-match losing streak to the ?Birds in 2006.
Creighton is 4-12 all-time at Redbird Arena, but has won its last three meetings there.
Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 5-7 against Illinois State but has never faced Melissa Myers.
Series History vs. Indiana State
Creighton is 20-9 all-time against Indiana State, including a 9-5 record in Terre Haute. Creighton has swept the past six meetings in the series.
The Jays 20 wins against the Sycamores are tied for its most against any opponent (also Southern Illinois).
Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 7-3 all-time against Indiana State but has never faced Traci Dahl.
The Coaches
Creighton is coached by Kirsten Bernthal Booth (Truman State, 1997), who owns a 94-70 record in her sixth season with the Bluejays. She became the program's all-time winningest coach on Aug. 25, 2007 with a 3-0 win over Stephen F. Austin.
Booth came to Creighton after going 112-41 in three years at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. A native of Lincoln, Neb., Booth played volleyball at Truman State, where she was named conference MVP, an Academic All-American and Missouri's 1997 NCAA Woman of the Year. She ranked third in Division II history with 6,077 assists when she graduated.
Booth is helped by associate head coach Paul Giesselmann, assistant coach Angie Oxley Behrens and volunteer assistant Adam Ybarra. Melissa Myers (Juniata College, 1998) owns a 9-8 record in her first season at Illinois State. That moves her career record as a head coach to 170-57 when you include her six years at California (Pa.). Myers is assisted by Adriano de Souza.
Traci Dahl (Long Beach State, 1997) is 7-11 in her first year at Indiana State, which also doubles as her career mark. Dahl had been an assistant at Cal State Fullerton and Hofstra before coming to Terre Haute. As a player, Dahl was an All-American middle blocker and a member of Long Beach State's 1993 national championship team. She is assisted by Nick Wolf and Jon Smith.
Last Weekend Summary
Creighton went 1-1 last weekend, sweeping Drake (25-15, 25-14, 25-9) before falling to No. 2 Nebraska (25-19, 25-18, 25-19). The Jays hit a season-high .414 in the romp over Drake, only to be held to a season-low .091 hitting percentage against the Huskers. Amanda Cvejdlik led CU with 22 kills on the weekend, while Jessica Houts had 11 blocks in six sets of action.
Can't Forget 2007...Yet
Friday will mark the first meeting between Creighton and Illinois State on the volleyball court since the 2007 NCAA Tournament field was announced last November.
Last fall Creighton finished up a 21-10 season, tied for second in the MVC with a 14-4 mark and completed a season sweep over the Redbirds.
Illinois State finished 21-12, finished fifth in the MVC with an 11-7 mark, and went 0-2 against Creighton.
Both teams were eliminated by eventual champion Northern Iowa in the MVC Tournament.
You can be sure it hasn't been forgotten that Illinois State was the MVC's fourth team to reach the NCAA Tournament, while the Bluejays could do nothing but watch from the sidelines during the postseason as ISU was swept by Colorado State in the first round.
A Sign For Optimism
Creighton needs to only look back 12 months to find the last MVC team to start 6-7 and reach the NCAA Tournament.
Last fall, Northern Iowa started 6-7 and were at the .500 mark (9-9) as late as October 8th. The Panthers got hot after a crushing five-set loss at Illinois State (losing 35-33 in set four and 21-19 in set five...blowing eight match points overall). That heartbreaking loss dropped UNI to 0-5 in five-set matches in 2007. Northern Iowa would win 10 of its final 11 regular-season MVC matches, win the MVC Tournament, and reach the NCAA Tournament.
Like UNI last year, this year's Creighton team has come agonizingly close to big wins early in the season and struggled to close out five-set matches. However, this year's Bluejay squad also boasts the talent, drive and experience that helped turn around last fall's Panther team.
TGIF
Creighton will look to extend its Friday road win streak this weekend when it visits Illinois State.
The Jays have won 10 straight Friday road matches in MVC play dating to an October 28, 2005 loss at Missouri State.
Creighton is 15-6 under Kirsten Bernthal Booth in MVC road matches played on Friday and 13-11 in MVC road matches played on Saturday. The Jays are also 0-1 in MVC Sunday road matches and 1-0 in MVC Tuesday road matches under Booth.
Korie, Korie, Korie
Korie Lebeda has started all 105 matches since coming to campus, and could tie Melissa Walsh's (1998-01) school record with her 107th career start on Saturday against Indiana State.
Lebeda is approaching another milestone as well. With 25 more digs, she will join Melissa Weisensee and Kailey Reyes as the third player in Creighton history with more than 1,000 assists and digs.
She enters this weekend with 4,719 career assists (10th in MVC history) and 975 career digs.
Lebeda has done her work in 376 sets, averaging 12.55 aps., while No. 8 on the list, Illinois State's Erin Lindsey, has averaged 12.15 aps., but has played in significantly more (404) sets.
Most Assists, MVC History
Rk. Assists Name, School Years
1. 6,064 Jill Arganbright, UNI 2000-03
2. 5,614 Marisa Brickley, ILS 1995-98
3. 5,431 Chenille Bayless, MSU 2000-03
4. 5,137 Megan Mirs, INS 1998-01
5. 5,067 Betsy Knott, UE 1995-98
6. 5,057 Debbie Barr, SIU 1996-99
7. 4,957 Kelly Hanson, DU 1993-96
8. 4,907 Erin Lindsey, ILS 2005-Pres.
9. 4,881 Shannon Perry, UNI 1996-99
10. 4,719 Korie Lebeda, CU 2005-Pres.
11. 4,476 Michele Hallagin, WSU 1996-99
Record Watches
Carolyn Decker served up two aces against Nebraska to move her team-high total to 12 this fall. Decker now owns 78 career aces, fifth-most in Creighton history.
Senior libero Bianca Rivera will almost certainly move into the top-10 in school history on the career digs this weekend. Rivera enters the weekend with 818 digs, one away from the 819 that Katie Mehal owns to claim 10th on the all-time list. Rivera, who owns 200 digs this year, remains on pace become the sixth player in Bluejay history (assuming Korie Lebeda makes it) with 1,000 or more digs.
Additionally, Jessica Houts has 363 career blocks and is four away from passing Melissa Walsh for third on the school's all-time total blocks list.
Top Crowds of 2008
Creighton hosted 8,037 fans at Qwest Center Omaha for last Sunday's match against No. 2 Nebraska. The crowd is the third-largest in the country this fall, the third largest home crowd in Creighton history, and also the third-largest crowd in MVC history. Below is a list of the nation's top crowds of 2008, as compiled by Diane Nordstrom in the Wisconsin's Sports Information Office:
Largest Crowds of 2008, Nationally
Rank Att. Match, Date
1. 13,412 LSU at Nebraska, 9/12
2. 8,399 Runza/AVCA Showcase, 8/31
3. 8,037 Nebraska at Creighton, 10/5
4. 7,529 Runza/AVCA Showcase, 8/29
5. 7,325 Washington at Hawai'i, 9/13
Creighton's Largest Home Crowds, All-Time
Rank Att. Opponent Date
1. 13,081 #18 Cal Poly 09/02/07
2. 12,112 #1 Nebraska 09/24/06
3. 8,037 #2 Nebraska 10/05/08
Largest Home Crowds, MVC History
Rank Att. Match Date
1. 13,081 #18 Cal Poly at Creighton 09/02/07
2. 12,112 #1 Nebraska at Creighton 09/24/06
3. 8,037 #2 Nebraska at Creighton 10/05/08
4. 6,122 Missouri State at Wichita St. 11/02/07
5. 6,024 Kansas State at Wichita St. 08/25/07
Attendance Rankings
Creighton averages 1,746 fans per home match, good enough to rank 15th in this week's edition of the national leaders in volleyball attendance.
Last year Creighton finished 14th nationally in attendance and in 2006 the Jays were tied for 16th. Below is a look at the national leaders, through matches of October 3rd:
Top Average Home Attendance, 2008
Rk. School Avg.
1. Hawaii 6,174
2. Nebraska 5,688
3. Wisconsin 4,139
4. Minnesota 3,874
5. Michigan State 3,341
6. Penn State 3,186
7. Florida 3,054
8. Wichita State 2,723
9. Colorado State 2,684
10. Texas 2,221
11. Stanford 2,164
12. Southern California 2,043
13. Purdue 2,001
14. Iowa State 1,811
15. Creighton 1,746
16. Georgia Tech 1,739
17. New Mexico State 1,718
18. Cal Poly 1,568
19. Washington 1,465
20. Pacific 1,455
Computer Math
The volleyball-specific site at richkern.com has published its fourth computer rankings of the fall.
Creighton is ranked No. 57 in the “Pablo” rankings, third-best in the MVC behind Wichita State (15) and UNI (33) and one of five MVC schools to crack the top-100.
Creighton's strength of schedule, based on the average of an opponents RPI, is rated 34th-toughest nationally and 11th-best when only non-conference matches are factored in.
Creighton is 6-0 against teams with a computer ranking of 55 or worse, but 0-7 against teams in the top-54 nationally.
Houts Keeps It Going
Jessica Houts continued her strong play with 13 kills and seven blocks against Drake last Friday.
That gave her four straight matches with at least 13 kills and three straight contests with seven blocks or more.
She became the first Bluejay with three straight matches of seven or more blocks since Houts herself accomplished the identical feat on Oct. 15-22, 2005 of her freshman campaign.
The only other player in CU history with three straight matches of seven or more blocks is JoDe Cieloha, who had three straight matches from Sept. 13-15, 1996.
Digger's Hotline
Senior libero Bianca Rivera owns 16 or more digs in each of Creighton's last five matches, including three performances of 20 digs or more. She is averaging 6.11 digs per set in the last five matches.
Rivera now owns 19 career matches of 20 or more digs, one shy of the school-record set by Janeen Piller.
Matches With 20+ Digs, Career
20+D Name Years
20 Janeen Piller 2001-04
19 Bianca Rivera 2007-Pres.
11 Katie Mehal 2004-07
9 Kailey Reyes 1998-01
8 Melissa Walsh 1998-01
Lebeda Keeps Doubling Up
Senior setter Korie Lebeda streak of six consecutive double-doubles was snapped when she had 24 assists and eight digs against Nebraska last Sunday.
Lebeda's streak was tied for fourth-longest in school history, and just two behind Melissa Walsh's school mark of eight in a row set in 2000.
Lebeda's 46 career double-doubles is fourth-most in Bluejay history, 19 behind Melissa Weisensee's record of 65 from 1994-97.
Consecutive Matches, Double-Double
8 Melissa Walsh, Oct. 24-Nov. 17, 2000
7 Korie Lebeda, Nov. 4-24, 2006
7 Kailey Reyes, Oct. 23-Nov. 18, 1999
6 Abby Baumann, Oct. 13-Nov. 4, 2006
6 Korie Lebeda, Sept. 6-Oct. 3, 2008
Amazing Amanda
After posting just 88 kills during her junior season, senior OH Amanda Cvejdlik appears to have regained the form that saw her post 415 kills as a sophomore. Cvejdlik owns 142 kills this season and has had seven or more kills in 12 straight matches.
Her 17 kills against Missouri State on Sept. 26 were her most in a match since Oct. 7, 2006, when she had 20 putaways versus Bradley.
Cvejdlik hammered 15 kills in 21 errorless swings on Friday against Drake, good for a .714 hitting percentage. The .714 hitting percentage was best in school history for a single match by a player with 15 or more kills.
Hot Hitting Night
Creighton's .414 hitting last Friday against Drake was a season-high and tied for the fourth-best performance in school history, as seen below:
Attack Percentage
Three Games
.536 vs. Tulsa (41-4-69) (3 sets) 10-27-95
.495 vs. Liberty (57-8-99) (3 sets) 9-2-05
.418 vs. Evansville (98-21-184) (4 sets) 11-2-96
.414 vs. UC-Riverside (57-11-111) (3 sets) 9-2-05
.414 vs. Drake (49-8-99) (3 sets) 10-3-08
NCAA Tourney Gauntlet
Creighton's Sept. 20 match at UNI opened a stretch that will see Creighton face five NCAA Tournament teams in a six-match span. In addition to UNI, Creighton also plays qualifiers Missouri State, Wichita State, Nebraska and Illinois State in those three weeks. Drake was the only exception during this span.
Approaching 1,500 Sets
Creighton has played 1,498 sets since bringing back volleyball in 1994, winning 701 of those.
Below is a look at Creighton's record by sets, in increments of 500. Regardless of the outcome in these next two sets, it is clear that the program has never been in better shape.
Set #'s Dates W-L
1-500 9/2/94 to 11/14/98 (S2) 199-301
501-1000 11/14/98 (S3) to 11/15/13 (S1) 216-284
1001-Pres. 11/15/03 (S2) to Present 286-212
All We Need Is One
Did you know that the team that scores the first point of a set has won 30 of Creighton's 48 sets played this season, including 13 of the last 18.
So Close, Yet So Far
One of the hallmarks of past Creighton teams has been the ability to pull out a key point when things get tight late in a set or match.
This year's team has seen that trend reverse, as Creighton continues to be snakebit in some of its narrow losses against the nation's elite.
In Creighton's 3-1 loss to No. 14 Wichita State on Sept. 27, the Jays lost a pair of sets decided by two points. Likewise, in its 3-1 loss the previous Saturday at Northern Iowa, CU also dropped two sets decided by two points. Creighton also lost by a 16-14 fifth set score to UAB earlier this year in its final non-conference loss.
On the season, Creighton is 3-7 in sets decided by the minimum two points but has dropped its last five such sets. Below is a comparison of Creighton, Illinois State, Indiana State and MVC leaders Wichita State and UNI.
Match Set 2-Pt. Sets
Team W-L W-L W-L
Wichita State 15-0 45-9 9-3
Northern Iowa 15-2 45-11 9-1
Creighton 6-6 25-20 3-7
Illinois State 9-8 30-30 5-11
Indiana State 7-11 28-43 7-5
Stats Don't Equal Win
Creighton lost in four sets at Northern Iowa on Sept. 20th despite winning nearly every statistical category. The Bluejays scored three more points (94-91), had a better hitting percentage (.244 to .219) and also had more kills (61-56), digs (80-61) and blocks (9-8) than the Panthers. Creighton had won 80 consecutive matches when owning a better hitting percentage than its opponent.
Freshman Starting Streak Snapped at 107
Creighton had started at least one true freshman in 107 consecutive MVC matches before the streak was snapped on Sept. 26 against Missouri State. Before then, the last time CU didn't start a true freshman in an MVC match was Sept. 21, 2002 in a match at Northern Iowa.
Ike 1, Creighton 0
Creighton was idle on Sept. 12-13 after the Ladyjack Invitational, scheduled for Nacogdoches, Texas, was cancelled due to Hurricane Ike.
It marked the first time since Creighton brought back volleyball in 1994 that the Jays had more than 10 days off in between matches while in-season.
Dig For A Cure Coming Up
Head coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth and the women's volleyball team will host Evansville on Friday, Oct. 17 at the Omaha Civic Auditorium (7:00 p.m., first-serve).
The Bluejays will wear pink jerseys and raise funds as part of a “Digging for the Cure” promotion as the match has been designated as Breast Cancer Awareness Night. Survivors and co-survivors will pose for pictures with the team before the match and then surround the court for team introductions.
Drawings for prizes including Creighton season ticket packages will be made throughout the match. A “Donate The Difference 2-For-1” admission coupon for this match is available by clicking on this link: http://www.gocreighton.com/fls/1000/pdf/08bc.jpg.
All proceeds will benefit the Nebraska affiliate of the Susan G. Komen for the Cure organization and fans are encouraged to wear pink and make a cash donation in lieu of the free admission.
MVC Opener Histories
Creighton now owns an 8-7 record all-time in Missouri Valley Conference openers, including two straight wins and a 5-1 record under Kirsten Bernthal Booth. In the seven previous seasons that Creighton won its MVC opener, it has never finished worse than 9-9 in league play and owns a combined .603 winning percentage in MVC action.
In the seven years in which Creighton lost its MVC opener, the Jays have had a losing record five times and own a combined .315 winning percentage during league contests.
How Do You Win The MVC? Start 1-0
At the start of the conference season, all 10 Missouri Valley Conference schools will harbor dreams of a regular-season league title.
Since the beginning of the Gateway Conference (which later merged to form the Missouri Valley Conference in 1992) in 1983, no school has ever won the regular-season or tournament title after dropping its first league match of the season.
Even better for Creighton, each of the last two eventual regular-season champions opened the MVC season against Bradley.
Home Losses Are Also Devastating
The 2006 Northern Iowa and 2007 Wichita State teams are the only programs in MVC history to lose a home conference match and still win the regular-season title outright in that same season.
It's also worth noting that 13 of the last 14 regular-season MVC champions finished the year with one regular-season loss or fewer. The exception was that 2006 UNI team that was 16-2, with both losses coming against Wichita State.
Houts Playing Strong, One Year Later
September 11th marked the one-year anniversary of Jessica Houts' tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in her right knee, which was suffered prior to a 2007 match at Drake. Houts had surgery 10 days later and returned to the court in the spring.
This fall, Houts has been nothing short of spectacular. She's been named to the All-Tournament Team at both events CU has played in, and leads the squad in kills per set (3.60) and blocks per set (1.15) while also ranking second with a .300 hitting percentage.
Lebeda Still Going Strong
Senior setter Korie Lebeda has made 105 consecutive starts. The two-time all-Valley pick has participated in all but 12 points since arriving at Creighton in 2005. Creighton is 64-41 with Lebeda as a starter after going 47-65 in the four years before she arrived on campus.
Lebeda's 105 starts trail only Melissa Walsh's 107 starts from 1998-01.
Decking The Competition
Fifth-year senior Carolyn Decker owns five different matches with 10 or more kills this season, including all three contests at the Gamecock Invitational. Decker owned just five total matches with 10 or more kills from 2005-07 while battling through a pair of season-ending injuries.
Top Nine Attackers
A pair of Creighton attackers rank among the top-10 in school history for kills in a career. Jessica Houts has moved up to eighth with 913 kills, while Amanda Cvejdlik has climbed to ninth with 870 putaways.
Only five Bluejays in school history have ever reached 1,000 career kills, most recently Kelly Goc in 2006.
Dominant Defense
Creighton's 25-12, 25-15, 25-12 win over Jacksonville State on Sept. 5th ranked among the most impressive victories in school history. Creighton held JSU to a -.112 attack percentage, the lowest mark ever by a Bluejay opponent.
Additionally, the defending Ohio Valley Conference champion Jacksonville State team did not record an ace and were outblocked 15-0.
Below is the lowest hitting percentages ever by a Creighton opponent:
Lowest Opp. Hitting Pct. vs. Creighton, Match
Pct. Team K E TA Date
-.112 Jacksonville St. 18 27 80 9/5/08
-.108 UMKC 19 27 74 9/15/96
-.086 Drake 15 23 93 9/22/06
-.044 Montana State 15 19 90 8/25/07
-.010 Indiana State 21 22 105 10/26/07
-.008 UMKC 29 30 125 10/24/00
-.007 Wichita State 27 28 135 10/21/95
Serving Woes
Creighton has started four of its 13 matches this season (and six of its last 16 matches dating to the end of last year) with a serving error in its first attempt.
All 12 players to see floor time this fall for Creighton have committed at least one service error and only four of the 12 have put at least 90 percent of their serves in play.
The Jays have 67 serving errors in its seven losses and 46 such errors in its six wins.
Creighton streak of five or more serving errors in 50 straight matches and 72 of it past 73 contests came to an end when it made just two service errors last Friday vs. Drake.
Creighton has also committed a serving error in all but three sets this season.
Road Warriors
It's difficult to pinpoint the reason, but Creighton has traditionally played better volleyball when on the road in recent seasons.
In six years under Kirsten Bernthal Booth, Creighton owns a 38-29 record at home (.567), but are an even better 56-41 (.577) in matches played on the road or at neutral sites.
This surprising record of success even holds up in league play, where the Jays play each opponent once each at home and on the road every fall. Under Booth, CU is 29-19 at home but 29-18 on the road in league action. Last year Creighton went 8-1 on the road in MVC play.
The Jays were also a perfect 6-0 last year away from home in matches against unranked teams with 1,000 or more fans in attendance.
Each of the past two years, CU has been 8-5 at home in all matches but 9-4 in true road contests.
Difficult Schedule Continues
Nine of Creighton's first 14 matches this season are against NCAA Tournament teams from a year ago, and three other opponents in that time won 20 or more matches or their regular-season title last year.
Opponent ?07 W-L ?07 Postseason
Minnesota 18-13 NCAA
LSU* 25-8 NCAA
Texas A&M 21-10 --
Iowa State 19-14 NCAA
Jacksonville State* 18-10 --
UAB 24-10 --
Mississippi 25-8 --
Bradley 3-28
Northern Iowa* 22-11 NCAA
Missouri State 25-8 NCAA
Wichita State* 27-6 NCAA
Drake 7-23 --
Nebraska* 30-2 NCAA
Illinois State 21-12 NCAA
*Won regular-season or conference tournament title
Houts Named To All-Tourney Team
Making her return from a torn ACL that cost her most of last season, Jessica Houts averaged 3.55 kills and 0.91 blocks per set to earn all-Tournament Team honors at the Bluejay Invitational on Aug. 29-30.
Houts led CU with 13 kills, eight digs and .346 in the season-opener against No. 16 Minnesota. She followed that up with a team-best 18 kills and six digs in a five-set loss against No. 21 LSU. She also added eight kills and four blocks in a sweep of Texas A&M, a team picked for fourth in the preseason Big 12 Conference poll.
Minnesota's Brook Dieter was named MVP, and was joined on the all-Tournament team by Rachel Hartmann (Minnesota), Brittnee Cooper (LSU), Elena Martinez (LSU), Mary Batis (Texas A&M) and Houts.
Double-Double Decker
Fifth year senior Carolyn Decker had a match-high 15 digs to go with 13 kills as Creighton became the only team to sweep Texas A&M at the Bluejay Invitational.
Decker's double-double against the Aggies was the senior's first since Nov. 20, 2004 and her 15 digs were her most in a match since a 17-dig performance in the 2005 season opener against Northern Colorado.
Decker, who also hit .429 in the sweep over Texas A&M, was the first CU player to post a double-double and hit .400 in the same match since Allie Oelke had 17 kills and 25 digs while hitting .433 against Evansville on Nov. 4, 2007.
Decker, however, became the first CU senior to have a kill-dig double-double and hit .400 in the same match since Melissa Walsh had 23 kills and 10 digs while hitting .526 against Southern Illinois on Nov. 2, 2001.
Eliminate The Errors
It's true for all programs, but one of the item the Bluejay coaching staff continues to focus on is the elimination of unforced errors.
Creighton has combined for 445 errors (kill errors + set errors + serving errors + ball handling errors + block errors + receiving errors) in 46 sets played to 25.
Creighton has had 10 or more errors in 16 of the 21 sets it has lost, averaging 11.62 miscues in those lost sets.
On the other hand, in the 25 sets that Creighton won, it has made nine errors or less 17 times and averaged just 8.04 errors per set.
Creighton is 13-1 when making eight errors or less in a set to 25 points, but 12-20 when they make nine or more errors.
Preseason Poll
Creighton has been picked third in a preseason poll of Missouri Valley Conference coaches. Defending regular-season champion Wichita State was picked to win the league, while defending tournament champion Northern Iowa was second. Following Creighton, Missouri State and Illinois State rounded out the top half.
Eight players were also named preseason all-MVC, including Bluejay senior Korie Lebeda.
What's New?
Several rule and terminology rules will change for the 2008 season. The term “game” has now been changed to “set”. The number of points required to win sets one through four is now 25 (was 30). The fifth set is still played to 15 points. The maximum number of substitutions for each team is 12 per set (was 15).
Taking The Fifth
Creighton is 18-6 in five-set matches under Kirsten Bernthal Booth. That's impressive since Creighton had never finished a season with a winning record in fifth sets prior to Booth's arrival.
Below is a list of Creighton's record in five-set matches on a yearly basis:
Year Set 5 W-L Total W-L
1994 0-2 5-20
1995 0-2 11-19
1996 2-6 9-19
1997 3-5 15-13
1998 2-3 7-18
1999 3-3 13-15
2000 3-3 16-12
2001 1-1 14-13
2002 1-3 3-23
2003 5-1 12-18
2004 4-0 18-11
2005 3-1 16-14
2006 4-2 21-10
2007 2-0 21-10
2008 0-2 6-7
Total 33-34 187-222
2-0 Better Than 0-2
Creighton is 120-7 (.945) all-time when leading a match 2-0, including a 62-1 mark under Kirsten Bernthal Booth. They own a 56-4 all-time mark in home matches they lead 2-0 in.
Conversely, the Jays are 6-142 (.041) all-time when trailing a match 0-2, including an 0-46 mark in those home matches. Those six comebacks from down 0-2 are listed below:
Date Opponent Games 3-5 scores Coach
09/19/97 at Bradley 15-11, 15-13, 15-8 Wallace
10/01/99 at Drake 15-6, 17-15, 15-11 Wallace
09/03/04 vs. Montana 30-20, 30-21, 15-11 Booth
10/15/04 at Bradley 30-22, 30-23, 15-11 Booth
10/15/05 at So. Illinois 30-25, 30-24, 15-8 Booth
09/21/07 at No. Iowa 31-29, 30-26, 15-12 Booth
Survival of the Fittest
Creighton has won four matches under Kirsten Bernthal Booth after surviving an opponent's match point. On the other hand, Creighton is 94-0 under Booth when it reaches a match point opportunity.
Surviving Match Points, Under Booth
Date Opponent MP(s) Faced Final Game 5
09/11/07 at Drake 13-14, 14-15 17-15
10/13/06 at Wichita State 12-14, 13-14, 14-15 17-15
10/10/03 Wichita State 13-14 16-14
08/30/03 vs. McNeese State 13-14, 15-16 18-16
Game 1 Result = Match Result
In its last 78 matches in which it wins game one, Creighton is 70-8. CU is 77-12 overall under Kirsten Bernthal Booth when they win game one. In that same time span, CU is just 17-58 under Booth when it drops the first game.
Statistics Expected To Decline Too
With the move from 30-point sets to 25-point sets, don't be surprised to see statistics plummet nearly 20 percent as well.
To help anticipate what the rule change would do this fall, Creighton Volleyball SID Rob Anderson went through all of Creighton's matches last season and deleted each point in sets 1-4 that occurred after a team reached 25 points and led by two or more.
Creighton ended up playing 20.46 percent fewer points (form 5,500 to 4,566 points) and numbers dropped across the board with the exception of hitting percentage, which rose by a scant .001.
Listed below is how stats would have been affected had the new rules been in effect last season in regards to stats for the entire team, category leaders, and some single-match superlatives.
Team Category To 30 Pts. To 25 Pts. Diff.
Kills Per Set 16.04 13.35 -20%
Hitting Pct. .211 .212 +.001
Assists Per Set 14.82 12.33 -20%
Aces Per Set 1.41 1.21 -17%
Digs Per Set 19.78 16.59 -19%
Blocks Per Set 2.65 2.15 -17%
Indiv. Category To 30 Pts. To 25 Pts. Player
Kills Per Set 4.18 3.46 Goc
Hitting Pct. .368 .369 Goc
Assists Per Set 12.50 10.41 Lebeda
Aces Per Set 0.36 0.33 Oelke
Digs Per Set 5.78 5.03 Rivera
Blocks Per Set 0.99 0.78 Bloemke
Indiv. Superlatives 30-Pt. Matches 25-Pt. Matches
20+ Kills 8 times 3 times
24+ Kills 2 times 0 times
20+ Digs 15 times 9 times
25+ Digs 6 times 3 times
50+ Assists 7 times 1 time
40+ Assists 21 times 8 times
50+ Attempts 5 times 0 times
Double-Doubles 24 times 12 times
Production Returning
Creighton returns 9-of-14 letterwinners from last season. Below is a breakdown of the production that returns:
Stat Returners Departures
Assists 1506 (95.0%) 80 (5.0%)
Aces 127 (84.1%) 24 (15.9%)
Digs 1704 (80.5%) 412 (19.5%)
Matches Started 138 (74.2%) 48 (25.8%)
Points 1477.5 (68.7%) 673.0 (31.3%)
Kills 1139 (66.3%) 577 (33.7%)
Blocks 159.5 (56.3%) 124 (43.7%)
Lebeda Takes A Break (Finally)
Korie Lebeda played every point of her freshman and sophomore seasons, and the first 299 points of her junior year before finally being replaced with CU owning a 26-10 lead over Montana State on Aug. 25, 2007. That brought her amazing streak to 11,849 consecutive points without a break to open her college career.
After coming out for three points, Lebeda returned for the final six points of that match. Lebeda also rested the final four points of Creighton's win over Indiana State on Sept. 29 and for five points against Indiana State on Oct. 26.
Lebeda has played every point of the 2008 season thus far as well.
Lebeda has played in 18,946 of a possible 18,958 points since coming to Creighton, good for an astounding 99.937 percent.
New Facility on the Way
Creighton broke ground on a new athletics facility on October 16, 2007, to be located just northeast of Michael G. Morrison, S.J., Stadium on the northeast corner of Webster Street and Florence Boulevard.
The Ryan Center and D.J. Sokol Arena, a 75,000 square-foot facility, will house a gymnasium seating 2,500-3,000, women's basketball and volleyball coaches' offices, locker rooms, ticket offices, athletic training and meeting rooms, media workrooms and much more.
The arena is also expected to be used for other campus and community events including campus assemblies, coaching camps/clinics, concerts, speakers and high school graduations. Creighton volleyball is expected to play there starting in 2009, hosting the MVC Tournament that November.
Preseason MVC Poll
Creighton was picked third in the 2008 MVC preseason coaches poll. Wichita State (91 points, four first-place votes) was favored to win its second straight title, just ahead of Northern Iowa (84, two) and Creighton (81, three). Rounding out the rest of the league was Missouri State (73, one), Illinois State (67), Southern Illinois (52), Evansville (34), Drake (31), Bradley (25) and Indiana State (12).
Each of the past five years Creighton has finished in the spot predicted of them or better in the preseason poll.
Year Preseason Pick Finish Move
1994 11th 9th #2
1995 9th 7th #2
1996 9th 6th #3
1997 8th 3rd #5
1998 6th 8th i2
1999 T-7th 5th #2
2000 4th T-4th - -
2001 2nd 4th i2
2002 7th 9th i2
2003 9th T-5th #4
2004 5th 5th - -
2005 5th 5th - -
2006 4th 4th - -
2007 3rd T-2nd #1
2008 3rd ??? ???
AVCA Honors CU Volleyball For Academics
The Creighton volleyball program was honored by the American Volleyball Coaches Association as a recipient of the 2008 AVCA Team Academic Award. Creighton previously won the award in 1998, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007 and are one of 10 Division I schools nationwide to win the award in five consecutive campaigns.
The award honors teams that displayed excellence in the classroom by maintaining at least a 3.30 cumulative GPA. Last spring the Bluejay volleyball team posted a cumulative GPA of 3.31.
Radio Broadcast Information
Brad Burwell and Erin Swanson will broadcast at least 22 regular-season matches this season on KVSS (88.9 FM), as well as any potential MVC Tournament and NCAA Tournament matches. The matches will also be streamed on-line at www.kvss.com. A complete list of remaining matches follows:
2008 Volleyball Broadcast Schedule
Oct. 17 Evansville
Oct. 18 Southern Illinois
Oct. 24 at Wichita State
Oct. 25 at Missouri State
Oct. 31 at Drake
Nov. 7 Indiana State
Nov. 8 Illinois State
Nov. 21 Northern Iowa
Nov. 22 Bradley
Nov. 27-29 at MVC Tournament
Dec. 4-20 at NCAA Tournament
Creighton Ticket Information
Tickets to Creighton's home regular-season matches are sold at all Ticketmaster outlets. Cost is $7 for adults and $4 for youth (18 years of age or younger) with children five and under admitted free. Season ticket information is available online at www.gocreighton.com or by calling (402) 280-JAYS. Creighton has sold approximately 490 season tickets for volleyball this year after selling 380 season tickets last year.
Fall 2007 Summary
Creighton's 2007 season featured the squad's second consecutive 21-10 record. Despite a tie for second-place in the Missouri Valley Conference with a 14-4 league mark, the Jays were not one of four league teams selected to the NCAA's.
Kelly Goc wrapped up an outstanding career by earning honorable-mention All-American honors, while setter Korie Lebeda was named first-team all-MVC. Other key contributors included MVC Freshman of the Year Allie Oelke and record-setting libero Bianca Rivera.
