Volleyball Hits Road To Face Redbirds & Sycamores This Weekend
9/29/2010 10:44:00 AM | Volleyball
This Weekend
Oct. 1 7 pm Creighton at Illinois State Normal, Ill. (Redbird Arena)
Oct. 2 6 pm CST Creighton at Indiana State Terre Haute, Ind. (ISU Arena)
This Weekend
Creighton Volleyball (8-6, 3-1 Missouri Valley Conference) looks to retain its perfect road record when it hits the road for a pair of MVC matches this weekend.
On Friday, the Bluejays will face Illinois State (11-5, 1-2 MVC) in a 7 pm contest at Redbird Arena (10,200) in Normal, Ill.
On Saturday night, the Bluejays will face Indiana State (8-8, 0-3 MVC) in a 6 pm Central (7 pm EST) match at ISU Arena (500) in Terre Haute, Ind.
Radio Broadcast Information
Friday's match will be broadcast by Illinois State in Normal, Ill., on WJBC. The match can be heard on-line at http://www.wjbc.com or through Illinois State's Athletics' web site at http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/isu.portal#.
There is no audio for Saturday's match.
Video Webcast Information
Friday's match will be video webcast by Illinois State. To sign up for the video, you must visit http://www.goredbirds.com/allaccess. Cost is $14.95 per month.
There is no video for Saturday's match.
Live Stats Information
Both of this weekend's matches will have free live stats. Visit www.gocreighton.com and click on the Live Stats tab on the left-hand side of the page for links the exact link.
Scouting Creighton
Winners of five of its last six matches, Creighton is 8-6 overall and tied for second in the Missouri Valley Conference with a 3-1 league record. The Bluejays are a perfect 4-0 on the road, beating Saint Louis, Marquette, Southern Illinois and Evansville away from home.
Creighton has been led by its three healthy seniors. OH Allie Oelke averages 2.58 kills and 4.00 digs per set, while OH Alicia Runge leads the team and is second in the MVC with 4.17 kills per set. Defensively, Nayka Benitez leads the team with 4.48 digs per set and 14 aces.
Setting the Bluejay offense is sophomore Megan Bober, who averages 10.08 assists, 2.25 digs, 0.98 blocks and 1.42 kills per set.
Creighton averages 13.13 kills, 18.21 digs, 2.45 blocks and 1.12 aces per set while hitting .197 as a team.
The Bluejays return 11 letterwinners and four starters from last year's team that finished 14-17 overall and tied for fourth in the Missouri Valley Conference with a 10-8 league record.
Creighton was picked fourth (of 10) in the MVC this fall.
Scouting Illinois State
After enduring an uncharacteristic 12-17 mark last year, Illinois State is 11-5 this season. Making that start all the more impressive is that the Redbirds have played just one home match all year, a 3-0 sweep over Loyola Chicago on Aug. 31.
First-team all-Missouri Valley Conference pick Mallory Leggett leads the Redbirds in her season season with 3.52 kills per set while ranking second with 2.83 digs per set.
Freshman Shannon McGlaughlin is off to a blazing start to her career, averaging 2.93 kills and 2.17 digs per set. She had a career-high 21 kills at Wichita State last Friday.
Tabitha Visk leads ISU with 21 aces and .344 hitting, is second on the team with 0.87 blocks per set and third with 2.21 kills per set.
Setting for ISU is Kristin Stauter (10.30 aps.), while Jenny Menendez is the libero and tops the 'Birds with 4.37 digs per set.
Illinois State averages 12.97 kills, 1.52 aces, 15.38 digs and 2.20 blocks per set while hitting .214. ISU is the rarest of (Red)birds, with more aces (91) than service errors (90) this fall.
Scouting Indiana State
Indiana State is 8-8 on the season, including a 3-3 home record and an 0-3 MVC mark. The eight wins matches the program's most since the 2004 team went 12-15.
Morgan Dall leads the MVC with 4.22 kills per set, but her 113 attack errors also lead The Valley by a wide margin. She also leads the team with 19 aces.
Also averaging more than two kills per set are Christie Fullenkamp (2.27), Stacy Qualizza (2.05) and Ana Maira Charun (2.00).
Loni Mackinson was the team's setter to start the year, averaging 7.58 assists per set, before a season-ending knee injury. With her out of the line-up, Shelbi Fouty moved from DS to setter, where she has averaged 11.40 assists in league play. Kiya James (4.51 dps.) is the Sycamore libero.
Indiana State averages 11.88 kills, 1.27 aces, 15.07 digs and 1.78 blocks per set while hitting .189 as a team.
The Coaches
Creighton is coached by Kirsten Bernthal Booth (Truman State, 1997), who owns a 128-95 record in her eighth 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 and joined the 100-win club with an Oct. 31, 2008 win at Drake.
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 assistant coaches Tom Mendoza and Angie Oxley Behrens and volunteer assistant Amanda (Gates) Sjuts.
Melissa Myers (Juniata College, 1998) owns a 39-37 record in her third season at Illinois State. That moves her nine-year career record as a head coach to 200-86 when you include her six years at California (Pa.). Myers is assisted by Adriano de Souza and BJ Trame.
Traci Dahl (Long Beach State, 1997) is 23-56 in her third 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 Camille Gutierrez.
Series History vs. Illinois State
Though Illinois State leads the all-time series with Creighton by a 24-11 margin, it's been mostly Bluejays of late. The Jays have won the eight of the past nine meetings in the series since snapping an 11-match losing streak to the 'Birds in 2006.
The lone exception came on Sept. 26, 2009 in Normal, where ISU won the final two sets to win a 3-2 decision at Redbird Arena.
Creighton is just 5-13 in Normal against ISU, but has won four of its past five trips to town.
Creighton has taken a 2-0 lead in four of the 35 meetings against Illinois State, but has never swept the Redbirds.
Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 8-8 against Illinois State and 3-1 versus Melissa Myers.
Series History vs. Indiana State
Creighton is 24-9 all-time against Indiana State, including an 11-5 record in Terre Haute. Creighton has won the past 10 meetings in the series, which includes nine sweeps in that time.
Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 11-3 all-time against Indiana State and 4-0 against Traci Dahl.
Let's Hit It
Creighton hit .654 in the third set of its win over Bradley, with 18 kills and one error in 26 attempts.
The hitting percentage was the third-best mark in school history, and best by any Jays squad since hitting a school-record .684 (13-0-19) in the second set of a 15-0 win at Eastern Illinois on October 15, 2000.
Seventh Heaven
After just seven aces in Creighton's first 13 matches of the season, senior Nayka Benitez served up a career-high seven aces in a 3-1 victory over Bradley on Saturday.
The figure was tied for second-most in Creighton history and was also a D.J. Sokol Arena record. Four of her aces came consecutively in the fourth set.
Last year, she served five straight aces in a match against Missouri State.
As a team, Creighton served up 12 aces, doubling its previous season-high, and was the program's most since Sept. 30, 2006.
Service Aces, Single-Match
Aces Name, Opponent (Sets) Date
8 Carolyn Decker at New Mexico (3s) 9-4-04
7 Molly Moran vs. Drake (3s) 9-22-00
7 Kelli Koochi at Indiana State (4s) 10-19-01
7 Nayka Benitez vs. Bradley (4s) 9-25-10
Putting It Down
Alicia Runge had one of the most efficient matches of her career on Saturday vs. Bradley, pounding 17 kills on 26 swings. She had just one error, giving her a robust .615 hitting percentage for the evening.
Runge's .615 hitting is the second-best in Creighton history for a player with 25 or more attacks in a match, and is also a D.J. Sokol Arena record.
Runge continues to lead Creighton with 4.17 kills per set and .246 hitting.
Attack Percentage, Match (min. 12 kills)
Pct. Name (K-E-TA), Opponent (Sets) Date
.750 Katy Grady (12-0-16) vs. Auburn (3s) 8-30-03
.750 Abby Baumann (12-0-16) at San Diego St. (3s) 9-03-05
.737 Lauren Bloemke (14-0-19) vs. Evansville (3s) 11-04-07
.714 Amanda Cvejdlik (15-0-21) vs. Drake (3s) 10-03-08
.667 Katy Grady (12-0-18) at Drake (3s) 9-27-03
.667 Kelly Goc (14-0-21) vs. Stephen F. Austin (3s) 8-25-07
.632 Amanda Cvejdlik (12-2-19) vs. Indiana St. (3s) 10-22-05
.625 Kelly Goc (26-1-40) vs. Drake (4s) 11-16-07
.615 Alicia Runge (17-1-26) vs. Bradley (4s) 9-25-10
.607 Carolyn Decker (17-0-28) vs. Bradley (3s) 11-13-04
Road Success
When Creighton swept Southern Illinois and Evansville in consecutive road matches two weeks ago, it marked just the second time in program history it had swept each set of a two-match Valley trip.
Overall, Creighton is 4-0 in true road matches this year, winning all four matches by 3-0 scores. The Jays return to the road this weekend, visiting Illinois State and Indiana State.
Mandolfo Digs This
Freshman Julianne Mandolfo had 23 digs in her first appearance as Creighton's libero in a Sept. 17 sweep at Southern Illinois.
Her 23 digs were tied for fourth-most in school history for a three-set match.
Mandolfo then had 27 digs in back-to-back matches vs. UNI and Bradley last weekend, an average of 6.75 per set. For those efforts, Mandolfo was named MVC Freshman of the Week on Sept. 27th.
For the season, Mandolfo is third on the team with 188 digs and 3.62 digs per set. Both numbers lead all MVC freshmen.
Mandolfo also leads all MVC players with 6.29 digs per set in league play.
She is also the only freshman in Creighton history with three or more matches of 20 digs.
Mandolfo has played in 14 matches and owns 188 digs. She's likely to become the third quickest player in CU history to 200 career digs.
Creighton's Quickest Players To 200 Digs (Career)
Name MP Date Opponent
Bianca Rivera 11 09/15/07 vs. Charlotte
Nayka Benitez 13 09/25/09 at Indiana State
Kailey Reyes 16 10/17/98 at Illinois State
Melissa Walsh 20 10/30/98 at Wichita State
Brittany Coleman 20 10/18/03 at Illinois State
A Good Barometer
Illinois State and Creighton have long been competitive in head-to-head match-ups. Since Kirsten Bernthal Booth's arrival in 2003, Creighton is 8-8 against Illinois State. They are the only Valley program that Booth is within seven matches of the .500 mark against.
Since her arrival Booth's Creighton teams have finished better than Illinois State in the standings four times, but behind them three times. Every other team in the MVC has beaten Creighton in the standings either 0/1 time, or 6/7 times.
Opponent Booth W-L Better-Worse-Same
Bradley 14-1 7-0-0
Drake 13-2 6-0-1
Evansville 14-1 7-0-0
Illinois State 8-8 4-3-0
Indiana State 11-3 6-0-1
Missouri State 3-11 1-5-1
Northern Iowa 3-17 1-5-1
Southern Illinois 16-0 7-0-0
Wichita State 4-11 0-7-0
MVC Honors Bluejay Duo
Two members of the Creighton Volleyball team earned recognition from the Missouri Valley Conference on Sept. 20 after helping the Bluejays to road sweeps of Southern Illinois and Evansville. Allie Oelke was named MVC Player of the Week and MVC Scholar-Athlete of the Week, while Laurel Sanford was named MVC Defensive Player of the Week.
A senior outside hitter from Chanhassen, Minn., Oelke averaged 4.00 kills, 4.33 digs and 1.00 blocks per set. She hit a collective .333 for the weekend, hitting .312 on Friday and .360 on Saturday.
Oelke had 12 kills and 13 digs in both matches, giving her 35 career double-doubles. She had three aces and four blocks in the win at SIU, then added two blocks and four assists in the victory at Evansville.
She also owns a 3.794 GPA in Elementary Education.
Though this is the first time in her career that Oelke has been named MVC Player of the Week, she's no stranger to MVC recognition. Oelke was a four-time honoree as MVC Freshman of the Week and earned MVC Freshman of the Year honors in 2007. She was also named MVC Defensive Player of the Week on Nov. 9, 2009, and was a 2009 MVC Scholar-Athlete First Team selection.
A junior middle blocker from Eagan, Minn., Sanford averaged 2.67 kills, 1.83 blocks and 0.50 digs per set last week.
Sanford had eight kills, four blocks, three digs and an ace in the Jays sweep of Southern Illinois. She then added eight kills and seven blocks in Creighton's sweep over UE on Saturday night. Three of her blocks vs. the Purple Aces came in the final set, including one to end the contest.
For the year, Sanford ranks third in the MVC with 1.33 blocks per set.
Double Trouble
Allie Oelke had exactly 12 kills and 13 digs in victories over both Southern Illinois (Sept. 17) and Evansville (Sept. 18), giving her six double-doubles this season and 35 in her career, which ties her for fifth-most in school history.
She has had a double-double in each of her three matches against both SIU and UE.
Oelke Joins Century Club
Allie Oelke became the 18th player in Bluejay history to play in 100 career matches when she started at Southern Illinois on Sept. 17th.
The senior, who has played in all 103 matches in her career to date, became just the fifth player in school history to reach that mark without missing a match, joining Korie Lebeda (119), Leah Ratzlaff (115), Melissa Weisensee (111) and Melissa Walsh (108).
Digging From The Outside
Senior OH Allie Oelke had 34 digs last weekend, giving her 1,125 career digs. She has moved past former teammate Sarah Schulze (1,056 digs from 2006-09) and ranks sixth-most in school history.
Oelke's dig total is also the highest in school history by a Bluejay outside hitter, a mark formerly held by Schulze.
Most Career Digs, Creighton History
Name Sets No. Years
1. Janeen Piller 336 1,392 2001-04
2. Kailey Reyes 368 1,258 1998-01
3. Melissa Walsh 394 1,240 1998-01
4. Melissa Weisensee 411 1,223 1994-97
5. Korie Lebeda 428 1,130 2005-08
6. Allie Oelke 373 1,125 2007-Pr.
7. Bianca Rivera 207 1,118 2007-08
8. Sarah Schulze 398 1,056 2006-09
9. Abby Baumann 375 935 2004-07
10. Shelly Kapler 388 922 1996-99
Oelke Also Moving Up Kills List
Allie Oelke is also quickly moving up the list for most kills in Creighton history, currently ranking eighth with 965. Oelke has an outside chance of reaching 1,000 this weekend with 35 terminations.
Should she reach 1,000 kills, she'll become just the second player in school history with 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs in a career. Currently the only player in that exclusive club is Melissa Walsh (1,596 kills and 1,240 digs), who entered the Creighton Athletics Hall of Fame in 2009.
Most Career Kills, Creighton History
Name Sets No. Years
1. Leah Ratzlaff 409 1,622 2002-05
2. Melissa Walsh 394 1,596 1998-01
3. Kelly Goc 394 1,414 2004-07
4. Jessica Houts 451 1,385 2005-09
5. JoDe Cieloha 398 1,375 1994-97
6. Amanda Cvejdlik 343 1,029 2005-08
7. Shelly Kapler 388 1,000 1996-99
8. Allie Oelke 373 965 2007-Pr.
9. Erin Swanson 319 955 1998-01
10. Ashley Williams 359 941 2001-04
Dos Liberos
After playing Nayka Benitez at libero for each of the program's 41 matches the past two seasons, freshman Julianne Mandolfo claimed that role on Sept. 17.
This marks just the third different season in the nine-year history of the libero that Creighton has used multiple liberos in the same season.
In 2006, Katie Mehal (113 sets) and Sarah Schulze (three sets) both wore the alternate jersey.
In 2005, five different players were libero at one point: Mallory Lahm (51 sets), Emily Greisch (12 sets), Brittany Coleman (38 sets), Molly Lahr (one set) and Mehal (three sets).
How Do You Win The MVC? Start 1-0
At the start of the conference season, all 10 Missouri Valley Conference schools harbored 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 title after dropping its first league match of the season.
Taking it a step further, the 2008 Missouri State team is the only club to win the MVC Tournament after starting 0-1 in league play.
The only teams that remained undefeated after the first weekend of play this fall were Creighton (2-0), Northern Iowa (2-0) and Illinois State (1-0).
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 15 of the last 16 regular-season MVC champions finished the year with one regular-season league loss or fewer. The exception was that 2006 UNI team that was 16-2, with both losses coming against Wichita State.
So far this year the only three teams that are unbeaten at home in MVC play at Northern Iowa, Missouri State and Wichita State.
Two Points From A Title x 2
Creighton finished second in each of its final two preseason tournaments. In both events, the Jays went 2-1 and their only loss was by two points in the fifth set.
In the Marcia E. Hamilton Active Ankle Challenge, Creighton lost 20-18 in the fifth set against Iowa. Last weekend Creighton lost 15-13 in the fifth set of a match vs. Toledo.
On the season, Creighton is 9-6 in sets decided by exactly two points.
Runge on a Tear
Alicia Runge has been on a tear to start her senior season, leading Creighton in kills in 11 of the first 14 matches of the season, and finishing second in the other three.
She's averaging a 4.17 kills per set, second-most in the league.
Runge, who also tied for the Creighton kills lead in the 2009 season finale vs. Northern Iowa, was the first person to lead Creighton in kills per set in 11 straight matches since Leah Ratzlaff, who had a streak of 14 straight in 2005 to begin her senior season.
Consecutive Matches, 10 or More Kills
58 Leah Ratzlaff, Sept. 13, 2003-Sept. 9, 2005
19 JoDe Cieloha, Sept. 26-Nov. 21, 1997
15 Alicia Runge, Nov. 27, 2009 - Present
14 Kelly Goc, Sept. 8-Oct. 19, 2007
13 JoDe Cieloha, Sept. 7-Oct. 18, 1996
All Alicia, All The Time
Alicia Runge is one of two players in the MVC with 10 or more kills in every match this season, joining Drake's Angela Bys (18).
Runge, who also paces the Jays with 4.17 kills per set, is hitting .246 on the season as well.
Since the move to 25-point sets in 2008, the only MVC player to average more than 3.70 kills per set was former Valley Player of the Year Emily Stockman from Wichita State in 2009.
Consec. Matches, 10 or More Kills, To Start Year
29 Leah Ratzlaff (every match) 2004
14 Alicia Runge 2010
12 Amanda Cvejdlik 2006
8 JoDe Cieloha 1994
Road Sweeps To Start
Creighton has swept each of its four true road matches to date, beating Saint Louis, Marquette, Southern Illinois and Evansville. This is the first time in program history that the team has started a season 4-0 on the road.
The Jays, who swept Bradley in Peoria to end the 2009 regular-season, have swept five straight true road matches for the first time in school history.
Creighton returns to the “friendly” road confines on Oct. 1 at Illinois State and Oct. 2 at Indiana State. Creighton has never swept Illinois State at any venue.
Valley On The Rise
A strong non-conference season has lifted the Missouri Valley Conference into sixth place of the annual league rankings provided by RichKern.com. The league has never finished a season higher than ninth.
In the past eight years, the No. 6 ranked conference has garnered 28 NCAA Tournament bids, an average of 3.5 per season, receiving three or more in seven of those campaigns.
According to the RKPI, the top eight leagues, in order, are Big Ten, Big 12, Pacific-10, Southeastern, Atlantic Coast, Missouri Valley, Big West and Mountain West.
Creighton owns an RKPI ranking of 66th. This weekend's opponents Illinois State and Indiana State rank 67th and 159th, respectively.
All-Tourney Duo, Again
For the second straight weekend, Alicia Runge and Megan Bober picked up all-tournament team honors at the Marquette Invitational while leading the Jays to a second-place showing.
Bober averaged 9.58 assists, 2.25 digs, 1.76 kills and 0.83 blocks per set while hitting .319. This was her second career honor to an all-Tourney Team.
Runge averaged 4.58 kills and 0.83 digs per set while hitting .358. It was the third straight tournament that the senior has been recognized.
Booth Reaches 125 Wins
Creighton head coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth became the first Bluejay volleyball coach to 125 wins with her Sept. 11 win over Central Michigan. Now in her eighth year, Booth is 128-95 with the Bluejays.
Below is a list of games/matches needed by some of Creighton's most prominent coaches to reach 125 wins.
Coach Sport Games to 125 Wins
Ed Servais Baseball 194
Dana Altman Men's Basketball 211
Jim Flanery Women's Basketball 213
Kirsten Booth Volleyball 219
Jim Hendry Baseball 222
Bruce Erickson Women's Soccer 238
Brent Vigness Softball 239
Non-Conference Report Card
Creighton started 5-5 after a non-conference schedule gauntlet full of postseason hopefuls, including three teams picked to win their conferences (Central Michigan, Nebraska, Lipscomb).
If the past is any indication, good things happen when Creighton goes .500 or better through 10 matches.
The last time Creighton was 5-5 after 10 matches in 2008, the Jays finished a best-ever 15-3 in the MVC and alone in second place.
In both 2006 and 2007, Creighton was over .500 after 10 matches and would finish 21-10 overall.
All seven previous Bluejay teams to be .500 or better after 10 matches finished fifth or higher in the league, and all would also post a winning record in Valley play to finish with a winning overall record.
Comeback For The Ages Falls Short
Creighton posted a comeback for the ages on Sept. 4, surviving seven different match point opportunities before eventually falling 20-18 in the fifth set of a match vs. Iowa.
Creighton trailed 14-9 before winning five consecutive points to tie the score. Creighton also held on when facing match point at 15-14 and 18-17.
Iowa also survived multiple match points, getting sideouts with CU serving for the match at 16-15 and 17-16.
The combined 38 points between Creighton and Iowa in the fifth set were the most in school history. Below are the most points scored in a fifth set in school history. Creighton is 11-2 all-time when scoring 16 or more points in the fifth set of a match.
CU - Most Points Scored, 5th Set, School History
Score Opponent Date
W 19-17 vs. Idaho 09/02/00
W 19-17 Evansville 09/27/02
W 18-16 Evansville 11/14/98
W 18-16 vs. McNeese State 08/30/03
L 18-20 vs. Iowa 09/04/10
W 17-15 at Wichita State 10/13/06
W 17-15 at Drake 09/11/07
L 16-18 Drake 11/15/02
W 16-14 at Drake 09/13/97
W 16-14 at Evansville 11/04/00
W 16-14 Wichita State 10/10/03
W 16-14 vs. Marquette 09/11/05
W 16-14 at Northern Iowa 11/18/05
Runge & Bober Earn All-Tourney in St. Louis
A pair of Creighton players were named to the Marcia E. Hamilton Active Ankle Challenge All-Tournament Team in St. Louis on Sept. 3-4.
Senior OH Alicia Runge earned the honor after averaging 4.91 kills and 0.55 blocks per set while hitting .254 in three matches. Runge led CU in kills all three matches, including a career-high 26 vs. Iowa.
Also recognized was sophomore setter Megan Bober. Bober averaged 10.55 assists, 2.45 digs, 1.00 blocks and 1.45 kills per set, helping Creighton to .228 hitting.
Iowa's Bethany Yeager was named MVP, and joined on the All-Tournament Team by Mallory Husz (Iowa), Alyssa Deno (Saint Louis) and Kelsey Jones (Wake Forest).
Tied For First, But Second Place
Though Creighton finished with a 2-1 mark that was identical to Iowa's final record at the Marcia E. Hamilton Active Ankle Challenge, it was the Hawkeyes who celebrated with the team title.
With two teams finished at 2-1, Iowa won the tiebreaker by virtue of its head-to-head victory over Creighton.
Had Saint Louis been able to maintain its 5-0 lead early in the fifth set to defeat Iowa in the tournament finale, Creighton would have won the event since Creighton defeated Saint Louis head-to-head.
Savannah Smith Shines; Named MVC FOW
True freshman MB Savannah Smith had a big weekend in St. Louis on Sept. 3-4, averaging 1.55 kills, 1.64 blocks and hitting .350 in three matches.
Smith had seven blocks and four kills vs. Saint Louis, five kills and seven blocks while hitting .385 vs. Iowa, and wrapped up her weekend with a career-best eight kills, four blocks and .389 hitting versus Wake Forest.
Smith followed her weekend with seven kills and .400 hitting vs. Toledo on Sept. 10th, becoming Creighton's first freshman ever to pound five or more kills while hitting .385 or better in three consecutive matches.
For her efforts, Smith was named MVC Freshman of the Week on Sept. 5th.
Sanford Shakes Off Injury
Creighton went just 1-3 as junior MB Laurel Sanford missed four matches with a bad ankle, but her return to the line-up coincided with Creighton winning seven of its last nine matches.
Sanford is hitting .216 this season and averages 2.09 kills and team-best 1.12 blocks per set.
Creighton is 24-9 in sets started by Sanford this season, but 7-12 when she doesn't start a set.
Mandolfo Digs Deep
Freshman DS Julianne Mandolfo became the second player (and first non-libero) in school history to record 10 or more digs in the first six matches of her career, a streak that was snapped on Sept. 4 vs. Wake Forest.
Mandolfo's 13 digs in her debut vs. San Francisco were third-most in school history, and tops of any non-libero.
Former libero Bianca Rivera owns the school record with 10 or more digs in the first 27 matches of her career in 2007.
Runge On Bluejay Invite All-Tourney Team
Alicia Runge was Creighton's top offensive weapon all weekend at the Bluejay Invitational, and that excellence was rewarded with a spot on the All-Tournament Team.
Runge led Creighton in kills during all three matches, including 18 vs. San Francisco and 19 versus Lipscomb. Both of those matches eclipsed her 2009 high of 17 kills in a contest.
Runge was joined on the All-Tournament Team by San Francisco's Joan Caloiaro, Lipscomb's Jake Pease and Alex Kelly, and the Kansas tandem of Allison Mayfield and Karina Garlington. Garlington was named tournament MVP.
Almgren All Over
Junior Karisa Almgren had a breakthrough weekend at the Bluejay Invitational, posting 25 kills and nine blocks on .250 hitting in 60 swings.
Compare that to her first two years with the Bluejays, when Almgren amassed 18 total kills and nine total blocks.
Almgren's top offensive match of the opening weekend saw her claim single-match career highs with 11 kills and five blocks vs. Lipscomb.
She eclipsed that personal best with 12 kills while hitting .400 in a three-set victory over Saint Louis on Sept. 3.
Almgren ranks third on the team with 85 kills and 242 attack attempts.
Thunder Of Thorson
Karisa Almgren isn't the only Bluejay that has stepped up, as sophomore Heather Thorson also has showed off her improved skills when given the opportunity.
Thorson averages 1.00 kills per set as well as 0.82 blocks per set. That includes a career-best nine kills vs. Kansas on Aug. 28.
Thorson owns 40 kills and 33 blocks this year after posting 29 kills and 22 blocks her entire freshman campaign.
Record Watch
Allie Oelke enters this weekend ranking sixth in Creighton history with 1,125 career digs. She reached the 1,000 dig mark in Creighton's 3-0 win over Saint Louis on Sept. 3, the 94th match of her career.
If Oelke can duplicate the 379 digs she had last year, she'll finish second in school history in career digs.
Oelke also ranks sixth in Creighton history with 35 career double-doubles. All but six of those career double-doubles have come against Missouri Valley Conference competition.
Below is a list of the quickest players in Creighton history to reach 1,000 career digs.
Creighton's Quickest Players To 1,000 Digs
Name MP Date Opponent
Bianca Rivera 53 11/08/08 Illinois State
Kailey Reyes 77 09/01/01 vs. Texas-San Antonio
Janeen Piller 80 09/25/04 at Missouri State
Melissa Walsh 85 09/08/01 at #24 Santa Clara
Allie Oelke 94 09/03/10 at Saint Louis
Melissa Weisensee 97 10/04/97 at Missouri State
Sarah Schulze 101 11/13/09 Southern Illinois
Korie Lebeda 108 10/17/08 Evansville
Going Streaking
Before being limited to just five digs on Aug. 31 vs. Nebraska, Allie Oelke had owned 10 or more digs in each of her previous 18 matches. That was the fourth-longest streak in school history, and is the longest mark by any Bluejay outside hitter.
Consecutive Matches, 10 or More Digs
43 Janeen Piller, Oct. 10, 2003-Nov. 26, 2004
27 Bianca Rivera, Aug. 24-Nov. 9, 2007
19 Bianca Rivera, Sept. 20-Nov. 28, 2008
18 Allie Oelke, Oct. 10, 2009 - Aug. 28, 2010
15 Abby Baumann, Sept. 15-Nov. 3, 2006
15 Katie Mehal, Oct. 6-Nov. 24, 2006
15 Nayka Benitez, Nov. 13, 2009-Sept. 10, 2010
Last Year Summary
Creighton went 14-17 last year but managed to finish tied for fourth place in the Missouri Valley Conference with a 10-8 league record.
Senior Jessica Houts ranked 12th nationally with 1.44 blocks per set and earned a spot on the all-Valley First Team for a second straight season. The stellar blocking of Houts as well as Laurel Sanford (1.30 bps.) and Megan Bober (0.93) helped Creighton rank third nationally in blocks per set.
The 2009 season saw Creighton move into a new on-campus home, D.J. Sokol Arena inside the Wayne and Eileen Ryan Athletic Center, as the program hosted the State Farm MVC Tournament for the first time.
Bloemke Out With Injury
Fifth-year senior MB Lauren Bloemke will miss the 2010 season after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in her right knee during the final week of July. Bloemke had surgery on the knee on August 17th.
Bloemke, who missed most of last season after tearing the ACL in her left knee in the spring of 2009, will remain involved with the program as a student assistant coach and remains on pace to graduate in the spring.
Bloemke ranks 19th in school history with 478 career kills and ninth in both career block assists (218) and career total blocks (254).
Bober's The Best At Blocking
Last season Creighton setter Megan Bober had 107 blocks, easily the most ever in one year by a Creighton setter. In doing so, she became the first player in Creighton history to have both 100 blocks and 100 assists in the same season.
In fact, Bober's 0.93 blocks per set led the country among setters, and she was the nation's only player to average at least 0.9 blocks and 7.5 assists per set.
She's off to a quick start as a sophomore, averaging 0.98 blocks per set, including a Bluejay-best 51.
2-0 Better Than 0-2
Creighton is 143-8 (.947) all-time when leading a match 2-0, including an 84-2 mark under Kirsten Bernthal Booth. They own a 68-4 all-time mark in home matches they lead 2-0 in.
Conversely, the Jays are 6-155 (.037) all-time when trailing a match 0-2, including an 0-53 mark in those home matches. Those six comebacks from down 0-2 are listed below:
Date Opponent Sets 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 128-1 under Booth when it reaches a match point opportunity, falling only when it wasted two match points on Sept. 4, 2010 to Iowa in an eventual 20-18 loss.
Surviving Match Points, Under Booth
Date Opponent MP(s) Faced Final Set 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 114 matches in which it wins set one, Creighton is 102-12. CU is 109-16 overall under Kirsten Bernthal Booth when they win set one. In that same time span, CU is just 19-79 under Booth when it drops the first set.
Taking The Fifth
Creighton is 21-13 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 2-3 18-9
2009 1-4 14-17
2010 0-2 8-6
Total 36-41 221-247
Production Returning
Creighton returns 11-of-14 letterwinners from last season. Below is a breakdown of the production that returns:
Stat Returners Departures
Assists 1256 (94.8%) 69 (5.2%)
Aces 90 (80.4%) 22 (19.6%)
Digs 1377 (75.2%) 454 (24.8%)
Matches Started 129 (69.4%) 57 (30.6%)
Blocks 242.0 (68.3%) 112.5 (31.7%)
Points 1274.0 (67.7%) 607.5 (32.3%)
Kills 942 (66.6%) 473 (33.4%)
The Votes Add Up
Creighton has eight matches scheduled against teams that received votes in the preseason AVCA Top 25 poll. Four of those squads will visit D.J. Sokol Arena, including No. 2 Nebraska, No. 24 Northern Iowa and votegetters Wichita State and Missouri State.
Creighton also plays on the road at No. 24 Northern Iowa as well as votegetters Saint Louis, Wichita State and Missouri State.
Preseason MVC Poll
Creighton has been picked fourth in a preseason poll of Missouri Valley Conference coaches. Defending regular-season champion Northern Iowa was the unanimous pick to win the league, with Missouri State and Wichita State second and third. Creighton fourth and Drake fifth. Rounding out the rest of the league was Southern Illinois, Illinois State, Evansville, Indiana State and Bradley.
Each of the past seven 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 2nd #1
2009 4th T-4th - -
2010 4th ??? ???
AVCA Honors CU Volleyball For Academics
The Creighton volleyball program was honored by the American Volleyball Coaches Association as a recipient of the 2010 AVCA Team Academic Award. Creighton previously won the award in 1998, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009 are one of eight Division I schools nationwide to win the award in seven consecutive campaigns.
The award honors teams that displayed excellence in the classroom by maintaining at least a 3.30 cumulative GPA. Last fall the Bluejay volleyball team posted a combined GPA of 3.50.
Huskers Returned To Campus, Finally
Aug. 31 marked Nebraska volleyball's first visit the Creighton campus since 1980, when the Huskers swept a best-of-three contest at Kiewit Center.
Since then, Creighton had twice hosted its in-state rival, but both of those matches took place at Qwest Center Omaha.
Crowd Control
The Aug. 31 crowd of 2,514 fans vs. Nebraska was the fourth-largest home crowd in program history for match, and was the first sellout at D.J. Sokol Arena.
Previously, the largest crowd at D.J. Sokol Arena had been the 2,285 that saw Creighton host Texas Tech last year on Aug. 28, 2009.
Below are Creighton's largest home volleyball crowds all-time. The top three crowds took place at Qwest Center Omaha.
Largest Home Crowds, Creighton VB History
Att. Opponent Date Site
13,081 #18 Cal Poly 09/02/07 Qwest
12,112 #1 Nebraska 09/24/06 Qwest
8,037 #2 Nebraska 10/05/08 Qwest
2,514 #7 Nebraska 08/31/10 Sokol
2,285 Texas Tech 08/28/09 Sokol
1,557 Northern Iowa 11/21/08 Civic
1,357 Northern Iowa 10/20/07 Civic
1,325 Indiana State 09/29/07 Civic
1,319 Northern Iowa 10/06/06 Civic
1,304 San Francisco 08/27/10 Sokol
1,250 #16 Northern Iowa 09/24/10 Sokol
Radio Broadcast Information
Brad Burwell and former Bluejay volleyball player Erin Swanson will broadcast at least 23 matches (12 home, 11 away) this season. The matches will air on KOIL (1180 AM) and KKAR (1290 AM) and be webcast on-line at www.gocreighton.com as well.
The pre-match show starts approximately 5-15 minutes before first serve. The post-match show also lasts about 15 minutes and includes post-match interviews.
A complete list of remaining matches follows:
2010 Volleyball Broadcast Schedule
Oct. 8 Missouri State (KOIL)
Oct. 9 Wichita State (KOIL)
Oct. 16 at Drake (KOIL)
Oct. 22 at Bradley (KOIL)
Oct. 23 at Northern Iowa (KOIL)
Oct. 29 Indiana State (KOIL)
Oct. 30 Illinois State (KOIL)
Nov. 5 at Wichita State (KOIL)
Nov. 6 at Missouri State (KOIL)
Nov. 13 Drake (KOIL)
Nov. 19 Evansville (KOIL)
Nov. 20 Southern Illinois (KOIL)
Nov. 25 at MVC Tournament (KOIL)
Nov. 26 at MVC Tournament (KOIL)
Nov. 27 at MVC Tournament (KOIL)
Creighton Ticket Information
Tickets to Creighton's home regular-season matches are sold at all Ticketmaster outlets. Cost is $8 for adults and $5 for youth (18 years of age or younger) for reserved seats and $7 (adult) and $4 (youth) for general admission seating. Children two and under are admitted free. Cost of tickets for the Aug. 31 match vs. Nebraska was $15 (reserved) and $12 for general admission.
Season ticket information is available online at www.gocreighton.com or by calling (402) 280-JAYS. Creighton sold a school-record 890 season tickets for volleyball this year.
