Volleyball Opens 2nd Half of League Play with Marquette, DePaul
10/22/2014 9:46:00 PM | Volleyball
This Weekend
Oct. 24 7 pm Marquette at Creighton (BEDN) (1180 AM) (Pink Out) Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
Oct. 26 1 pm DePaul at Creighton (1180 AM) Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
This Weekend
Creighton (15-7, 8-1 BIG EAST) continues its longest single-season homestand in program history when it hosts a pair of matches this weekend.
The Bluejays open the second half of conference play on Friday when it welcomes defending league champ Marquette (16-5, 7-2 BIG EAST) to Omaha for a 7 pm match. Fans are encouraged to wear PINK as part of the program's annual night that raises awareness for those with breast cancer.
On Sunday at 1 pm, DePaul (3-18, 1-8 BIG EAST) visits Creighton. The first 250 kids dressed in costumes will receive a free Creighton trick-or-treat bag, and anyone wearing a costume will have a chance to walk across the court at intermission.
Both matches will be played at D.J. Sokol Arena inside the Wayne and Eileen Ryan Athletic Center (2,500 capacity) in Omaha, Neb.
Video Webcast Information
Friday's match will be webcast on the league's new BIG EAST Digital Network, with Brad Burwell and Erin (Swanson) Russell on the call. Fans can watch Friday's match by visiting http://www.foxsports.com/foxsportsgo, or by downloading the free FOX Sports GO app to begin accessing content.
There is no charge to watch content on the BIG EAST Digital Network.
Sunday's match will be available for video webcast as part of Creighton's JaysVideo subscription-based webcast package. Subscription options are for 24-hour, 48-hour, one month or four months. Visit GoCreighton.com, then click on the “Live Video” tab at the top of the page for the link to each match prior to Sunday's serve.
Radio Broadcast Information
Both matches this weekend will air on KZOT (1180 AM) in Omaha, and also be streamed through a link on the right side of the page at www.1620thezone.com.
Glen Sisk and Amanda (Cvejdlik) Adams will announce on Friday, while Rachel Houseman and Erin (Swanson) Russell will announce on Sunday.
Ticket Promotion
The Creighton ticket office has a special ticket offer in place for Friday's match vs. Marquette. Fans that purchase a volleyball ticket can receive a voucher for two free tickets to the Creighton Men's Basketball games on either Nov. 7th or Nov. 14th MBB games. For more information, call 402-280-JAYS.
Live Stats Information
Both matches this weekend will have free live stats. Visit www.gocreighton.com and click on the Live Stats tab at the top of the page for the exact link to the match.
Scouting Creighton
Creighton has been one of the hottest teams in the BIG EAST, winning nine of its last 10 matches and seeing the return of sophomore Jess Bird recently. The Bluejays are now 15-7 on the season and second in the BIG EAST with a 8-1 conference record.
Five of Creighton's seven losses have come against top-25 teams (USC, Illinois, Nebraska, Kentucky, Kansas), and the Bluejays have already defeated preseason favorites from the Missouri Valley Conference (Wichita State) and Atlantic Sun (Lipscomb).
Kelli Browning (3.35 kps., 1.37 bps., .376%), Leah McNary (2.66 kps.) and Bird (2.67 kps., 1.61 dps.) have emerged as top offensive weapons for the Bluejays, while Kate Elman (4.49 dps., 0.20 saps.) leads the team in both digs and aces per set and recently became the program's career digs leader.
Maggie Baumert (10.10 aps., 2.06 dps.) has handled the setting duties for the league's most prolific offense while emerging as a formidable blocking presence at the net.
Creighton averages 14.07 kills, 16.04 digs, 2.65 blocks and 1.07 aces per set while hitting .237 as a team.
Scouting Marquette
Defending BIG EAST regular-season and tournament champ Marquette is off to an 16-5 start this season, including a 7-2 mark in league play. The Golden Eagles are just outside the Top 25 in this week's AVCA poll, coming in at 33rd.
Marquette owns the league's top non-conference win of the season in the form of a 3-2 win at No. 7 Florida on Sept. 19.
Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year Autumn Bailey (4.48 kps., 3.26 dps., 0.43 saps.) tops the team in kills and is second in digs.
MU's next three attackers all average at least 1.85 kills while hitting .250 or better, a trio led by Nele Barber (2.72 kps.) and Lindsey Gosh (2.61 kps., .293%).
Gabby Benda (7.83 aps.) and Mary Nilles (5.28 aps.) handle the setting duties, while Lauren Houg (4.10 dps.) is the team's libero.
As a team, Marquette averages 13.68 kills, 1.21 aces, 15.43 digs and 2.46 blocks per set on .260 hitting.
Scouting DePaul
DePaul is 3-18 on the season, including a 1-8 mark in BIG EAST action. The Blue Devils own wins over Bradley, Chicago State and Providence, but have lost the rest against a schedule that includes Penn State, and have not tasted victory since Sept. 27.
Saige Gallop (2.93 kps.) leads the team in kills, with Myah Reed (1.83 kps.), Caitlyn Coffey (1.67 kps., 0.88 bps.) and Randi Leath (1.55 kps.) not far behind.
Colleen Smith (8.01 aps., 0.22 saps.) leads the team in assists and service aces, while Lexi Chanos owns a club-best 199 digs.
As a team, DePaul averages 11.55 kills, 0.99 aces, 11.95 digs and 2.24 blocks per set on .185 hitting.
The Coaches
Creighton is coached by Kirsten Bernthal Booth (Truman State, 1997), who owns a 225-135 record in her 12th season with the Bluejays.
She was named the 2010 CVU.com National Coach of the Year after leading Creighton to the second round during its first NCAA Tournament appearance, and named the CaptainU College Coach of the Year, as well as the MVC Coach of the Year, in 2012 following another run to the second round of the NCAA's and a school-record 29 victories.
The winningest coach in school history, Booth has led Creighton to its only three NCAA Tournament bids in the program's modern history. She's also led the Jays into the top-25 each of the last three years, another program first.
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 Tom Mendoza, assistant coach Angie Oxley Behrens and volunteer assistant Kyle South.
Ryan Theis (Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 2000) is in his first season as head coach at Marquette, having been named to the position on Feb. 14, 2014. He owns an 16-5 mark with the Golden Eagles, moving his career mark to 160-59 in seven seasons when you factor in a six-year run at Ohio. He is assisted by Erich Hinterstocker, Meghan Keck and James Sackley.
Nadia Edwards (Penn State, 2001) owns a 40-98 record in her fifth season as head coach at DePaul, which also doubles as her career record. Before DPU, she was an assistant at both Ohio State and Virginia Tech after a three year pro career. She is assisted by Craig Boller and Caitlyn Vann.
Series History vs. Marquette
Creighton is 5-3 all-time against Marquette, including a 2-1 mark in regular-season BIG EAST play. The teams traded home victories a year ago before MU won the BIG EAST Tournament title in Omaha last year.
Creighton got a bit of revenge three weeks ago, topping Marquette in four sets in Milwaukee.
Five of the last seven meetings have been sweeps, and teams to win the first set are 8-0 all-time in the history of the series.
Creighton head coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 5-3 against Marquette and 1-0 against Ryan Theis.
Series History vs. DePaul
Creighton has won three of four previous meetings with DePaul. The Jays have won each of the last three meetings, each time in four sets.
DePaul won the first meeting against Creighton, defeating the Bluejays 3-0 (30-25, 30-23, 30-27) to open the 2001 season at the Northern Illinois Best Western Invitational in DeKalb, Ill.
Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 3-0 against DePaul and Nadia Edwards.
Last Weekend Summary
Creighton swept both St. John's and Providence last weekend to improve to 8-1 in BIG EAST play. Lauren Smith tied for team-high honors with 16 kills last week and matched a BIG EAST record by hitting .857 in CU's win over Providence on Sunday. Kelli Browning recorded seven blocks in both matches.
Tourney Final Rematch
Friday's meeting with Marquette will feature a rematch of the 2013 match-up in the finals of the BIG EAST Tournament.
That match, contested in Omaha, was won in four sets by Marquette.
This year's BIG EAST Tournament will be hosted by Marquette on Thanksgiving weekend in Milwaukee, Wis.
Smith Sets League Record
Lauren Smith set a Creighton record and tied a BIG EAST record on Sunday when she hit .857 against Providence. Smith had 12 kills and no errors in 14 swings.
The mark tied the previous BIG EAST mark for a league game, first set by Marquette's Kelsey Mattai vs. Pittsburgh on Oct. 5, 2012.
Creighton's previous record for hitting percentage in a match was .750, done by Katy Grady (Aug. 30, 2003 vs. Auburn) and later matched by Abby Baumann (Sept. 3, 2005 at San Diego State).
Bailey A Key To Watch
Marquette sophomore Autumn Bailey is coming off a brilliant week that saw her record 76 kills and 52 digs in 196 swings over the course of three matches.
In 42 career wins at Marquette, Bailey has averaged 4.38 kills per set while hitting .269 and supplementing that with 71 aces in 151 sets.
In 11 career losses at Marquette, Bailey has averaged 3.95 kills per set while hitting .172 and has just two aces in 42 sets.
In four career matches against Creighton (2 wins, 2 losses), Bailey has averaged 4.28 kills per set while hitting .137 and owns three aces in 14 sets.
Bailey, last year's BIG EAST Freshman of the Year, was tabbed the league's Preseason Player of the Year in August. She is currently leading the BIG EAST in kills per set and aces per set.
Browning Earns Second Defensive Honor
Creighton senior Kelli Browning was named BIG EAST Defensive Volleyball Player of the Week, the league announced on Monday afternoon.
This is the second time in three weeks that Browning has earned the award, having also won it on October 6.
A Waukesha, Wis., native, Browning averaged 2.33 blocks, 2.33 kills and 0.67 digs per set in a pair of 3-0 victories last weekend. Creighton held St. John's and Providence to a combined total of 49 kills on .011 hitting in six sets that saw the Jays outscore their league rivals 150-90.
On Friday, Browning had seven blocks, seven kills and two digs in a 3-0 win over St. John's, as CU avenged its only home loss in BIG EAST play in the past two years. Four of her blocks came against BIG EAST kill leader Karin Palgutova.
On Sunday, Browning had seven kills and seven blocks on .545 hitting in CU's 3-0 win over Providence. Browning's blocking helped hold PC to -.151 hitting, the poorest mark ever by a Bluejay opponent. In addition, Providence's 17 kills were the third-fewest in history against Creighton.
For the week, Browning outblocked Creighton's opponents, 14-7.
Defense Rules
Creighton held Providence to -.151 hitting on Sunday, as the Friars had 17 kills and 31 errors in 93 swings.
The -.151 hitting percentage was the poorest performance ever by a Bluejay opponent, while the 17 kills were third-fewest.
Of the 31 times that Providence served, Creighton won the ensuing point on 29 of them.
Fewest Kills by a Creighton Opponent, Match
15 Drake 9/22/06
15 Montana State 8/25/07
17 Providence 10/19/14
18 at Jacksonville State 9/05/08
19 UMKC 9/15/96
Lowest Opponent Hitting % vs. Creighton, Match
Pct. Team K E TA Date
-.151 Providence 17 31 93 10/19/14
-.112 Jacksonville State 18 27 80 09/05/08
-.108 UMKC 19 27 74 09/15/96
-.086 Drake 15 23 93 09/22/06
-.067 Weber State 19 25 90 09/09/11
Hit Me With Your Best Shot
Creighton hit a season-best .471 in Sunday's win over Providence. The mark was not only a D.J. Sokol Arena record, but also the third-best mark by Creighton in any match in its history.
Attack Percentage
.536 vs. Tulsa (41-4-69) 10-27-95
.495 vs. Liberty (57-8-99) 9-2-05
.471 vs. Providence (36-4-68) 10-19-14
.418 vs. Evansville (98-21-184) 11-2-96
.414 vs. UC Riverside (57-11-111) 9-2-05
.414 vs. Drake (49-8-99) 10-3-08
Even Year October Push
Creighton is 5-1 in the month of October with two matches to play, giving the Bluejays a chance to tie the school record for wins in that month.
Creighton has won seven matches in the month of October in 2004, 2008, 2010 and 2012.
Like the first four occasions, 2014 is an even-numbered year.
Blue October
Creighton has enjoyed tremendous success in October in recent seasons. The Jays have won 22 of the last 25 times it has taken the floor in the 10th month of the year, dating to an Oct. 15, 2011 setback at No. 12 Northern Iowa.
Creighton has also won 20 of its last 21 home matches in October since Oct. 22, 2009, with two more home matches coming up this weekend.
Sicner To The Rescue
Michelle Sicner had played sparingly since her mother, Cheryl, had passed away due to colon cancer on September 5th. But when her team needed a lift last Friday, the senior setter was ready and came through in a big way.
With Creighton trailing 10-3 to open the match against St. John's, head coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth replaced starting setter Maggie Baumert with Sicner.
Creighton immediately went on a 10-3 run to tie the score, and would outscore the Red Storm 72-51 the rest of the night.
After totaling 10 assists, three blocks, three kills and one dig in the 17 matches between Sept. 5 - Oct. 10, Sicner finished the St. John's match with 32 assists, five blocks, four kills and five digs.
The strong performance helped her earn a start two days later against Providence, when she had 20 assists and helped Creighton hit an arena record .471. It was Sicner's first start since Aug. 30.
Inspired By Marquette?
Michelle Sicner has had a tremendous career, and has played her best volleyball when Marquette has been present.
At the season-opening Hampton Inn Invitational that both Creighton and Marquette participated in last year, Sicner was named Tournament MVP and led her team to the title.
On Oct. 13, Sicner had a triple-double in a 3-0 win vs. Marquette en route to BIG EAST Player of the Week and Sports Imports/AVCA National Player of the Week accolades. In the second meeting last year Milwaukee, Sicner had 25 assists, nine digs and four kills vs. the Golden Eagles.
At last year's BIG EAST Tournament, Sicner had a triple-double against Xavier, with Marquette courtside while scouting. She then had 39 assists, 11 digs and five kills vs. Marquette in the conference tournament final.
Serving Up A Winner
After big struggles during non-conference play with its serving, Creighton has made huge strides behind the service line since BIG EAST play has started.
In 50 sets during non-conference play, Creighton had 45 aces against 125 service miscues while putting just 88.9 percent of its serves in play.
By comparison, Creighton owns 44 aces against just 43 service errors in 30 sets during league action. In that time, CU has put 94.4 percent of its serves in play. Jess Bird is tied for the team lead with eight aces during league action while committing just two errors in 73 serves.
After going 7-6 in the non-conference, Creighton is 8-1 in BIG EAST action.
High School Reunion
DePaul S Colleen Smith was a high school teammate of Creighton OH Melanie Jereb at Cary-Grove High School in Cary, Ill. The two were also teammates with the Sky High club volleyball program, with Smith one year older.
Their high school team also had players that continued their volleyball careers at Ohio (Kelly Lamberti), Illinois State (Ashley Rosch) and Tennessee-Martin (Allison Whimpey).
Lamberti was coached at Ohio by Ryan Theis, the new Marquette head coach and a team that Creighton faces on Friday night.
All told, Jereb is 6-0 at the college level against her former teammates, going 3-0 vs. Rosch and 3-0 against Smith.
Brew City Browning
Senior MB Kelli Browning hails from the Milwaukee suburb of Waukesha, and will look to continue her trend of big matches against Wisconsin teams against Marquette on Friday.
In six matches during the past three seasons against Marquette or Wisconsin, Browning has averaged 2.95 kills and 1.29 blocks per set while hitting a healthy .438 in 21 sets.
Most importantly, Creighton has won four of the six matches (3-2 vs. MU, 1-0 vs. UW).
Home On The Range
This weekend marks the middle of a five-match homestand, the longest single-season homestand in program history.
Creighton is 11-1 all-time in regular-season BIG EAST home matches, with St. John's the only foe to topple the Bluejays. Dating back to 2012, Creighton is 20-1 in its last regular-season 21 conference home matches.
Browning Approaches 1,000 Kills
Kelli Browning enters this weekend with 979 career kills. She's 21 kills shy of becoming the 10th player in CU history to reach 1,000, and has played in 108 career matches. Coincidentally, her career-high is also 21 kills.
Should she get there, among those that Browning would join in that elite group are classmate Leah McNary. McNary got to 1,000 kills on Sept. 12 vs. Pepperdine in her 96th career match.
The only other time Creighton had two players reach 1,000 career kills in the same season was in 2008, when Jessica Houts and Amanda Cvejdlik each reached the milestone one week apart.
Creighton's Quickest Players To 1,000 Kills (Career)
Name MP Date Opponent
Melissa Walsh 70 10/15/00 Eastern Illinois
Leah Ratzlaff 76 10/22/04 Missouri State
JoDe Cieloha 83 09/13/97 at Drake
Kelly Goc 87 11/24/06 vs. Northern Iowa
Jessica Houts 90 11/08/08 Illinois State
Leah McNary 96 09/12/14 Pepperdine
Amanda Cvejdlik 99 11/15/08 at Evansville
Shelly Kapler 103 11/18/99 vs. Missouri State
Allie Oelke 107 10/09/10 Wichita State
Nearing The Midpoint
Sunday's win over Providence marked the midway point of BIG EAST Conference play, as the Jays have played all nine opponents exactly once.
Currently 8-1, this year's team has a winning record at the midpoint of league play or the fifth straight season, and 11th time in 13 seasons under Kirsten Bernthal Booth.
This year's team joins the 2012 club as the second club in program history to start 8-1 in league play. That team went on to win the program's only regular-season conference crown.
League Record by Year
Year 1st Half 2nd Half Place
1994 2-8 1-9 T-9th MVC
1995 3-7 3-7 T-7th MVC
1996 2-7 3-6 T-6th MVC
1997 6-3 4-5 T-3rd MVC
1998 2-7 3-6 8th MVC
1999 5-4 4-5 5th MVC
2000 5-4 5-4 T-4th MVC
2001 7-2 5-4 4th MVC
2002 1-8 1-8 T-9th MVC
2003 5-4 4-5 T-5th MVC
2004 5-4 5-4 5th MVC
2005 4-5 6-3 5th MVC
2006 7-2 5-4 4th MVC
2007 7-2 7-2 T-2nd MVC
2008 7-2 8-1 2nd MVC
2009 4-5 6-3 T-4th MVC
2010 7-2 6-3 3rd MVC
2011 6-3 6-3 4th MVC
2012 8-1 9-0 1st MVC
2013 6-2 6-2 T-2nd BIG EAST
2014 8-1 ? ? T-1st so far
Total 107-83 97-84 --
Bunch Of Winners
Creighton's seniors have all experienced great success, both individually and as a team.
Leah McNary has appeared in 82 wins as a Bluejay, most in school history. Not far behind her are Kelli Browning (77), Michelle Sicner (74) and Katie Neisler (71).
Most Wins, Appeared In As A Player
82 Leah McNary 2011-Pres.
81 Megan Bober 2009-12
79 Brooke Boggs 2009-12
76 Korie Lebeda 2005-08
77 Kelli Browning 2011-Pres.
74 Allie Oelke 2007-10
74 Michelle Sicner 2011-Pres.
73 Abby Baumann 2004-07
73 Kelly Goc 2004-07
Award-Winning Performances
Kelli Browning and Marysa Wilkinson were honored by the BIG EAST Conference for their play the weekend of Oct. 3-4.
Browning was named Defensive Player of the Week, while Wilkinson was Freshman of the Week.
A senior from Waukesha, Wis., Browning averaged 3.50 kills and an impressive 2.38 blocks per set while hitting .370 as Creighton picked up a pair of four-set road wins.
Browning opened her weekend with 14 kills and a then- season-high nine blocks at DePaul. She hit .385 in the match and added two aces while becoming the second player in school history to reach 500 career blocks.
In the return to her home state of Wisconsin one night later, Browning had 14 kills, 10 blocks and six digs at Marquette for her first double-double of the season. Browning hit .357 in the victory and six of her 10 stuffs came against BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year Autumn Bailey.
Wilkinson averaged 2.25 kills, .75 digs and .62 blocks per set while hitting .385 during the weekend.
The Lincoln, Neb., native started her week with eight kills and five blocks while hitting .412 in a 3-1 victory at DePaul. She then had 10 kills and a career-best six digs on .364 hitting in CU's 3-1 win at defending league champion Marquette. Her 10 kills were the most by a BIG EAST freshman in a road win at Marquette since Syracuse's Noemie Lefebvre had 15 on Oct. 18, 2008.
Can You Dig It?
Kate Elman broke a pair of 10-year-old school records held by Janeen Piller the last time CU met DePaul (Oct. 3).
Elman passed Piller's mark of 1,392 career digs and enters this weekend with 1,495. Elman also passed Piller's record for career matches with 10+ digs of 74, and now owns 78.
Piller does still own one mark that Elman can't break this year, consecutive matches with double-figure digs. Piller owns the mark of 42, while Elman's had separate streaks of 32 and 30 during her career thus far.
Most Career Digs, Creighton History
Name Sets No. Years
1. Kate Elman 328 1,495 2012-Pr.
2. Janeen Piller 336 1,392 2001-04
3. Allie Oelke 445 1,382 2007-10
4. Kailey Reyes 368 1,258 1998-01
5. Melissa Walsh 394 1,240 1998-01
6. Julianne Mandolfo 241 1,224 2010-11
7. Melissa Weisensee 411 1,223 1994-97
8. Korie Lebeda 428 1,130 2005-08
9. Megan Bober 480 1,123 2009-12
10. Bianca Rivera 207 1,118 2007-08
Consecutive Matches, 10 or More Digs
43 Janeen Piller, Oct. 10, 2003-Nov. 26, 2004
32 Kate Elman, Aug. 24 - Nov. 30, 2012
30 Kate Elman, Sept. 30, 2013 - Sept. 12, 2014
27 Bianca Rivera, Aug. 24-Nov. 9, 2007
Matches With 10+ Digs, Career
10+D Name Years
78 Kate Elman 2012-Pres.
74 Janeen Piller 2001-04
71 Allie Oelke 2007-10
Elman With 20/20/20 Vision
Kate Elman tied Julianne Mandolfo's school record with her 32nd career match of 20 or more digs on Oct. 11 at Villanova. Elman has 20+ digs each of her last two matches vs. Marquette.
Matches With 20+ Digs, Career
20+D Name Years
32 Julianne Mandolfo 2010-11
32 Kate Elman 2012-Pres.
27 Bianca Rivera 2007-08
Baumert Records Rare Triple-Double
Maggie Baumert had the first triple-double of her career in the Oct. 4 victory at Marquette, finishing with 42 assists, 12 digs and a career-high 10 blocks. She also finished with a career-best nine kills as she finished just one kill shy of the first quadruple-double in Bluejay history.
Baumert's triple-double was the 29th in Creighton history, and she's the sixth different Bluejay ever to record one.
Matches With a Triple-Double, Career
T-D Name Years
15 Megan Bober 2009-12
5 Michelle Sicner 2011-Pres.
4 Kailey Reyes 1998-2001
2 Melissa Weisensee 1994-97
2 JoDe Cieloha 1994-97
1 Maggie Baumert 2014-Pres.
Let's Compare
Let's take a look at how Creighton's start in 2014 compares to the last three seasons.
Stat 2014 (so far) 2013 2012 2011
W-L 15-7 so far 23-9 29-4 17-14
Postseason ? ? ? NCAA NCAA ---
Tourney Titles 1 1 2 0
Kills/Set 14.07 13.47 13.39 12.75
Hitting % .237 .220 .247 .203
Aces/Set 1.07 0.99 1.24 1.13
Digs/Set 16.04 15.76 17.32 17.23
Blocks/Set 2.65 3.06 3.06 2.54
The Word on Bird
Jess Bird has produced 64 kills and 44 digs in the last six matches after entering the stretch with 16 kills and nine digs in four previous matches this season.
Bird has shown minimal signs of a knee ailment that forced her to miss 12 of Creighton's first 14 matches this season.
Bird owns a pair of double-doubles since returning, including a career-high 18 kills and 12 digs at Marquette on Oct. 4.
Creighton is 8-2 this year with Bird in the line-up, compared to a 7-5 mark without her.
Since returning to the starting line-up, Bird has averaged a team-best 3.43 kills per set and also owns eight aces against just two service errors.
On The Upswing
Creighton's Oct. 3rd match at DePaul marked Creighton's 600th since restarting the program. In that time, Creighton is now 318-287. Here's a look at Creighton's record in 100-match intervals:
Match #'s Team W-L Coach(es)
1-100 34-66 Guiliano/Wallace
101-200 44-56 Wallace
201-300 44-56 Wallace/Booth
301-400 60-40 Booth
401-500 58-42 Booth
501-600 74-26 Booth
601-700 4-1 so far Booth
Elman Earns BIG EAST Defensive Honor
Junior libero Kate Elman was named the BIG EAST Conference Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 30. An Omaha native, Elman averaged 4.80 digs and 0.90 assists to help Creighton start BIG EAST play 3-0.
Elman is the first Bluejay to ever earn BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week honors. Elman's previous recognition from a league office came as a freshman, when she was a three-time MVC Freshman of the Week in 2012.
In an ironic twist, Kate Elman's sister Lexi Elman was named West Coast Conference Player of the Week on the same day after leading Pacific to a pair of victories.
Senior Citizens
Creighton hosted Senior Day after its Sept. 26 match, as it honored Kelli Browning, Leah McNary, Katie Neisler and Michelle Sicner, as well as senior manager Katie Thompson.
Since all five women arrived on campus in the fall of 2011, the Bluejays have gone 84-34, won an MVC regular-season title, an MVC Tournament title, won matches in two different NCAA Tournaments, and moved into the national rankings for the first time in program history.
Browning is a two-time All-American Honorable Mention selection from Waukesha, Wis. She ranks first in CU history in hitting percentage and second in blocks, and currently leads the BIG EAST with a .376 hitting percentage. Browning tied for the national lead as a sophomore with a school-record 204 total blocks.
McNary became the ninth player in Creighton history to surpass 1,000 career kills three weeks ago. A First Team All-BIG EAST pick last year, McNary led the team in kills as both a sophomore and junior.
After playing mostly in the back row her first three years, Neisler has moved into a starting outside hitter role as a senior. She owns 82 kills this season, including a career-high 16 vs. Xavier on Sept. 26.
Sicner was an All-American Honorable Mention pick in 2013, when she started at setter in 28 matches and led the team with 17 double-doubles and four triple-doubles. Also named AVCA National Player of the Week last October 15th, Sicner ranks sixth in CU history in assists.
What Can Brown(ing) Do For You?
Kelli Browning continues to produce at the level you'd expect from a two-time All-American, and her senior season has been nothing shy of brilliant.
Browning has averaged 3.35 kills and 1.37 blocks per set while hitting .376 this season. After entering her senior season with a career-high of 18 kills, Browning had 18 or more kills twice in September alone.
In five matches against ranked teams this season, Browning is averaging 3.53 kills and 1.00 blocks per set while hitting .381.
Entering the week, Browning was one of the nation's only players with at least 275 kills who was hitting .375 or better. She was above both standards, hitting .386 with 278 kills.
Browning also entered last week fifth nationally among middle blockers in kills.
Below is a list of the First, Second and Third-Team All-Americans from 2013 and their stats:
Name, School (AA Team) KPS Hit % BPS
Sallie McLaurin, Oklahoma (2) 3.78 .423 1.37
Tori Dixon, Minnesota (1) 3.66 .399 1.29
Chloe Mann, Florida (1) 3.45 .506 0.85
Chloe Ferrari, San Diego (2) 3.15 .444 0.93
Caroline Jarmoc, Kansas (3) 3.06 .320 1.15
Carly Wopat, Stanford (1) 2.89 .429 1.43
Inky Ajanaku, Stanford* (1) 2.72 .438 1.38
Alexis Olgard, USC (3) 2.21 .442 1.28
Katie Slay, Penn State (3) 2.16 .414 1.63
Chiaka Ogbogu, Texas* (2) 1.74 .389 1.08
*still active in 2014
Browning Named MVP
Kelli Browning was named MVP of the Bluejay Invitational after averaging 3.64 kills and 1.36 blocks per set on .413 hitting from Sept. 12-13.
It was the sixth All-Tournament Team accolade of the senior's career, but her first MVP recognition.
Joining Browning on the Bluejay Invitational All-Tournament Team from Creighton were Maggie Baumert (11.84 aps., 2.18 dps., 1.18 kps., .385% that weekend) and Lauren Smith (2.00 kps., 1.18 bps., .356%).
Ranked vs. Unranked
Five of Creighton's losses this year have come against teams that were ranked in the AVCA Top 25, including setbacks to USC, Nebraska, Illinois, Kansas and Kentucky.
Since the start of the 2002 season, 11 of Creighton's 20 losses have come against ranked teams. In that same period, Creighton is 66-9 against unranked teams.
Each of Creighton's final 11 matches of the regular-season are against teams that are unranked, though Marquette is currently 33rd.
It Goes On, And On, And On, And On, And On
Creighton has played in 784 sets since the move to 25-point rally scoring sets in 2008, but none have been as high scoring as its Sept. 20th fourth set marathon against South Dakota.
Creighton would save six match points before finally converting its fourth set point opportunity of the frame in a 34-32 victory. Last week Marquette lost a 34-32 first set to Seton Hall before clinching the match with a 35-33 fourth set triumph.
The highest-scoring frame previously had been a pair of 30-28 sets.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, CU's Sept. 23rd 25-7 victory in the first set at Georgetown matched the most lopsided set victory in Creighton history in the current scoring format. CU replicated that 25-7 score in the third set on Oct. 19 vs. Providence.
Top 10 Scares
Creighton won the first set from both No. 6 USC (25-22 on September 6) and No. 9 Nebraska (25-21 on September 17) this season.
Creighton has played 20 matches against top-10 teams all-time, and this was the fourth time it's taken a 1-0 lead in the match. CU also won the first set against No. 1 Nebraska on Sept. 24, 2006 and at No. 7 Northern Iowa on Sept. 21, 2002.
The closest Creighton has ever come to defeating a top-10 team came last season, when the Bluejays dropped a five-set match to No. 7 Hawai'i in Wichita, Kan.
Secret Weapon?
Katie Neisler had five kills all of last year, and entered her senior season with 19 kills in 81 career matches while being used mostly in the back row.
By by those standards she's turned into an offensive juggernaut this fall, unleashing 82 kills this year.
Neisler had (then) career-highs with seven kills and .583 hitting in a Sept. 13 sweep over Bowling Green, adding two aces. Making her achievement all the more impressive was that all seven kills came on back row attacks.
Neisler established new career-highs with 12 kills and 42 attack attempts in a Sept. 19 match vs. No. 16 Illinois.
She out-did those marks on Sept. 26 with 16 kills and 43 swings vs. Butler, adding 17 digs for her first career double-double.
Browning Up For Senior CLASS Award
Creighton Volleyball's Kelli Browning is one of 30 candidates for the Senior CLASS Award. Browning is a two-time All-American middle blocker hailing from Waukesha, Wis.
Browning joins Butler's Belle Obert as one of two BIG EAST representatives on the list, and is the only student-athlete that plays in Nebraska.
The award, chosen by a nationwide vote of Division I volleyball coaches, national volleyball media and fans, is given annually to the most outstanding senior student-athlete in Division I volleyball. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence – classroom, community, character and competition.
Browning is trying to become the third Creighton student-athlete to win a Senior CLASS Award, joining men's soccer alum Brian Holt in the fall of 2011 and men's basketball standout Doug McDermott last April.
BIG EAST Honors Duo
The Creighton Volleyball team swept the weekly awards handed out by the BIG EAST Conference on Sept. 15. Kelli Browning was named Player of the Week, while Marysa Wilkinson was tabbed Freshman of the Week.
Browning was named MVP of the Bluejay Invitational after leading Creighton to a 3-0 record and its first title in the 10-year history of the event. A two-time All-America Honorable-Mention selection, Browning averaged 3.64 kills and 1.36 blocks per set while hitting .413 on the week.
Wilkinson helped Creighton to its first Bluejay Invitational title in 10 tries by averaging 2.36 kills and 0.82 blocks per set in three victories. She hit an impressive .377.
It was the first league honor of the season for both. Browning has previously been named BIG EAST Player of the Week once last year, Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week twice and MVC Freshman of the Week once.
Wilkinson Producing Early & Often
Marysa Wilkinson has quickly emerged as an offensive weapon for Creighton.
With nine kills on September 6 vs. No. 6 USC, Wilkinson became the first true freshman in 10 years to have nine or more kills against a top-10 foe. She joined Carolyn Decker vs. No. 5 Nebraska way back on Oct. 10, 2004, who also had nine kills.
Wilkinson had a career-high 14 kills on Sept. 13 against Wichita State, including six in the fourth set clincher against the preseason favorites from the Missouri Valley Conference.
Wilkinson added 10 kills at Marquette on Oct. 4. That figure was the most by any BIG EAST freshman in a road win at Marquette since 2008.
Starters Sidelined
Making Creighton's non-conference schedule even more daunting was that much of it was done it without a pair of 2013 starters Jess Bird and Michelle Sicner.
Bird had arthroscopic surgery on her knee on September 3 and missed CU's first 11 matches of the month (CU went 6-5) before she returned by playing a few points each on Sept. 26 and 28.
Sicner didn't make the trip to the Commonwealth Classic (Sept. 5-6) so that she could spend more time with her family, as her mother Cheryl would end up passing away on Friday morning (Sept. 5) after a lengthy battle with colon cancer. She played in just five points in the same 11 matches that Bird missed.
To help honor the memory of Cheryl Sicner, the team is wearing uniforms with a “CS” insignia on the right sleeve, and hosted a Colon Cancer Awareness Night, as well as a moment of silence, prior to its Senior Night on Sept. 26 vs. Butler.
Offensive Production Up
Creighton is averaging 14.07 kills per set through 22 matches, easily the top mark in the BIG EAST and 22nd-best nationally. The figure is the best by any Bluejay team since sets have been played to 25 points beginning in 2008.
On the other side of the net, CU is allowing only 11.67 kills per set. That figure would be the best mark by any CU defense since the program's 1994 reinstatement.
Tough With A Lead
Creighton is 66-5 since September 1, 2011 when winning set one, with three of those losses coming against top-11 teams.
Creighton has won 42 straight home matches when winning set one dating to an Aug. 28, 2010 loss to Lipscomb.
Creighton has won 72 straight matches when leading 2-0 (dating to Sept. 12, 2009) and has also won 56 of its last 57 matches when leading 2-1 in a match dating to Oct. 16, 2009.
All-time under Kirsten Bernthal Booth, Creighton is 145-2 when leading a match 2-0 and is also 97-8 when leading a match 2-1 after three sets.
Taking The Fifth
Creighton is 37-21 in five-set matches under Kirsten Bernthal Booth, including a 1-2 mark this year and a 12-6 home record in five-setters. That's impressive since Creighton had never finished a season with a winning record in fifth sets prior to Booth's arrival.
Creighton has won five of its last six true road matches to go five sets, including wins in 2012 over league rivals Northern Iowa, Wichita State and Missouri State, and wins last year at Denver and at Wichita State.
It's also worth noting that Creighton is 6-2 all-time in five-set home matches at D.J. Sokol Arena.
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 3-3 21-12
2011 5-2 17-14
2012 4-1 29-4
2013 3-2 23-9
2014 1-2 15-7
Total 52-49 318-287
Finally, A Title At Home
The Sept. 12-13 Bluejay Invitational was the 15th home tournament that Creighton has ever hosted, but first such title it has celebrated at home.
Before that, CU had hosted nine Bluejay Invitationals, (2005-13), two Creighton First Serve Festivals (1996-97), one Creighton Classic (2011), one MVC Tournament (2009) and one BIG EAST Tournament (2013) since the program's 1994 restart without a title.
Baumert Shows Offensive Side, Too
Junior Maggie Baumert had 13 kills in 34 attack attempts at the Commonwealth Classic while directing a 5-1 offense in college for the first time.
In the first 65 matches of her career (62 at Georgia, 3 at Creighton), spanning 241 sets, Baumert owned a total of nine kills in 25 attack attempts.
Baumert also showed herself to be a capable blocker. She had five blocks in the tournament, including her first ever solo stuff, after just three career blocks previously.
Last Year Summary
Last year's Creighton team finished 23-9 and tied for second place in the BIG EAST with a 12-4 league mark.
The Bluejays reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the third time in four years with a first-round victory over Arkansas.
Kelli Browning and Leah McNary were named first team all-conference, while Browning and Michelle Sicner were tabbed as AVCA All-American Honorable Mention selections.
Second Round
Creighton is one of 19 teams to win a first round match in the NCAA Tournament each of the past two years.
That list, alphabetically, includes BYU, Creighton, Florida, Florida State, Hawai'i, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Oregon, Penn State, Purdue, Stanford, Texas, Texas A&M, USC and Washington.
Busy Month
Creighton played 13 matches in the month of September, all during a 24-day stretch between Sept. 5-28. CU went 8-5 in that stretch.
The 13 matches were the most in any month for Bluejay Volleyball since 13 matches in September of 2006. CU went 10-3 in that month, its most victories ever for any month.
If you're curious, the only month in history that CU played more than 13 times came in September of 1995, when it went 7-9.
The Votes Add Up
Creighton has eight matches scheduled against teams that received votes in the preseason AVCA Top 25 poll, including five teams in the top-25.
Creighton plays matches against teams that were preseason ranked No. 5 (USC), No. 7 (Nebraska), No. 11 (Illinois), No. 19 (Kentucky) and No. 22 (Kansas).
Creighton also hosts Colorado, which received enough points to finish 33rd in the voting, and has a home-and-home league series with No. 29 Marquette.
Besides Creighton, the only other school to play five different non-conference teams that are in the preseason top-25 is Stanford.
When it took on No. 6 USC and No. 16 Kentucky on Sept. 6, it marked the first time ever that Creighton faced two ranked teams on the same day. It was also just the fifth time CU played in a regular-season tournament against two ranked teams, joining the Pacific/Nike Invitational (1998), Santa Clara Invitational (2001), Holiday Inn Downtown Classic (2007) and the Bluejay Invitational (2008).
Hometown Flavor
Creighton's 2014 roster boasts 10 players from the state of Nebraska, including all four newcomers.
The 10 Nebraska natives is most since the program's 1994 restart, one more than the 2004 and 2005 clubs that had nine each.
Once In A Lifetime Trip
Creighton experienced a once-in-a-lifetime trip in mid-May when it ventured to Nicaragua. The trip included several matches against the Nicaraguan Jr. National Team (all Creighton victories), but much of the trip's purpose centered on visits to schools, delivering books and other service-oriented programs.
Team USA Trio
Three members of the Creighton Volleyball team donned Team USA jerseys this summer. Kelli Browning, Jess Bird and Michelle Sicner each suited up for the US Collegiate National Team in June at the 2014 USA Volleyball Girls' Junior National Championships in Minneapolis.
Creighton and Florida State led all schools with three representatives among the 36 women selected.
Regular-Season Tournament History
Creighton is 83-78 in the 54 regular-season tournaments it has participated in all-time, including a 23-9 mark since the start of 2012. Kirsten Bernthal Booth's teams are 63-45 in 38 regular-season tournaments, including nine titles.
Creighton won two regular-season tournaments in 2012, taking the season-opening USF Invitational as well as the Northern Colorado Classic, the Hampton Inn Invitational in 2013, and the Bluejay Invitational (Sept. 12-13).
Creighton had won just two of 16 regular-season tournaments prior to Booth's arrival.
Big Time Schedule
Creighton's non-conference slate contained six teams to get votes for the preseason top-25, including five ranked teams.
In addition, seven of the teams are picked either first or second place in their conference.
Name Preseason Rank Preseason Conf. Rank
Lipscomb - 1st in Atlantic Sun
Utah Valley - 3rd in Western Athletic
Kansas 22 2nd in Big 12
Northern Iowa - 2nd in Missouri Valley
USC 5 2nd in Pacific-12
Kentucky 19 2nd in Southeastern
Pepperdine - 4th in WCC
Bowling Green - 3rd in Mid-American East
Wichita State - 1st in Missouri Valley
Nebraska 7 2nd in Big 10
Illinois 11 4th in Big 10
South Dakota - 4th in Summit
Colorado RV 7th in Pacific-12
As A Ranked Team
All-time, Creighton is 19-6 when playing as a ranked team in the AVCA poll, including a 18-2 mark versus unranked teams.
The Bluejays started the year in the preseason Top 25 for the second straight fall. Last year's team was 25th to start the season, while this fall the club is ranked 23rd.
Set 1 Result = Match Result
Creighton is 189-22 overall under Kirsten Bernthal Booth when it wins set one. In that same time span, CU is just 36-113 under Booth when it drops the first set.
Creighton has also won 42 home straight contests when winning the first set.
Survival of the Fittest
Creighton has won six matches under Kirsten Bernthal Booth after surviving an opponent's match point. Three of those wins have come against Wichita State.
On the other hand, Creighton is 225-2 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 fifth set loss, and two other match points on Nov. 1, 2013 in a 17-15 fifth set loss to St. John's.
Surviving Match Points, Under Booth
Date Opponent MP(s) Faced Final Set 5
08/30/03 vs. McNeese State 13-14, 15-16 18-16
10/10/03 Wichita State 13-14 16-14
10/13/06 at Wichita State 12-14, 13-14, 14-15 17-15
09/11/07 at Drake 13-14, 14-15 17-15
08/26/11 vs. UTSA 12-14, 13-14 16-14
11/16/12 at Wichita State 13-14 16-14
2-0 Better Than 0-2
Creighton is 200-8 (.962) all-time when leading a match 2-0, including a 142-2 mark under Kirsten Bernthal Booth. They own an 94-4 all-time mark in home matches they lead 2-0 in.
Conversely, the Jays are 8-178 (.043) all-time when trailing a match 0-2, including an 0-62 mark in those home matches. Those eight 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
11/16/12 at Wichita St. 25-16, 25-20, 16-14 Booth
09/05/14 vs. No. Iowa 25-16, 25-22, 15-5 Booth
A Bunch Of Winners
Creighton has experienced a great deal of success in recent seasons, and the current squad has enjoyed victories at historic levels. Consider the following numbers entering the 2014 season:
CU's 52 victories in the previous two seasons are six more than other two-year span in program history, previously done from 2011-12.
CU's 69 wins in the previous three seasons are the most in any three-year span in program history, two more than the 2010-12 (and 2012-14) total of 67. With wins vs. Marquette and DePaul this weekend, CU would reach 69 wins over the previous three seasons and tie that record.
CU's 90 victories in the previous four seasons are nine more than other four-year span in program history, which was done from 2009-12.
Blocking Specialists
Creighton has consistently proven to be an elite blocking team in recent seasons, leading their conference each of the previous three years in the category.
The Jays led the nation last year with 3.06 blocks per set, and one year prior were fourth-best nationally while also averaging 3.06 blocks per set.
Leading the blocking brigade during this time span has been Kelli Browning. Browning was fifth nationally in 2012 with 1.65 blocks per set, then finished eighth in 2013 with 1.53 stuffs per set.
This year, Browning ranks sixth in the country with 114 blocks, a figure leads the nation's seniors.
Marian Pipeline
This is the 12th straight season that Creighton Volleyball had at least one product of Omaha Marian High School on the roster, as juniors Kate Elman and Ashley Jansen are in the program.
Interestingly, the Jays had never had a volleyball player from Marian between 1994-2002. Here's a look at Creighton's pipeline of players from Marian.
2014: Kate Elman, Ashley Jansen
2013: Kate Elman, Ashley Jansen
2012: Kate Elman, Ashley Jansen
2011: Julianne Mandolfo
2010: Lisa Greisch, Julianne Mandolfo
2009: Lisa Greisch
2008: Emily Crowley, Korie Lebeda
2007: Korie Lebeda, Katie Mehal
2006: Korie Lebeda, Katie Mehal, Emily Greisch
2005: Korie Lebeda, Katie Mehal
2004: Katie Mehal, Emily Greisch
2003: Emily Greisch
Production Returning
Creighton returns 12-of-13 letterwinners to the court from last season. Below is a breakdown of the production that returns:
Stat Returners Departures
Points 2100.5 (99.1%) 19.5 (0.9%)
Kills 1618 (99.3%) 12 (0.7%)
Digs 1892 (99.2%) 15 (0.8%)
Aces 120 (100.0%) 0 (0.0%)
Matches Started 157 (98.1%) 3 (1.9%)
Blocks 362.5 (98.0%) 7.5 (2.0%)
Assists 1516 (100.0%) 0 (0.0%)
Radio Broadcast Information
Brad Burwell and former Bluejay volleyball player Erin (Swanson) Russell will broadcast most home matches this season.
The matches will air on KZOT (1180 AM) or KOIL (1290 AM) and be webcast online 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.
Creighton's upcoming matches on Oct. 24 and 26 will air on KZOT, while the Nov. 1 match is scheduled to air on KOZN.
BIG EAST Preseason Poll
For the second straight season, Creighton has been picked to win the BIG EAST Conference in a preseason poll of league coaches.
CU received 77 points in the poll and five of a possible 10 first-place votes. Defending champ Marquette was picked second with 71 points and four first-place votes, while Xavier (66 points) was third and claimed the remaining first-place tally. Rounding out the rest of the poll were Butler, St. John's, Seton Hall, Villanova, Georgetown, DePaul and Providence.
Creighton also had two women named to the 13 member on the BIG EAST's preseason all-conference team, as both Kelli Browning and Leah McNary were honored for a second straight year.
Marquette's Autumn Bailey was chosen as Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year.
Creighton has finished in the spot predicted of them or better in the preseason poll in nine of the past 11 years.
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 3rd #1
2011 3rd 4th i1
2012 4th 1st #3
2013 1st T-2nd i1
2014 1st ??? ???
Oct. 24 7 pm Marquette at Creighton (BEDN) (1180 AM) (Pink Out) Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
Oct. 26 1 pm DePaul at Creighton (1180 AM) Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
This Weekend
Creighton (15-7, 8-1 BIG EAST) continues its longest single-season homestand in program history when it hosts a pair of matches this weekend.
The Bluejays open the second half of conference play on Friday when it welcomes defending league champ Marquette (16-5, 7-2 BIG EAST) to Omaha for a 7 pm match. Fans are encouraged to wear PINK as part of the program's annual night that raises awareness for those with breast cancer.
On Sunday at 1 pm, DePaul (3-18, 1-8 BIG EAST) visits Creighton. The first 250 kids dressed in costumes will receive a free Creighton trick-or-treat bag, and anyone wearing a costume will have a chance to walk across the court at intermission.
Both matches will be played at D.J. Sokol Arena inside the Wayne and Eileen Ryan Athletic Center (2,500 capacity) in Omaha, Neb.
Video Webcast Information
Friday's match will be webcast on the league's new BIG EAST Digital Network, with Brad Burwell and Erin (Swanson) Russell on the call. Fans can watch Friday's match by visiting http://www.foxsports.com/foxsportsgo, or by downloading the free FOX Sports GO app to begin accessing content.
There is no charge to watch content on the BIG EAST Digital Network.
Sunday's match will be available for video webcast as part of Creighton's JaysVideo subscription-based webcast package. Subscription options are for 24-hour, 48-hour, one month or four months. Visit GoCreighton.com, then click on the “Live Video” tab at the top of the page for the link to each match prior to Sunday's serve.
Radio Broadcast Information
Both matches this weekend will air on KZOT (1180 AM) in Omaha, and also be streamed through a link on the right side of the page at www.1620thezone.com.
Glen Sisk and Amanda (Cvejdlik) Adams will announce on Friday, while Rachel Houseman and Erin (Swanson) Russell will announce on Sunday.
Ticket Promotion
The Creighton ticket office has a special ticket offer in place for Friday's match vs. Marquette. Fans that purchase a volleyball ticket can receive a voucher for two free tickets to the Creighton Men's Basketball games on either Nov. 7th or Nov. 14th MBB games. For more information, call 402-280-JAYS.
Live Stats Information
Both matches this weekend will have free live stats. Visit www.gocreighton.com and click on the Live Stats tab at the top of the page for the exact link to the match.
Scouting Creighton
Creighton has been one of the hottest teams in the BIG EAST, winning nine of its last 10 matches and seeing the return of sophomore Jess Bird recently. The Bluejays are now 15-7 on the season and second in the BIG EAST with a 8-1 conference record.
Five of Creighton's seven losses have come against top-25 teams (USC, Illinois, Nebraska, Kentucky, Kansas), and the Bluejays have already defeated preseason favorites from the Missouri Valley Conference (Wichita State) and Atlantic Sun (Lipscomb).
Kelli Browning (3.35 kps., 1.37 bps., .376%), Leah McNary (2.66 kps.) and Bird (2.67 kps., 1.61 dps.) have emerged as top offensive weapons for the Bluejays, while Kate Elman (4.49 dps., 0.20 saps.) leads the team in both digs and aces per set and recently became the program's career digs leader.
Maggie Baumert (10.10 aps., 2.06 dps.) has handled the setting duties for the league's most prolific offense while emerging as a formidable blocking presence at the net.
Creighton averages 14.07 kills, 16.04 digs, 2.65 blocks and 1.07 aces per set while hitting .237 as a team.
Scouting Marquette
Defending BIG EAST regular-season and tournament champ Marquette is off to an 16-5 start this season, including a 7-2 mark in league play. The Golden Eagles are just outside the Top 25 in this week's AVCA poll, coming in at 33rd.
Marquette owns the league's top non-conference win of the season in the form of a 3-2 win at No. 7 Florida on Sept. 19.
Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year Autumn Bailey (4.48 kps., 3.26 dps., 0.43 saps.) tops the team in kills and is second in digs.
MU's next three attackers all average at least 1.85 kills while hitting .250 or better, a trio led by Nele Barber (2.72 kps.) and Lindsey Gosh (2.61 kps., .293%).
Gabby Benda (7.83 aps.) and Mary Nilles (5.28 aps.) handle the setting duties, while Lauren Houg (4.10 dps.) is the team's libero.
As a team, Marquette averages 13.68 kills, 1.21 aces, 15.43 digs and 2.46 blocks per set on .260 hitting.
Scouting DePaul
DePaul is 3-18 on the season, including a 1-8 mark in BIG EAST action. The Blue Devils own wins over Bradley, Chicago State and Providence, but have lost the rest against a schedule that includes Penn State, and have not tasted victory since Sept. 27.
Saige Gallop (2.93 kps.) leads the team in kills, with Myah Reed (1.83 kps.), Caitlyn Coffey (1.67 kps., 0.88 bps.) and Randi Leath (1.55 kps.) not far behind.
Colleen Smith (8.01 aps., 0.22 saps.) leads the team in assists and service aces, while Lexi Chanos owns a club-best 199 digs.
As a team, DePaul averages 11.55 kills, 0.99 aces, 11.95 digs and 2.24 blocks per set on .185 hitting.
The Coaches
Creighton is coached by Kirsten Bernthal Booth (Truman State, 1997), who owns a 225-135 record in her 12th season with the Bluejays.
She was named the 2010 CVU.com National Coach of the Year after leading Creighton to the second round during its first NCAA Tournament appearance, and named the CaptainU College Coach of the Year, as well as the MVC Coach of the Year, in 2012 following another run to the second round of the NCAA's and a school-record 29 victories.
The winningest coach in school history, Booth has led Creighton to its only three NCAA Tournament bids in the program's modern history. She's also led the Jays into the top-25 each of the last three years, another program first.
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 Tom Mendoza, assistant coach Angie Oxley Behrens and volunteer assistant Kyle South.
Ryan Theis (Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 2000) is in his first season as head coach at Marquette, having been named to the position on Feb. 14, 2014. He owns an 16-5 mark with the Golden Eagles, moving his career mark to 160-59 in seven seasons when you factor in a six-year run at Ohio. He is assisted by Erich Hinterstocker, Meghan Keck and James Sackley.
Nadia Edwards (Penn State, 2001) owns a 40-98 record in her fifth season as head coach at DePaul, which also doubles as her career record. Before DPU, she was an assistant at both Ohio State and Virginia Tech after a three year pro career. She is assisted by Craig Boller and Caitlyn Vann.
Series History vs. Marquette
Creighton is 5-3 all-time against Marquette, including a 2-1 mark in regular-season BIG EAST play. The teams traded home victories a year ago before MU won the BIG EAST Tournament title in Omaha last year.
Creighton got a bit of revenge three weeks ago, topping Marquette in four sets in Milwaukee.
Five of the last seven meetings have been sweeps, and teams to win the first set are 8-0 all-time in the history of the series.
Creighton head coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 5-3 against Marquette and 1-0 against Ryan Theis.
Series History vs. DePaul
Creighton has won three of four previous meetings with DePaul. The Jays have won each of the last three meetings, each time in four sets.
DePaul won the first meeting against Creighton, defeating the Bluejays 3-0 (30-25, 30-23, 30-27) to open the 2001 season at the Northern Illinois Best Western Invitational in DeKalb, Ill.
Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 3-0 against DePaul and Nadia Edwards.
Last Weekend Summary
Creighton swept both St. John's and Providence last weekend to improve to 8-1 in BIG EAST play. Lauren Smith tied for team-high honors with 16 kills last week and matched a BIG EAST record by hitting .857 in CU's win over Providence on Sunday. Kelli Browning recorded seven blocks in both matches.
Tourney Final Rematch
Friday's meeting with Marquette will feature a rematch of the 2013 match-up in the finals of the BIG EAST Tournament.
That match, contested in Omaha, was won in four sets by Marquette.
This year's BIG EAST Tournament will be hosted by Marquette on Thanksgiving weekend in Milwaukee, Wis.
Smith Sets League Record
Lauren Smith set a Creighton record and tied a BIG EAST record on Sunday when she hit .857 against Providence. Smith had 12 kills and no errors in 14 swings.
The mark tied the previous BIG EAST mark for a league game, first set by Marquette's Kelsey Mattai vs. Pittsburgh on Oct. 5, 2012.
Creighton's previous record for hitting percentage in a match was .750, done by Katy Grady (Aug. 30, 2003 vs. Auburn) and later matched by Abby Baumann (Sept. 3, 2005 at San Diego State).
Bailey A Key To Watch
Marquette sophomore Autumn Bailey is coming off a brilliant week that saw her record 76 kills and 52 digs in 196 swings over the course of three matches.
In 42 career wins at Marquette, Bailey has averaged 4.38 kills per set while hitting .269 and supplementing that with 71 aces in 151 sets.
In 11 career losses at Marquette, Bailey has averaged 3.95 kills per set while hitting .172 and has just two aces in 42 sets.
In four career matches against Creighton (2 wins, 2 losses), Bailey has averaged 4.28 kills per set while hitting .137 and owns three aces in 14 sets.
Bailey, last year's BIG EAST Freshman of the Year, was tabbed the league's Preseason Player of the Year in August. She is currently leading the BIG EAST in kills per set and aces per set.
Browning Earns Second Defensive Honor
Creighton senior Kelli Browning was named BIG EAST Defensive Volleyball Player of the Week, the league announced on Monday afternoon.
This is the second time in three weeks that Browning has earned the award, having also won it on October 6.
A Waukesha, Wis., native, Browning averaged 2.33 blocks, 2.33 kills and 0.67 digs per set in a pair of 3-0 victories last weekend. Creighton held St. John's and Providence to a combined total of 49 kills on .011 hitting in six sets that saw the Jays outscore their league rivals 150-90.
On Friday, Browning had seven blocks, seven kills and two digs in a 3-0 win over St. John's, as CU avenged its only home loss in BIG EAST play in the past two years. Four of her blocks came against BIG EAST kill leader Karin Palgutova.
On Sunday, Browning had seven kills and seven blocks on .545 hitting in CU's 3-0 win over Providence. Browning's blocking helped hold PC to -.151 hitting, the poorest mark ever by a Bluejay opponent. In addition, Providence's 17 kills were the third-fewest in history against Creighton.
For the week, Browning outblocked Creighton's opponents, 14-7.
Defense Rules
Creighton held Providence to -.151 hitting on Sunday, as the Friars had 17 kills and 31 errors in 93 swings.
The -.151 hitting percentage was the poorest performance ever by a Bluejay opponent, while the 17 kills were third-fewest.
Of the 31 times that Providence served, Creighton won the ensuing point on 29 of them.
Fewest Kills by a Creighton Opponent, Match
15 Drake 9/22/06
15 Montana State 8/25/07
17 Providence 10/19/14
18 at Jacksonville State 9/05/08
19 UMKC 9/15/96
Lowest Opponent Hitting % vs. Creighton, Match
Pct. Team K E TA Date
-.151 Providence 17 31 93 10/19/14
-.112 Jacksonville State 18 27 80 09/05/08
-.108 UMKC 19 27 74 09/15/96
-.086 Drake 15 23 93 09/22/06
-.067 Weber State 19 25 90 09/09/11
Hit Me With Your Best Shot
Creighton hit a season-best .471 in Sunday's win over Providence. The mark was not only a D.J. Sokol Arena record, but also the third-best mark by Creighton in any match in its history.
Attack Percentage
.536 vs. Tulsa (41-4-69) 10-27-95
.495 vs. Liberty (57-8-99) 9-2-05
.471 vs. Providence (36-4-68) 10-19-14
.418 vs. Evansville (98-21-184) 11-2-96
.414 vs. UC Riverside (57-11-111) 9-2-05
.414 vs. Drake (49-8-99) 10-3-08
Even Year October Push
Creighton is 5-1 in the month of October with two matches to play, giving the Bluejays a chance to tie the school record for wins in that month.
Creighton has won seven matches in the month of October in 2004, 2008, 2010 and 2012.
Like the first four occasions, 2014 is an even-numbered year.
Blue October
Creighton has enjoyed tremendous success in October in recent seasons. The Jays have won 22 of the last 25 times it has taken the floor in the 10th month of the year, dating to an Oct. 15, 2011 setback at No. 12 Northern Iowa.
Creighton has also won 20 of its last 21 home matches in October since Oct. 22, 2009, with two more home matches coming up this weekend.
Sicner To The Rescue
Michelle Sicner had played sparingly since her mother, Cheryl, had passed away due to colon cancer on September 5th. But when her team needed a lift last Friday, the senior setter was ready and came through in a big way.
With Creighton trailing 10-3 to open the match against St. John's, head coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth replaced starting setter Maggie Baumert with Sicner.
Creighton immediately went on a 10-3 run to tie the score, and would outscore the Red Storm 72-51 the rest of the night.
After totaling 10 assists, three blocks, three kills and one dig in the 17 matches between Sept. 5 - Oct. 10, Sicner finished the St. John's match with 32 assists, five blocks, four kills and five digs.
The strong performance helped her earn a start two days later against Providence, when she had 20 assists and helped Creighton hit an arena record .471. It was Sicner's first start since Aug. 30.
Inspired By Marquette?
Michelle Sicner has had a tremendous career, and has played her best volleyball when Marquette has been present.
At the season-opening Hampton Inn Invitational that both Creighton and Marquette participated in last year, Sicner was named Tournament MVP and led her team to the title.
On Oct. 13, Sicner had a triple-double in a 3-0 win vs. Marquette en route to BIG EAST Player of the Week and Sports Imports/AVCA National Player of the Week accolades. In the second meeting last year Milwaukee, Sicner had 25 assists, nine digs and four kills vs. the Golden Eagles.
At last year's BIG EAST Tournament, Sicner had a triple-double against Xavier, with Marquette courtside while scouting. She then had 39 assists, 11 digs and five kills vs. Marquette in the conference tournament final.
Serving Up A Winner
After big struggles during non-conference play with its serving, Creighton has made huge strides behind the service line since BIG EAST play has started.
In 50 sets during non-conference play, Creighton had 45 aces against 125 service miscues while putting just 88.9 percent of its serves in play.
By comparison, Creighton owns 44 aces against just 43 service errors in 30 sets during league action. In that time, CU has put 94.4 percent of its serves in play. Jess Bird is tied for the team lead with eight aces during league action while committing just two errors in 73 serves.
After going 7-6 in the non-conference, Creighton is 8-1 in BIG EAST action.
High School Reunion
DePaul S Colleen Smith was a high school teammate of Creighton OH Melanie Jereb at Cary-Grove High School in Cary, Ill. The two were also teammates with the Sky High club volleyball program, with Smith one year older.
Their high school team also had players that continued their volleyball careers at Ohio (Kelly Lamberti), Illinois State (Ashley Rosch) and Tennessee-Martin (Allison Whimpey).
Lamberti was coached at Ohio by Ryan Theis, the new Marquette head coach and a team that Creighton faces on Friday night.
All told, Jereb is 6-0 at the college level against her former teammates, going 3-0 vs. Rosch and 3-0 against Smith.
Brew City Browning
Senior MB Kelli Browning hails from the Milwaukee suburb of Waukesha, and will look to continue her trend of big matches against Wisconsin teams against Marquette on Friday.
In six matches during the past three seasons against Marquette or Wisconsin, Browning has averaged 2.95 kills and 1.29 blocks per set while hitting a healthy .438 in 21 sets.
Most importantly, Creighton has won four of the six matches (3-2 vs. MU, 1-0 vs. UW).
Home On The Range
This weekend marks the middle of a five-match homestand, the longest single-season homestand in program history.
Creighton is 11-1 all-time in regular-season BIG EAST home matches, with St. John's the only foe to topple the Bluejays. Dating back to 2012, Creighton is 20-1 in its last regular-season 21 conference home matches.
Browning Approaches 1,000 Kills
Kelli Browning enters this weekend with 979 career kills. She's 21 kills shy of becoming the 10th player in CU history to reach 1,000, and has played in 108 career matches. Coincidentally, her career-high is also 21 kills.
Should she get there, among those that Browning would join in that elite group are classmate Leah McNary. McNary got to 1,000 kills on Sept. 12 vs. Pepperdine in her 96th career match.
The only other time Creighton had two players reach 1,000 career kills in the same season was in 2008, when Jessica Houts and Amanda Cvejdlik each reached the milestone one week apart.
Creighton's Quickest Players To 1,000 Kills (Career)
Name MP Date Opponent
Melissa Walsh 70 10/15/00 Eastern Illinois
Leah Ratzlaff 76 10/22/04 Missouri State
JoDe Cieloha 83 09/13/97 at Drake
Kelly Goc 87 11/24/06 vs. Northern Iowa
Jessica Houts 90 11/08/08 Illinois State
Leah McNary 96 09/12/14 Pepperdine
Amanda Cvejdlik 99 11/15/08 at Evansville
Shelly Kapler 103 11/18/99 vs. Missouri State
Allie Oelke 107 10/09/10 Wichita State
Nearing The Midpoint
Sunday's win over Providence marked the midway point of BIG EAST Conference play, as the Jays have played all nine opponents exactly once.
Currently 8-1, this year's team has a winning record at the midpoint of league play or the fifth straight season, and 11th time in 13 seasons under Kirsten Bernthal Booth.
This year's team joins the 2012 club as the second club in program history to start 8-1 in league play. That team went on to win the program's only regular-season conference crown.
League Record by Year
Year 1st Half 2nd Half Place
1994 2-8 1-9 T-9th MVC
1995 3-7 3-7 T-7th MVC
1996 2-7 3-6 T-6th MVC
1997 6-3 4-5 T-3rd MVC
1998 2-7 3-6 8th MVC
1999 5-4 4-5 5th MVC
2000 5-4 5-4 T-4th MVC
2001 7-2 5-4 4th MVC
2002 1-8 1-8 T-9th MVC
2003 5-4 4-5 T-5th MVC
2004 5-4 5-4 5th MVC
2005 4-5 6-3 5th MVC
2006 7-2 5-4 4th MVC
2007 7-2 7-2 T-2nd MVC
2008 7-2 8-1 2nd MVC
2009 4-5 6-3 T-4th MVC
2010 7-2 6-3 3rd MVC
2011 6-3 6-3 4th MVC
2012 8-1 9-0 1st MVC
2013 6-2 6-2 T-2nd BIG EAST
2014 8-1 ? ? T-1st so far
Total 107-83 97-84 --
Bunch Of Winners
Creighton's seniors have all experienced great success, both individually and as a team.
Leah McNary has appeared in 82 wins as a Bluejay, most in school history. Not far behind her are Kelli Browning (77), Michelle Sicner (74) and Katie Neisler (71).
Most Wins, Appeared In As A Player
82 Leah McNary 2011-Pres.
81 Megan Bober 2009-12
79 Brooke Boggs 2009-12
76 Korie Lebeda 2005-08
77 Kelli Browning 2011-Pres.
74 Allie Oelke 2007-10
74 Michelle Sicner 2011-Pres.
73 Abby Baumann 2004-07
73 Kelly Goc 2004-07
Award-Winning Performances
Kelli Browning and Marysa Wilkinson were honored by the BIG EAST Conference for their play the weekend of Oct. 3-4.
Browning was named Defensive Player of the Week, while Wilkinson was Freshman of the Week.
A senior from Waukesha, Wis., Browning averaged 3.50 kills and an impressive 2.38 blocks per set while hitting .370 as Creighton picked up a pair of four-set road wins.
Browning opened her weekend with 14 kills and a then- season-high nine blocks at DePaul. She hit .385 in the match and added two aces while becoming the second player in school history to reach 500 career blocks.
In the return to her home state of Wisconsin one night later, Browning had 14 kills, 10 blocks and six digs at Marquette for her first double-double of the season. Browning hit .357 in the victory and six of her 10 stuffs came against BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year Autumn Bailey.
Wilkinson averaged 2.25 kills, .75 digs and .62 blocks per set while hitting .385 during the weekend.
The Lincoln, Neb., native started her week with eight kills and five blocks while hitting .412 in a 3-1 victory at DePaul. She then had 10 kills and a career-best six digs on .364 hitting in CU's 3-1 win at defending league champion Marquette. Her 10 kills were the most by a BIG EAST freshman in a road win at Marquette since Syracuse's Noemie Lefebvre had 15 on Oct. 18, 2008.
Can You Dig It?
Kate Elman broke a pair of 10-year-old school records held by Janeen Piller the last time CU met DePaul (Oct. 3).
Elman passed Piller's mark of 1,392 career digs and enters this weekend with 1,495. Elman also passed Piller's record for career matches with 10+ digs of 74, and now owns 78.
Piller does still own one mark that Elman can't break this year, consecutive matches with double-figure digs. Piller owns the mark of 42, while Elman's had separate streaks of 32 and 30 during her career thus far.
Most Career Digs, Creighton History
Name Sets No. Years
1. Kate Elman 328 1,495 2012-Pr.
2. Janeen Piller 336 1,392 2001-04
3. Allie Oelke 445 1,382 2007-10
4. Kailey Reyes 368 1,258 1998-01
5. Melissa Walsh 394 1,240 1998-01
6. Julianne Mandolfo 241 1,224 2010-11
7. Melissa Weisensee 411 1,223 1994-97
8. Korie Lebeda 428 1,130 2005-08
9. Megan Bober 480 1,123 2009-12
10. Bianca Rivera 207 1,118 2007-08
Consecutive Matches, 10 or More Digs
43 Janeen Piller, Oct. 10, 2003-Nov. 26, 2004
32 Kate Elman, Aug. 24 - Nov. 30, 2012
30 Kate Elman, Sept. 30, 2013 - Sept. 12, 2014
27 Bianca Rivera, Aug. 24-Nov. 9, 2007
Matches With 10+ Digs, Career
10+D Name Years
78 Kate Elman 2012-Pres.
74 Janeen Piller 2001-04
71 Allie Oelke 2007-10
Elman With 20/20/20 Vision
Kate Elman tied Julianne Mandolfo's school record with her 32nd career match of 20 or more digs on Oct. 11 at Villanova. Elman has 20+ digs each of her last two matches vs. Marquette.
Matches With 20+ Digs, Career
20+D Name Years
32 Julianne Mandolfo 2010-11
32 Kate Elman 2012-Pres.
27 Bianca Rivera 2007-08
Baumert Records Rare Triple-Double
Maggie Baumert had the first triple-double of her career in the Oct. 4 victory at Marquette, finishing with 42 assists, 12 digs and a career-high 10 blocks. She also finished with a career-best nine kills as she finished just one kill shy of the first quadruple-double in Bluejay history.
Baumert's triple-double was the 29th in Creighton history, and she's the sixth different Bluejay ever to record one.
Matches With a Triple-Double, Career
T-D Name Years
15 Megan Bober 2009-12
5 Michelle Sicner 2011-Pres.
4 Kailey Reyes 1998-2001
2 Melissa Weisensee 1994-97
2 JoDe Cieloha 1994-97
1 Maggie Baumert 2014-Pres.
Let's Compare
Let's take a look at how Creighton's start in 2014 compares to the last three seasons.
Stat 2014 (so far) 2013 2012 2011
W-L 15-7 so far 23-9 29-4 17-14
Postseason ? ? ? NCAA NCAA ---
Tourney Titles 1 1 2 0
Kills/Set 14.07 13.47 13.39 12.75
Hitting % .237 .220 .247 .203
Aces/Set 1.07 0.99 1.24 1.13
Digs/Set 16.04 15.76 17.32 17.23
Blocks/Set 2.65 3.06 3.06 2.54
The Word on Bird
Jess Bird has produced 64 kills and 44 digs in the last six matches after entering the stretch with 16 kills and nine digs in four previous matches this season.
Bird has shown minimal signs of a knee ailment that forced her to miss 12 of Creighton's first 14 matches this season.
Bird owns a pair of double-doubles since returning, including a career-high 18 kills and 12 digs at Marquette on Oct. 4.
Creighton is 8-2 this year with Bird in the line-up, compared to a 7-5 mark without her.
Since returning to the starting line-up, Bird has averaged a team-best 3.43 kills per set and also owns eight aces against just two service errors.
On The Upswing
Creighton's Oct. 3rd match at DePaul marked Creighton's 600th since restarting the program. In that time, Creighton is now 318-287. Here's a look at Creighton's record in 100-match intervals:
Match #'s Team W-L Coach(es)
1-100 34-66 Guiliano/Wallace
101-200 44-56 Wallace
201-300 44-56 Wallace/Booth
301-400 60-40 Booth
401-500 58-42 Booth
501-600 74-26 Booth
601-700 4-1 so far Booth
Elman Earns BIG EAST Defensive Honor
Junior libero Kate Elman was named the BIG EAST Conference Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 30. An Omaha native, Elman averaged 4.80 digs and 0.90 assists to help Creighton start BIG EAST play 3-0.
Elman is the first Bluejay to ever earn BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week honors. Elman's previous recognition from a league office came as a freshman, when she was a three-time MVC Freshman of the Week in 2012.
In an ironic twist, Kate Elman's sister Lexi Elman was named West Coast Conference Player of the Week on the same day after leading Pacific to a pair of victories.
Senior Citizens
Creighton hosted Senior Day after its Sept. 26 match, as it honored Kelli Browning, Leah McNary, Katie Neisler and Michelle Sicner, as well as senior manager Katie Thompson.
Since all five women arrived on campus in the fall of 2011, the Bluejays have gone 84-34, won an MVC regular-season title, an MVC Tournament title, won matches in two different NCAA Tournaments, and moved into the national rankings for the first time in program history.
Browning is a two-time All-American Honorable Mention selection from Waukesha, Wis. She ranks first in CU history in hitting percentage and second in blocks, and currently leads the BIG EAST with a .376 hitting percentage. Browning tied for the national lead as a sophomore with a school-record 204 total blocks.
McNary became the ninth player in Creighton history to surpass 1,000 career kills three weeks ago. A First Team All-BIG EAST pick last year, McNary led the team in kills as both a sophomore and junior.
After playing mostly in the back row her first three years, Neisler has moved into a starting outside hitter role as a senior. She owns 82 kills this season, including a career-high 16 vs. Xavier on Sept. 26.
Sicner was an All-American Honorable Mention pick in 2013, when she started at setter in 28 matches and led the team with 17 double-doubles and four triple-doubles. Also named AVCA National Player of the Week last October 15th, Sicner ranks sixth in CU history in assists.
What Can Brown(ing) Do For You?
Kelli Browning continues to produce at the level you'd expect from a two-time All-American, and her senior season has been nothing shy of brilliant.
Browning has averaged 3.35 kills and 1.37 blocks per set while hitting .376 this season. After entering her senior season with a career-high of 18 kills, Browning had 18 or more kills twice in September alone.
In five matches against ranked teams this season, Browning is averaging 3.53 kills and 1.00 blocks per set while hitting .381.
Entering the week, Browning was one of the nation's only players with at least 275 kills who was hitting .375 or better. She was above both standards, hitting .386 with 278 kills.
Browning also entered last week fifth nationally among middle blockers in kills.
Below is a list of the First, Second and Third-Team All-Americans from 2013 and their stats:
Name, School (AA Team) KPS Hit % BPS
Sallie McLaurin, Oklahoma (2) 3.78 .423 1.37
Tori Dixon, Minnesota (1) 3.66 .399 1.29
Chloe Mann, Florida (1) 3.45 .506 0.85
Chloe Ferrari, San Diego (2) 3.15 .444 0.93
Caroline Jarmoc, Kansas (3) 3.06 .320 1.15
Carly Wopat, Stanford (1) 2.89 .429 1.43
Inky Ajanaku, Stanford* (1) 2.72 .438 1.38
Alexis Olgard, USC (3) 2.21 .442 1.28
Katie Slay, Penn State (3) 2.16 .414 1.63
Chiaka Ogbogu, Texas* (2) 1.74 .389 1.08
*still active in 2014
Browning Named MVP
Kelli Browning was named MVP of the Bluejay Invitational after averaging 3.64 kills and 1.36 blocks per set on .413 hitting from Sept. 12-13.
It was the sixth All-Tournament Team accolade of the senior's career, but her first MVP recognition.
Joining Browning on the Bluejay Invitational All-Tournament Team from Creighton were Maggie Baumert (11.84 aps., 2.18 dps., 1.18 kps., .385% that weekend) and Lauren Smith (2.00 kps., 1.18 bps., .356%).
Ranked vs. Unranked
Five of Creighton's losses this year have come against teams that were ranked in the AVCA Top 25, including setbacks to USC, Nebraska, Illinois, Kansas and Kentucky.
Since the start of the 2002 season, 11 of Creighton's 20 losses have come against ranked teams. In that same period, Creighton is 66-9 against unranked teams.
Each of Creighton's final 11 matches of the regular-season are against teams that are unranked, though Marquette is currently 33rd.
It Goes On, And On, And On, And On, And On
Creighton has played in 784 sets since the move to 25-point rally scoring sets in 2008, but none have been as high scoring as its Sept. 20th fourth set marathon against South Dakota.
Creighton would save six match points before finally converting its fourth set point opportunity of the frame in a 34-32 victory. Last week Marquette lost a 34-32 first set to Seton Hall before clinching the match with a 35-33 fourth set triumph.
The highest-scoring frame previously had been a pair of 30-28 sets.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, CU's Sept. 23rd 25-7 victory in the first set at Georgetown matched the most lopsided set victory in Creighton history in the current scoring format. CU replicated that 25-7 score in the third set on Oct. 19 vs. Providence.
Top 10 Scares
Creighton won the first set from both No. 6 USC (25-22 on September 6) and No. 9 Nebraska (25-21 on September 17) this season.
Creighton has played 20 matches against top-10 teams all-time, and this was the fourth time it's taken a 1-0 lead in the match. CU also won the first set against No. 1 Nebraska on Sept. 24, 2006 and at No. 7 Northern Iowa on Sept. 21, 2002.
The closest Creighton has ever come to defeating a top-10 team came last season, when the Bluejays dropped a five-set match to No. 7 Hawai'i in Wichita, Kan.
Secret Weapon?
Katie Neisler had five kills all of last year, and entered her senior season with 19 kills in 81 career matches while being used mostly in the back row.
By by those standards she's turned into an offensive juggernaut this fall, unleashing 82 kills this year.
Neisler had (then) career-highs with seven kills and .583 hitting in a Sept. 13 sweep over Bowling Green, adding two aces. Making her achievement all the more impressive was that all seven kills came on back row attacks.
Neisler established new career-highs with 12 kills and 42 attack attempts in a Sept. 19 match vs. No. 16 Illinois.
She out-did those marks on Sept. 26 with 16 kills and 43 swings vs. Butler, adding 17 digs for her first career double-double.
Browning Up For Senior CLASS Award
Creighton Volleyball's Kelli Browning is one of 30 candidates for the Senior CLASS Award. Browning is a two-time All-American middle blocker hailing from Waukesha, Wis.
Browning joins Butler's Belle Obert as one of two BIG EAST representatives on the list, and is the only student-athlete that plays in Nebraska.
The award, chosen by a nationwide vote of Division I volleyball coaches, national volleyball media and fans, is given annually to the most outstanding senior student-athlete in Division I volleyball. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence – classroom, community, character and competition.
Browning is trying to become the third Creighton student-athlete to win a Senior CLASS Award, joining men's soccer alum Brian Holt in the fall of 2011 and men's basketball standout Doug McDermott last April.
BIG EAST Honors Duo
The Creighton Volleyball team swept the weekly awards handed out by the BIG EAST Conference on Sept. 15. Kelli Browning was named Player of the Week, while Marysa Wilkinson was tabbed Freshman of the Week.
Browning was named MVP of the Bluejay Invitational after leading Creighton to a 3-0 record and its first title in the 10-year history of the event. A two-time All-America Honorable-Mention selection, Browning averaged 3.64 kills and 1.36 blocks per set while hitting .413 on the week.
Wilkinson helped Creighton to its first Bluejay Invitational title in 10 tries by averaging 2.36 kills and 0.82 blocks per set in three victories. She hit an impressive .377.
It was the first league honor of the season for both. Browning has previously been named BIG EAST Player of the Week once last year, Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week twice and MVC Freshman of the Week once.
Wilkinson Producing Early & Often
Marysa Wilkinson has quickly emerged as an offensive weapon for Creighton.
With nine kills on September 6 vs. No. 6 USC, Wilkinson became the first true freshman in 10 years to have nine or more kills against a top-10 foe. She joined Carolyn Decker vs. No. 5 Nebraska way back on Oct. 10, 2004, who also had nine kills.
Wilkinson had a career-high 14 kills on Sept. 13 against Wichita State, including six in the fourth set clincher against the preseason favorites from the Missouri Valley Conference.
Wilkinson added 10 kills at Marquette on Oct. 4. That figure was the most by any BIG EAST freshman in a road win at Marquette since 2008.
Starters Sidelined
Making Creighton's non-conference schedule even more daunting was that much of it was done it without a pair of 2013 starters Jess Bird and Michelle Sicner.
Bird had arthroscopic surgery on her knee on September 3 and missed CU's first 11 matches of the month (CU went 6-5) before she returned by playing a few points each on Sept. 26 and 28.
Sicner didn't make the trip to the Commonwealth Classic (Sept. 5-6) so that she could spend more time with her family, as her mother Cheryl would end up passing away on Friday morning (Sept. 5) after a lengthy battle with colon cancer. She played in just five points in the same 11 matches that Bird missed.
To help honor the memory of Cheryl Sicner, the team is wearing uniforms with a “CS” insignia on the right sleeve, and hosted a Colon Cancer Awareness Night, as well as a moment of silence, prior to its Senior Night on Sept. 26 vs. Butler.
Offensive Production Up
Creighton is averaging 14.07 kills per set through 22 matches, easily the top mark in the BIG EAST and 22nd-best nationally. The figure is the best by any Bluejay team since sets have been played to 25 points beginning in 2008.
On the other side of the net, CU is allowing only 11.67 kills per set. That figure would be the best mark by any CU defense since the program's 1994 reinstatement.
Tough With A Lead
Creighton is 66-5 since September 1, 2011 when winning set one, with three of those losses coming against top-11 teams.
Creighton has won 42 straight home matches when winning set one dating to an Aug. 28, 2010 loss to Lipscomb.
Creighton has won 72 straight matches when leading 2-0 (dating to Sept. 12, 2009) and has also won 56 of its last 57 matches when leading 2-1 in a match dating to Oct. 16, 2009.
All-time under Kirsten Bernthal Booth, Creighton is 145-2 when leading a match 2-0 and is also 97-8 when leading a match 2-1 after three sets.
Taking The Fifth
Creighton is 37-21 in five-set matches under Kirsten Bernthal Booth, including a 1-2 mark this year and a 12-6 home record in five-setters. That's impressive since Creighton had never finished a season with a winning record in fifth sets prior to Booth's arrival.
Creighton has won five of its last six true road matches to go five sets, including wins in 2012 over league rivals Northern Iowa, Wichita State and Missouri State, and wins last year at Denver and at Wichita State.
It's also worth noting that Creighton is 6-2 all-time in five-set home matches at D.J. Sokol Arena.
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 3-3 21-12
2011 5-2 17-14
2012 4-1 29-4
2013 3-2 23-9
2014 1-2 15-7
Total 52-49 318-287
Finally, A Title At Home
The Sept. 12-13 Bluejay Invitational was the 15th home tournament that Creighton has ever hosted, but first such title it has celebrated at home.
Before that, CU had hosted nine Bluejay Invitationals, (2005-13), two Creighton First Serve Festivals (1996-97), one Creighton Classic (2011), one MVC Tournament (2009) and one BIG EAST Tournament (2013) since the program's 1994 restart without a title.
Baumert Shows Offensive Side, Too
Junior Maggie Baumert had 13 kills in 34 attack attempts at the Commonwealth Classic while directing a 5-1 offense in college for the first time.
In the first 65 matches of her career (62 at Georgia, 3 at Creighton), spanning 241 sets, Baumert owned a total of nine kills in 25 attack attempts.
Baumert also showed herself to be a capable blocker. She had five blocks in the tournament, including her first ever solo stuff, after just three career blocks previously.
Last Year Summary
Last year's Creighton team finished 23-9 and tied for second place in the BIG EAST with a 12-4 league mark.
The Bluejays reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the third time in four years with a first-round victory over Arkansas.
Kelli Browning and Leah McNary were named first team all-conference, while Browning and Michelle Sicner were tabbed as AVCA All-American Honorable Mention selections.
Second Round
Creighton is one of 19 teams to win a first round match in the NCAA Tournament each of the past two years.
That list, alphabetically, includes BYU, Creighton, Florida, Florida State, Hawai'i, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Oregon, Penn State, Purdue, Stanford, Texas, Texas A&M, USC and Washington.
Busy Month
Creighton played 13 matches in the month of September, all during a 24-day stretch between Sept. 5-28. CU went 8-5 in that stretch.
The 13 matches were the most in any month for Bluejay Volleyball since 13 matches in September of 2006. CU went 10-3 in that month, its most victories ever for any month.
If you're curious, the only month in history that CU played more than 13 times came in September of 1995, when it went 7-9.
The Votes Add Up
Creighton has eight matches scheduled against teams that received votes in the preseason AVCA Top 25 poll, including five teams in the top-25.
Creighton plays matches against teams that were preseason ranked No. 5 (USC), No. 7 (Nebraska), No. 11 (Illinois), No. 19 (Kentucky) and No. 22 (Kansas).
Creighton also hosts Colorado, which received enough points to finish 33rd in the voting, and has a home-and-home league series with No. 29 Marquette.
Besides Creighton, the only other school to play five different non-conference teams that are in the preseason top-25 is Stanford.
When it took on No. 6 USC and No. 16 Kentucky on Sept. 6, it marked the first time ever that Creighton faced two ranked teams on the same day. It was also just the fifth time CU played in a regular-season tournament against two ranked teams, joining the Pacific/Nike Invitational (1998), Santa Clara Invitational (2001), Holiday Inn Downtown Classic (2007) and the Bluejay Invitational (2008).
Hometown Flavor
Creighton's 2014 roster boasts 10 players from the state of Nebraska, including all four newcomers.
The 10 Nebraska natives is most since the program's 1994 restart, one more than the 2004 and 2005 clubs that had nine each.
Once In A Lifetime Trip
Creighton experienced a once-in-a-lifetime trip in mid-May when it ventured to Nicaragua. The trip included several matches against the Nicaraguan Jr. National Team (all Creighton victories), but much of the trip's purpose centered on visits to schools, delivering books and other service-oriented programs.
Team USA Trio
Three members of the Creighton Volleyball team donned Team USA jerseys this summer. Kelli Browning, Jess Bird and Michelle Sicner each suited up for the US Collegiate National Team in June at the 2014 USA Volleyball Girls' Junior National Championships in Minneapolis.
Creighton and Florida State led all schools with three representatives among the 36 women selected.
Regular-Season Tournament History
Creighton is 83-78 in the 54 regular-season tournaments it has participated in all-time, including a 23-9 mark since the start of 2012. Kirsten Bernthal Booth's teams are 63-45 in 38 regular-season tournaments, including nine titles.
Creighton won two regular-season tournaments in 2012, taking the season-opening USF Invitational as well as the Northern Colorado Classic, the Hampton Inn Invitational in 2013, and the Bluejay Invitational (Sept. 12-13).
Creighton had won just two of 16 regular-season tournaments prior to Booth's arrival.
Big Time Schedule
Creighton's non-conference slate contained six teams to get votes for the preseason top-25, including five ranked teams.
In addition, seven of the teams are picked either first or second place in their conference.
Name Preseason Rank Preseason Conf. Rank
Lipscomb - 1st in Atlantic Sun
Utah Valley - 3rd in Western Athletic
Kansas 22 2nd in Big 12
Northern Iowa - 2nd in Missouri Valley
USC 5 2nd in Pacific-12
Kentucky 19 2nd in Southeastern
Pepperdine - 4th in WCC
Bowling Green - 3rd in Mid-American East
Wichita State - 1st in Missouri Valley
Nebraska 7 2nd in Big 10
Illinois 11 4th in Big 10
South Dakota - 4th in Summit
Colorado RV 7th in Pacific-12
As A Ranked Team
All-time, Creighton is 19-6 when playing as a ranked team in the AVCA poll, including a 18-2 mark versus unranked teams.
The Bluejays started the year in the preseason Top 25 for the second straight fall. Last year's team was 25th to start the season, while this fall the club is ranked 23rd.
Set 1 Result = Match Result
Creighton is 189-22 overall under Kirsten Bernthal Booth when it wins set one. In that same time span, CU is just 36-113 under Booth when it drops the first set.
Creighton has also won 42 home straight contests when winning the first set.
Survival of the Fittest
Creighton has won six matches under Kirsten Bernthal Booth after surviving an opponent's match point. Three of those wins have come against Wichita State.
On the other hand, Creighton is 225-2 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 fifth set loss, and two other match points on Nov. 1, 2013 in a 17-15 fifth set loss to St. John's.
Surviving Match Points, Under Booth
Date Opponent MP(s) Faced Final Set 5
08/30/03 vs. McNeese State 13-14, 15-16 18-16
10/10/03 Wichita State 13-14 16-14
10/13/06 at Wichita State 12-14, 13-14, 14-15 17-15
09/11/07 at Drake 13-14, 14-15 17-15
08/26/11 vs. UTSA 12-14, 13-14 16-14
11/16/12 at Wichita State 13-14 16-14
2-0 Better Than 0-2
Creighton is 200-8 (.962) all-time when leading a match 2-0, including a 142-2 mark under Kirsten Bernthal Booth. They own an 94-4 all-time mark in home matches they lead 2-0 in.
Conversely, the Jays are 8-178 (.043) all-time when trailing a match 0-2, including an 0-62 mark in those home matches. Those eight 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
11/16/12 at Wichita St. 25-16, 25-20, 16-14 Booth
09/05/14 vs. No. Iowa 25-16, 25-22, 15-5 Booth
A Bunch Of Winners
Creighton has experienced a great deal of success in recent seasons, and the current squad has enjoyed victories at historic levels. Consider the following numbers entering the 2014 season:
CU's 52 victories in the previous two seasons are six more than other two-year span in program history, previously done from 2011-12.
CU's 69 wins in the previous three seasons are the most in any three-year span in program history, two more than the 2010-12 (and 2012-14) total of 67. With wins vs. Marquette and DePaul this weekend, CU would reach 69 wins over the previous three seasons and tie that record.
CU's 90 victories in the previous four seasons are nine more than other four-year span in program history, which was done from 2009-12.
Blocking Specialists
Creighton has consistently proven to be an elite blocking team in recent seasons, leading their conference each of the previous three years in the category.
The Jays led the nation last year with 3.06 blocks per set, and one year prior were fourth-best nationally while also averaging 3.06 blocks per set.
Leading the blocking brigade during this time span has been Kelli Browning. Browning was fifth nationally in 2012 with 1.65 blocks per set, then finished eighth in 2013 with 1.53 stuffs per set.
This year, Browning ranks sixth in the country with 114 blocks, a figure leads the nation's seniors.
Marian Pipeline
This is the 12th straight season that Creighton Volleyball had at least one product of Omaha Marian High School on the roster, as juniors Kate Elman and Ashley Jansen are in the program.
Interestingly, the Jays had never had a volleyball player from Marian between 1994-2002. Here's a look at Creighton's pipeline of players from Marian.
2014: Kate Elman, Ashley Jansen
2013: Kate Elman, Ashley Jansen
2012: Kate Elman, Ashley Jansen
2011: Julianne Mandolfo
2010: Lisa Greisch, Julianne Mandolfo
2009: Lisa Greisch
2008: Emily Crowley, Korie Lebeda
2007: Korie Lebeda, Katie Mehal
2006: Korie Lebeda, Katie Mehal, Emily Greisch
2005: Korie Lebeda, Katie Mehal
2004: Katie Mehal, Emily Greisch
2003: Emily Greisch
Production Returning
Creighton returns 12-of-13 letterwinners to the court from last season. Below is a breakdown of the production that returns:
Stat Returners Departures
Points 2100.5 (99.1%) 19.5 (0.9%)
Kills 1618 (99.3%) 12 (0.7%)
Digs 1892 (99.2%) 15 (0.8%)
Aces 120 (100.0%) 0 (0.0%)
Matches Started 157 (98.1%) 3 (1.9%)
Blocks 362.5 (98.0%) 7.5 (2.0%)
Assists 1516 (100.0%) 0 (0.0%)
Radio Broadcast Information
Brad Burwell and former Bluejay volleyball player Erin (Swanson) Russell will broadcast most home matches this season.
The matches will air on KZOT (1180 AM) or KOIL (1290 AM) and be webcast online 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.
Creighton's upcoming matches on Oct. 24 and 26 will air on KZOT, while the Nov. 1 match is scheduled to air on KOZN.
BIG EAST Preseason Poll
For the second straight season, Creighton has been picked to win the BIG EAST Conference in a preseason poll of league coaches.
CU received 77 points in the poll and five of a possible 10 first-place votes. Defending champ Marquette was picked second with 71 points and four first-place votes, while Xavier (66 points) was third and claimed the remaining first-place tally. Rounding out the rest of the poll were Butler, St. John's, Seton Hall, Villanova, Georgetown, DePaul and Providence.
Creighton also had two women named to the 13 member on the BIG EAST's preseason all-conference team, as both Kelli Browning and Leah McNary were honored for a second straight year.
Marquette's Autumn Bailey was chosen as Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year.
Creighton has finished in the spot predicted of them or better in the preseason poll in nine of the past 11 years.
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 3rd #1
2011 3rd 4th i1
2012 4th 1st #3
2013 1st T-2nd i1
2014 1st ??? ???
Players Mentioned
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/ VolleyballCreighton Volleyball vs. South Florida Press Conference - 9/20/25
Saturday, September 20
#18 Creighton Volleyball vs. South Florida Highlights - 9/20/25
Saturday, September 20
Creighton Volleyball Media Availability - 9/17/25
Wednesday, September 17
#18 Creighton Volleyball vs. #1 Nebraska Highlights - 9/16/25
Wednesday, September 17
