Home At Last, Volleyball Hosts Bluejay Invitational
9/10/2014 11:46:00 AM | Volleyball
This Weekend -- Bluejay Invitational
Sept. 12 4:30 pm Wichita State vs. Bowling Green Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
Sept. 12 7:00 pm Pepperdine at Creighton (1290 AM) Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
Sept. 13 10:00 am Wichita State vs. Pepperdine Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
Sept. 13 Noon Bowling Green at Creighton (1180 AM) Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
Sept. 13 5:30 pm Pepperdine vs. Bowling Green Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
Sept. 13 7:30 pm Wichita State at Creighton (1180 AM; Cox 122 TV) Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
This Weekend
After playing its first six matches of the season on the road, Creighton (3-3) returns home to host the Bluejay Invitational.
The tournament begins on Friday at 4:30 pm when Wichita State (4-3) meets Bowling Green (2-4), followed by Creighton's 7 pm contest vs. Pepperdine (3-3).
Four matches are in store for a busy Saturday. Wichita State takes on Pepperdine at 10 am, followed by Bowling Green vs. Creighton at Noon.
Saturday evening's session includes Pepperdine vs. Bowling Green at 5:30 pm, and concludes with Wichita State at Creighton at 7:30 pm.
All matches will take place at D.J. Sokol Arena inside the Wayne and Eileen Ryan Athletic Center on the Creighton campus in Omaha, Neb. (2,500).
Video Webcast Information
All six matches of the Bluejay Invitational will be video webcast, and all but the Bowling Green vs. Pepperdine matches are scheduled to have commentary with the video.
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 first serve.
Radio Broadcast Information
All three Creighton matches will be broadcast on radio in Omaha, and also streamed free of charge via links on the Creighton Volleyball schedule page at GoCreighton.com.
Plans call for Friday's match to air on KOIL (1290 AM). Both matches on Saturday will air on KZOT (1180 AM).
Brad Burwell and Erin (Swanson) Russell return to the broadcast booth once again. It is Burwell's 12th year on the call, and Russell's 13th season following a standout career with the Bluejays.
Television Broadcast Information
Saturday night's match between Wichita State and Creighton will be televised in both Wichita and in Omaha by Cox. Fans can tune in to channel 122 in Omaha to watch.
Mike Kennedy and Sam Sanders will be on the call.
Live Stats Information
All matches at the Bluejay Invitational will have free live stats. Visit www.gocreighton.com and click on the Live Stats tab at the top of the page the exact links to each match.
Scouting Creighton
Ranked 23rd in the preseason poll, Creighton is 29th for a second consecutive week in the AVCA poll following a 3-3 start.
Creighton's best win to date is a 3-1 win over Lipscomb to open the season, while all three losses came to teams ranked in the top-25.
A pair of Preseason All-BIG EAST honorees, Kelli Browning (3.13 kps., 1.09 bps.) and Leah McNary (3.09 kps.) have paced the Bluejay offense so far, while Kate Elman (5.17 dps., 0.26 saps.) leads the team in both digs and aces per set.
Creighton returns 12 letterwinners and all six starters (plus its libero) from last year's team that finished 23-9 overall and tied for second in the BIG EAST Conference with a 12-4 league record.
Creighton averages 13.91 kills, 16.13 digs, 2.30 blocks and 0.83 aces per set while hitting .227 as a team.
Scouting Pepperdine
Pepperdine is 3-3 on the young season, going 2-1 at the Asics Classic to start the season in Malibu before a 1-2 record in three matches at UC Irvine last weekend. Three of six matches went five sets, including wins over Nevada and Utah State.
Jillian Bergeson leads the team with 2.73 kills per set while hitting a stout .269. Not far behind are Gaby Palmeri (2.38 kps., .305%) and Becca Strehlow (2.12 kps., 3.15 dps., 5.96 aps.).
The Waves have employed a 6-2 system so far, with Strehlow and Chanel Brown (4.46 aps.) splitting time as the setter.
Pepperdine went 15-11 last year and tied for fourth in the West Coast Conference. The Waves returned eight letterwinners, including four starters.
Pepperdine averages 12.27 kills, 1.69 aces, 13.19 digs and 1.79 blocks per set while hitting .249 as a team.
Scouting Bowling Green
Bowling Green is 2-4 on the season. Both wins, as well as one of the losses, went the full five sets.
BGSU started the year 0-3 at home before a 2-1 tournament at Wright State last weekend.
Nicole Slimko averages 3.60 kills per set and owns 40 more kills than the next closest teammate, Kelsey Bates (2.00 kps., 1.08 bps.). The Falcons have played the past five matches without top returner Jelena Sunjic (2.79 kps. last year) due to injury.
BGSU went 14-16 last season and returned five letterwinners and three starters from a team that finished in second place in the Mid-American Conference East Division.
Bowling Green averages 10.08 kills, 1.04 aces, 11.80 digs and 2.28 blocks per set on .163 hitting.
Scouting Wichita State
Wichita State is 4-3 on the young season, with four of those seven matches having gone five sets.
The preseason favorites in the Missouri Valley Conference bring back one starter from a team that went 28-7 and reached the NCAA Tournament.
Freshman Mikaela Raudsepp has emerged as the offensive leader for the Shockers early on, averaging 2.76 kills and 2.48 digs per set.
Also averaging multiple kills per set have been Katie Reilly (2.17 kps., 0.83 bps., .333%) and MaryAshton Floyd (2.10 kps.).
Emily Hiebert is in her first year as the Shocker setter and has averaged 8.62 assists per set through two weekends of play.
As a team, WSU averages 11.21 kills, 1.31 aces, 15.07 digs and 1.71 blocks per set while hitting .196.
The Coaches
Creighton is coached by Kirsten Bernthal Booth (Truman State, 1997), who owns a 213-131 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.
Pepperdine is coached by Troy Tanner (Pepperdine, 1992), who is 3-3 in his first season as a head coach. Tanner was a three-time All-American, NCAA champion and Olympic Gold Medalist during a decorated playing career at Pepperdine. As a coach, he directed the Gold Medal duo of Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings, and was also an assistant on two BYU teams that won a national title. He is assisted by Alex Dunphy and Kyle Luongo.
Danijela Tomic (Arkansas-Little Rock, 1999)owns a 38-31 mark in her third year at Bowling Green, moving her career record to 196-92 in 10 years. Before heading to BGSU, Tomic won three Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year honors in seven seasons as head coach at Florida International. Tomic is assisted by Jessica Hohl and Rodnei Santos.
Chris Lamb (Sonoma State, 1998) is in his 15th season with Wichita State. Lamb owns a 316-132 record, all with the Shockers, and led WSU to the second round of the 2004, 2007, 2008 and 2009 NCAA Tournaments before a 2012 Sweet 16 run. He is assisted by Sean Carter and Matt Hoffman.
Series History vs. Pepperdine
Creighton and Pepperdine have never met.
Series History vs. Bowling Green
Creighton won the only previous meeting between the schools, sweeping the Falcons (25-23, 26-24, 27-25) last season at the season-opening Hampton Inn Invitational in Bowling Green, Ohio.
Leah McNary had 11 kills to lead CU, while Jess Bird had 10 kills and nine digs. Also playing a big role was Kelli Browning, who hit .400 and finished with nine kills and 10 block assists.
Bowling Green was led by 21 kills on .459 hitting by Paige Penrod.
Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 1-0 all-time against Bowling Green and 1-1 in head-to-head match-ups with Danijela Tomic.
Series History vs. Wichita State
Creighton owns a 22-21 lead in the all-time series with Wichita State, including five straight wins and an 8-3 mark in the past 11 contests.
Creighton is 12-7 in Omaha against the Shockers, including a 4-0 mark at D.J. Sokol Arena.
The first set winner of the CU-WSU match has won 21 of the past 26 match-ups. Additionally, Wichita State had won 22 straight third sets against the Bluejays until CU turned the tables and has won the third set in the last four encounters.
Booth is 11-13 vs. Wichita State and Chris Lamb, while Lamb is 15-15 vs. Creighton all-time.
Creighton won the 2012 MVC Tournament title against Wichita State (3-0 in Springfield, Mo.), and last season CU won 3-2 at the Shocker Invitational in Wichita. In last season's match-up, Leah McNary had 17 kills while Michelle Sicner approached a quadruple-double with 45 assists, 14 digs, seven blocks and six kills.
Last Weekend Summary
Playing without 2013 starters Jess Bird and Michelle Sicner, Creighton went 1-2 against a loaded field at the Commonwealth Classic in Lexington, Ky. The Bluejays lost the first two sets on Friday before rallying for a 3-2 victory against former MVC nemesis Northern Iowa.
On Saturday, Creighton fell in four sets to No. 6 USC before getting swept by No. 16 Kentucky.
Kelli Browning was named to the All-Tournament Team for Creighton after averaging 3.25 kills and 1.00 blocks per set while hitting .405.
Quest For A Title Continues
Though this will be the 10th edition of the Bluejay Invitational, host Creighton is still in search of its first championship at its own tournament. Creighton is 13-12 in its Bluejay Invitational history.
Champions, by year, include Iowa State (2005), Iowa (2006), Middle Tennessee (2007), Minnesota (2008), Illinois (2009), Kansas (2010), Northern Illinois (2011), Kansas State (2012) and California (2013).
Between 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), Creighton has never won any of the 14 tournaments it has hosted since the program's 1994 restart.
Longitude Aptitude
There have been 21 previous schools (besides Creighton) to play in the Bluejay Invitational. Teams located west of Omaha are a combined 9-22 with two titles, while teams to the east of Omaha are 26-14 with seven titles.
Of this year's field, Bowling Green is east of Omaha while Wichita State and Pepperdine are located west of Omaha.
Wilkinson Producing Early & Often
Marysa Wilkinson is quickly emerging as an offensive weapon for Creighton. Since making her debut in CU's second match of the season, she's had five or more kills in each of the past five matches.
With nine kills last Saturday 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.
Creighton's last true freshman with 10+ kills vs. a top-10 team was Leah Ratzlaff, who had 10 kills vs. No. 10 Northern Iowa on Oct. 18, 2002.
Expect Some Drama
The four teams coming into this weekend's Bluejay Invitational have combined to play 25 matches this season, and 11 of those contests went five sets.
In fact, last Friday these four teams played six matches, and ALL six went the maximum distance.
By contrast, in the nine-year history of the Bluejay Invitational, only 6-of-48 matches have gone five sets, and four of those occurrences were in 2006. None of the last 30 matches at the Bluejay Invitational (including all 27 held at D.J. Sokol Arena) have gone five sets, with the last one coming on Aug. 30, 2008, when No. 21 LSU topped Creighton at the Omaha Civic Auditorium.
Taking The Fifth
Creighton is 37-19 in five-set matches under Kirsten Bernthal Booth, including a 1-0 mark this year and a 12-5 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 straight 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 6-1 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 1-0 3-3
Total 52-47 306-283
Been There, Done That
Seven of Creighton's last 10 wins against Wichita State have been five-set victories.
Creighton is 8-1 in its last nine five-set matches against Wichita State, and has won a five-set match against the Shockers in each of the last four seasons.
In 2012, Creighton overcame an 0-2 deficit to win at Wichita State, the program's first win (against any foe) after trailing 0-2 since 2007.
It's also worth noting that Creighton has survived a Wichita State match point and rallied to win three times in 12 years under Kirsten Bernthal Booth.
Thorn In Their Side
Creighton is 7-2 since the start of the 2010 season against Wichita State, one more than the number of CU wins in the series from 2001-09.
Since the start of 2011, only 20 different programs have defeated Wichita State. Of those 20, the only four teams to beat WSU more than once have been Northern Iowa (6 times), Creighton (5) and Hawai'i (twice) and Illinois State (twice).
Starters Sidelined
Making Creighton's showing at the Commonwealth Classic all the more impressive was the fact that the Bluejays did it without a pair of 2013 starters who did not make the trip to Lexington, Jess Bird and Michelle Sicner.
Bird had arthroscopic surgery on her knee last Wednesday (Sept. 3), an injury expected to sideline her for several weeks.
Sicner didn't make the trip 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.
To help honor the memory of Cheryl Sicner, the team is wearing uniforms with a “CS” insignia on the right sleeve, and will be hosting a Colon Cancer Awareness Night on Sept. 26.
Throwing A Scare Into Women of Troy
Creighton raised more than a few eyebrows last Saturday morning when it won the first set from No. 6 USC, 25-22. It remains the only time all season the Trojans have trailed in the match after any set.
Creighton has played 13 matches against top-10 teams in its history, and this was just the third 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.
Home Sweet Home Openers
Creighton enters Friday's match vs. Pepperdine with a 13-7 mark in home openers, including a 8-3 mark under Kirsten Bernthal Booth.
This year's Sept. 12 home opener is the latest on the calendar since 2003, when Booth's first Bluejay team opened at home on Sept. 19.
Milestone Watch
Leah McNary has 989 career kills, 11 away from becoming the ninth player in school history to reach 1,000. McNary had exactly 11 kills vs. Bowling Green last season, and owns 11 or more kills in each of her last five matches against Saturday night's opponent, Wichita State.
Friday will be McNary's 96th match played as a Bluejay.
The last Bluejay to reach 1,000 career kills was Allie Oelke in 2010.
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
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
More Milestones
Kate Elman has 1,241 career digs, rising from seventh to fourth place in CU history last weekend. Elman needs 18 digs to pass Kailey Reyes for third place.
Kelli Browning is 10th in CU history with 41 solo blocks. She's one shy of a tie for eighth place, two shy of seventh place and three shy of sixth place.
Browning also owns 406 career block assists, and last weekend became the second player in CU history to reach 400 in that category.
Browning enters this weekend tied for second in CU history with 447 total blocks.
Michelle Sicner owns 237 career block assists, 13 shy of 10th place (Sarah Beulke). In addition, Sicner's next dig will be the 600th of her career.
Television Turns Out
Creighton will make its first television appearance of the season on Saturday night vs. Wichita State
The Jays are 6-8 in 14 previous appearances on the small screen under Kirsten Bernthal Booth, but are 4-1 at D.J. Sokol Arena on TV.
Creighton Volleyball on Television, Since 2003
Date Opponent TV Coverage W-L
09/23/03 at UMKC Mediacom W 3-1
10/11/05 at #1 Nebraska Time Warner L 0-3
11/09/07 at Missouri State Mediacom W 3-1
11/10/07 at #24 Wichita State Cox Wichita L 0-3
10/05/08 at #2 Nebraska NET/CBSCS L 0-3
10/03/09 Missouri State NET-HD L 0-3
10/23/10 at #14 Northern Iowa Mediacom L 0-3
11/27/10 at #11 Northern Iowa FSN Midwest L 1-3
09/08/11 at #11 Nebraska NET-HD L 0-3
11/03/11 Wichita State Cox/Kansas 22 W 3-2
09/19/12 at Kansas MetroSports/Cox L 2-3
09/25/12 South Dakota Cox 2 W 3-1
11/10/12 Illinois State Cox 2 W 3-1
11/24/12 Wichita State FSN Midwest W 3-0
Offensive Production Up
Creighton is averaging 13.91 kills per set through two weekends of play, easily the top mark in the BIG EAST. 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 12.65 kills per set. That figure would be the best mark by a CU defense since 2008.
Baumert Shows Offensive Side, Too
Junior Maggie Baumert had 13 kills in 34 attack attempts last weekend 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 last weekend, 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 is playing 13 matches in the month of September, all during a 24-day stretch between Sept. 5-28. That stretch began last weekend with three matches at the Commonwealth Classic.
The 13 matches are 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.
Creighton is 3-55 all-time against top-25 foes, including an 0-29 mark in true road matches.
When it took on No. 6 USC and No. 16 Kentucky last Saturday, 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 with two ranked teams, joining the Pacific/Nike Invitational (1998), Santa Clara Invitational (2001), Holiday Inn Downtown Classic (2007) and the Bluejay Invitational (2008).
Tough With A Lead
Creighton is 54-4 since September 1, 2011 when winning set one.
Creighton has won 34 straight home matches when winning set one dating to an Aug. 28, 2010 loss to Lipscomb.
Creighton has won 63 straight matches when leading 2-0 (dating to Sept. 12, 2009) and has also won 50 consecutive matches when leading 2-1 in a match (dating to Oct. 16, 2009).
All-time under Kirsten Bernthal Booth, Creighton is 136-2 when leading a match 2-0 and is also 91-7 when leading a match 2-1 after three sets.
Or Not So Familiar
When Creighton left the Missouri Valley Conference last July, two of its biggest rivals were Northern Iowa and Wichita State. The Bluejays beat UNI last Friday, and meet Wichita State on Saturday.
Creighton's veteran side features 10 women on the roster who have appeared in a match against Wichita State. By comparison, a young Shocker squad has only five players that have previously faced off against Creighton.
Keep On Digging
Libero Kate Elman keeps on digging her way up the record books. The junior from Omaha has had 10 or more digs in 29 straight matches, third-longest in CU history.
Elman also owns 27 career matches with 20 or more digs, and 67 matches with 10 or more digs to rank in the top-five in school history in both of those categories, as well.
In Elman's 71 career matches, she's never had fewer than eight digs.
Consecutive Matches, 10 or More Digs
43 Janeen Piller, Oct. 10, 2003-Nov. 26, 2004
32 Kate Elman, Aug. 24 - Nov. 30, 2012
29 Kate Elman, Sept. 30, 2013 - Present
27 Bianca Rivera, Aug. 24-Nov. 9, 2007
Matches With 20+ Digs, Career
20+D Name Years
32 Julianne Mandolfo 2010-11
27 Bianca Rivera 2007-08
27 Kate Elman 2012-Pres.
20 Janeen Piller 2001-04
Matches With 10+ Digs, Career
10+D Name Years
74 Janeen Piller 2001-04
71 Allie Oelke 2007-10
67 Kate Elman 2012-Pres.
65 Melissa Weisensee 1994-97
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 79-76 in the 52 regular-season tournaments it has participated in all-time, including a 19-7 mark since the start of 2012. Kirsten Bernthal Booth's teams are 59-43 in 36 regular-season tournaments, including eight titles.
Creighton won two regular-season tournaments in 2012, taking the season-opening USF Invitational as well as the Northern Colorado Classic, and also won the Hampton Inn Invitational in 2013.
Creighton had won just two of 16 regular-season tournaments prior to Booth's arrival.
Big Time Schedule
Creighton's non-conference slate contains 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 177-21 overall under Kirsten Bernthal Booth when it wins set one. In that same time span, CU is just 36-110 under Booth when it drops the first set.
Creighton has also won 34 home straight contests when winning the first set.
Since the start of the 2012 season, Creighton is 41-4 when winning the opening set of a match. In that time, Creighton is 54-4 when leading in sets played at any point of a match.
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 213-2 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 193-8 (.960) all-time when leading a match 2-0, including a 135-2 mark under Kirsten Bernthal Booth. They own an 90-4 all-time mark in home matches they lead 2-0 in.
Conversely, the Jays are 8-176 (.043) all-time when trailing a match 0-2, including an 0-60 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 total of 67.
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.
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%)
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
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 ??? ???
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) and 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.
While the schedule is still being finalized, preliminary plans call for the first eight home matches to be broadcast.
Sept. 12 4:30 pm Wichita State vs. Bowling Green Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
Sept. 12 7:00 pm Pepperdine at Creighton (1290 AM) Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
Sept. 13 10:00 am Wichita State vs. Pepperdine Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
Sept. 13 Noon Bowling Green at Creighton (1180 AM) Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
Sept. 13 5:30 pm Pepperdine vs. Bowling Green Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
Sept. 13 7:30 pm Wichita State at Creighton (1180 AM; Cox 122 TV) Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
This Weekend
After playing its first six matches of the season on the road, Creighton (3-3) returns home to host the Bluejay Invitational.
The tournament begins on Friday at 4:30 pm when Wichita State (4-3) meets Bowling Green (2-4), followed by Creighton's 7 pm contest vs. Pepperdine (3-3).
Four matches are in store for a busy Saturday. Wichita State takes on Pepperdine at 10 am, followed by Bowling Green vs. Creighton at Noon.
Saturday evening's session includes Pepperdine vs. Bowling Green at 5:30 pm, and concludes with Wichita State at Creighton at 7:30 pm.
All matches will take place at D.J. Sokol Arena inside the Wayne and Eileen Ryan Athletic Center on the Creighton campus in Omaha, Neb. (2,500).
Video Webcast Information
All six matches of the Bluejay Invitational will be video webcast, and all but the Bowling Green vs. Pepperdine matches are scheduled to have commentary with the video.
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 first serve.
Radio Broadcast Information
All three Creighton matches will be broadcast on radio in Omaha, and also streamed free of charge via links on the Creighton Volleyball schedule page at GoCreighton.com.
Plans call for Friday's match to air on KOIL (1290 AM). Both matches on Saturday will air on KZOT (1180 AM).
Brad Burwell and Erin (Swanson) Russell return to the broadcast booth once again. It is Burwell's 12th year on the call, and Russell's 13th season following a standout career with the Bluejays.
Television Broadcast Information
Saturday night's match between Wichita State and Creighton will be televised in both Wichita and in Omaha by Cox. Fans can tune in to channel 122 in Omaha to watch.
Mike Kennedy and Sam Sanders will be on the call.
Live Stats Information
All matches at the Bluejay Invitational will have free live stats. Visit www.gocreighton.com and click on the Live Stats tab at the top of the page the exact links to each match.
Scouting Creighton
Ranked 23rd in the preseason poll, Creighton is 29th for a second consecutive week in the AVCA poll following a 3-3 start.
Creighton's best win to date is a 3-1 win over Lipscomb to open the season, while all three losses came to teams ranked in the top-25.
A pair of Preseason All-BIG EAST honorees, Kelli Browning (3.13 kps., 1.09 bps.) and Leah McNary (3.09 kps.) have paced the Bluejay offense so far, while Kate Elman (5.17 dps., 0.26 saps.) leads the team in both digs and aces per set.
Creighton returns 12 letterwinners and all six starters (plus its libero) from last year's team that finished 23-9 overall and tied for second in the BIG EAST Conference with a 12-4 league record.
Creighton averages 13.91 kills, 16.13 digs, 2.30 blocks and 0.83 aces per set while hitting .227 as a team.
Scouting Pepperdine
Pepperdine is 3-3 on the young season, going 2-1 at the Asics Classic to start the season in Malibu before a 1-2 record in three matches at UC Irvine last weekend. Three of six matches went five sets, including wins over Nevada and Utah State.
Jillian Bergeson leads the team with 2.73 kills per set while hitting a stout .269. Not far behind are Gaby Palmeri (2.38 kps., .305%) and Becca Strehlow (2.12 kps., 3.15 dps., 5.96 aps.).
The Waves have employed a 6-2 system so far, with Strehlow and Chanel Brown (4.46 aps.) splitting time as the setter.
Pepperdine went 15-11 last year and tied for fourth in the West Coast Conference. The Waves returned eight letterwinners, including four starters.
Pepperdine averages 12.27 kills, 1.69 aces, 13.19 digs and 1.79 blocks per set while hitting .249 as a team.
Scouting Bowling Green
Bowling Green is 2-4 on the season. Both wins, as well as one of the losses, went the full five sets.
BGSU started the year 0-3 at home before a 2-1 tournament at Wright State last weekend.
Nicole Slimko averages 3.60 kills per set and owns 40 more kills than the next closest teammate, Kelsey Bates (2.00 kps., 1.08 bps.). The Falcons have played the past five matches without top returner Jelena Sunjic (2.79 kps. last year) due to injury.
BGSU went 14-16 last season and returned five letterwinners and three starters from a team that finished in second place in the Mid-American Conference East Division.
Bowling Green averages 10.08 kills, 1.04 aces, 11.80 digs and 2.28 blocks per set on .163 hitting.
Scouting Wichita State
Wichita State is 4-3 on the young season, with four of those seven matches having gone five sets.
The preseason favorites in the Missouri Valley Conference bring back one starter from a team that went 28-7 and reached the NCAA Tournament.
Freshman Mikaela Raudsepp has emerged as the offensive leader for the Shockers early on, averaging 2.76 kills and 2.48 digs per set.
Also averaging multiple kills per set have been Katie Reilly (2.17 kps., 0.83 bps., .333%) and MaryAshton Floyd (2.10 kps.).
Emily Hiebert is in her first year as the Shocker setter and has averaged 8.62 assists per set through two weekends of play.
As a team, WSU averages 11.21 kills, 1.31 aces, 15.07 digs and 1.71 blocks per set while hitting .196.
The Coaches
Creighton is coached by Kirsten Bernthal Booth (Truman State, 1997), who owns a 213-131 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.
Pepperdine is coached by Troy Tanner (Pepperdine, 1992), who is 3-3 in his first season as a head coach. Tanner was a three-time All-American, NCAA champion and Olympic Gold Medalist during a decorated playing career at Pepperdine. As a coach, he directed the Gold Medal duo of Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings, and was also an assistant on two BYU teams that won a national title. He is assisted by Alex Dunphy and Kyle Luongo.
Danijela Tomic (Arkansas-Little Rock, 1999)owns a 38-31 mark in her third year at Bowling Green, moving her career record to 196-92 in 10 years. Before heading to BGSU, Tomic won three Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year honors in seven seasons as head coach at Florida International. Tomic is assisted by Jessica Hohl and Rodnei Santos.
Chris Lamb (Sonoma State, 1998) is in his 15th season with Wichita State. Lamb owns a 316-132 record, all with the Shockers, and led WSU to the second round of the 2004, 2007, 2008 and 2009 NCAA Tournaments before a 2012 Sweet 16 run. He is assisted by Sean Carter and Matt Hoffman.
Series History vs. Pepperdine
Creighton and Pepperdine have never met.
Series History vs. Bowling Green
Creighton won the only previous meeting between the schools, sweeping the Falcons (25-23, 26-24, 27-25) last season at the season-opening Hampton Inn Invitational in Bowling Green, Ohio.
Leah McNary had 11 kills to lead CU, while Jess Bird had 10 kills and nine digs. Also playing a big role was Kelli Browning, who hit .400 and finished with nine kills and 10 block assists.
Bowling Green was led by 21 kills on .459 hitting by Paige Penrod.
Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 1-0 all-time against Bowling Green and 1-1 in head-to-head match-ups with Danijela Tomic.
Series History vs. Wichita State
Creighton owns a 22-21 lead in the all-time series with Wichita State, including five straight wins and an 8-3 mark in the past 11 contests.
Creighton is 12-7 in Omaha against the Shockers, including a 4-0 mark at D.J. Sokol Arena.
The first set winner of the CU-WSU match has won 21 of the past 26 match-ups. Additionally, Wichita State had won 22 straight third sets against the Bluejays until CU turned the tables and has won the third set in the last four encounters.
Booth is 11-13 vs. Wichita State and Chris Lamb, while Lamb is 15-15 vs. Creighton all-time.
Creighton won the 2012 MVC Tournament title against Wichita State (3-0 in Springfield, Mo.), and last season CU won 3-2 at the Shocker Invitational in Wichita. In last season's match-up, Leah McNary had 17 kills while Michelle Sicner approached a quadruple-double with 45 assists, 14 digs, seven blocks and six kills.
Last Weekend Summary
Playing without 2013 starters Jess Bird and Michelle Sicner, Creighton went 1-2 against a loaded field at the Commonwealth Classic in Lexington, Ky. The Bluejays lost the first two sets on Friday before rallying for a 3-2 victory against former MVC nemesis Northern Iowa.
On Saturday, Creighton fell in four sets to No. 6 USC before getting swept by No. 16 Kentucky.
Kelli Browning was named to the All-Tournament Team for Creighton after averaging 3.25 kills and 1.00 blocks per set while hitting .405.
Quest For A Title Continues
Though this will be the 10th edition of the Bluejay Invitational, host Creighton is still in search of its first championship at its own tournament. Creighton is 13-12 in its Bluejay Invitational history.
Champions, by year, include Iowa State (2005), Iowa (2006), Middle Tennessee (2007), Minnesota (2008), Illinois (2009), Kansas (2010), Northern Illinois (2011), Kansas State (2012) and California (2013).
Between 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), Creighton has never won any of the 14 tournaments it has hosted since the program's 1994 restart.
Longitude Aptitude
There have been 21 previous schools (besides Creighton) to play in the Bluejay Invitational. Teams located west of Omaha are a combined 9-22 with two titles, while teams to the east of Omaha are 26-14 with seven titles.
Of this year's field, Bowling Green is east of Omaha while Wichita State and Pepperdine are located west of Omaha.
Wilkinson Producing Early & Often
Marysa Wilkinson is quickly emerging as an offensive weapon for Creighton. Since making her debut in CU's second match of the season, she's had five or more kills in each of the past five matches.
With nine kills last Saturday 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.
Creighton's last true freshman with 10+ kills vs. a top-10 team was Leah Ratzlaff, who had 10 kills vs. No. 10 Northern Iowa on Oct. 18, 2002.
Expect Some Drama
The four teams coming into this weekend's Bluejay Invitational have combined to play 25 matches this season, and 11 of those contests went five sets.
In fact, last Friday these four teams played six matches, and ALL six went the maximum distance.
By contrast, in the nine-year history of the Bluejay Invitational, only 6-of-48 matches have gone five sets, and four of those occurrences were in 2006. None of the last 30 matches at the Bluejay Invitational (including all 27 held at D.J. Sokol Arena) have gone five sets, with the last one coming on Aug. 30, 2008, when No. 21 LSU topped Creighton at the Omaha Civic Auditorium.
Taking The Fifth
Creighton is 37-19 in five-set matches under Kirsten Bernthal Booth, including a 1-0 mark this year and a 12-5 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 straight 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 6-1 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 1-0 3-3
Total 52-47 306-283
Been There, Done That
Seven of Creighton's last 10 wins against Wichita State have been five-set victories.
Creighton is 8-1 in its last nine five-set matches against Wichita State, and has won a five-set match against the Shockers in each of the last four seasons.
In 2012, Creighton overcame an 0-2 deficit to win at Wichita State, the program's first win (against any foe) after trailing 0-2 since 2007.
It's also worth noting that Creighton has survived a Wichita State match point and rallied to win three times in 12 years under Kirsten Bernthal Booth.
Thorn In Their Side
Creighton is 7-2 since the start of the 2010 season against Wichita State, one more than the number of CU wins in the series from 2001-09.
Since the start of 2011, only 20 different programs have defeated Wichita State. Of those 20, the only four teams to beat WSU more than once have been Northern Iowa (6 times), Creighton (5) and Hawai'i (twice) and Illinois State (twice).
Starters Sidelined
Making Creighton's showing at the Commonwealth Classic all the more impressive was the fact that the Bluejays did it without a pair of 2013 starters who did not make the trip to Lexington, Jess Bird and Michelle Sicner.
Bird had arthroscopic surgery on her knee last Wednesday (Sept. 3), an injury expected to sideline her for several weeks.
Sicner didn't make the trip 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.
To help honor the memory of Cheryl Sicner, the team is wearing uniforms with a “CS” insignia on the right sleeve, and will be hosting a Colon Cancer Awareness Night on Sept. 26.
Throwing A Scare Into Women of Troy
Creighton raised more than a few eyebrows last Saturday morning when it won the first set from No. 6 USC, 25-22. It remains the only time all season the Trojans have trailed in the match after any set.
Creighton has played 13 matches against top-10 teams in its history, and this was just the third 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.
Home Sweet Home Openers
Creighton enters Friday's match vs. Pepperdine with a 13-7 mark in home openers, including a 8-3 mark under Kirsten Bernthal Booth.
This year's Sept. 12 home opener is the latest on the calendar since 2003, when Booth's first Bluejay team opened at home on Sept. 19.
Milestone Watch
Leah McNary has 989 career kills, 11 away from becoming the ninth player in school history to reach 1,000. McNary had exactly 11 kills vs. Bowling Green last season, and owns 11 or more kills in each of her last five matches against Saturday night's opponent, Wichita State.
Friday will be McNary's 96th match played as a Bluejay.
The last Bluejay to reach 1,000 career kills was Allie Oelke in 2010.
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
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
More Milestones
Kate Elman has 1,241 career digs, rising from seventh to fourth place in CU history last weekend. Elman needs 18 digs to pass Kailey Reyes for third place.
Kelli Browning is 10th in CU history with 41 solo blocks. She's one shy of a tie for eighth place, two shy of seventh place and three shy of sixth place.
Browning also owns 406 career block assists, and last weekend became the second player in CU history to reach 400 in that category.
Browning enters this weekend tied for second in CU history with 447 total blocks.
Michelle Sicner owns 237 career block assists, 13 shy of 10th place (Sarah Beulke). In addition, Sicner's next dig will be the 600th of her career.
Television Turns Out
Creighton will make its first television appearance of the season on Saturday night vs. Wichita State
The Jays are 6-8 in 14 previous appearances on the small screen under Kirsten Bernthal Booth, but are 4-1 at D.J. Sokol Arena on TV.
Creighton Volleyball on Television, Since 2003
Date Opponent TV Coverage W-L
09/23/03 at UMKC Mediacom W 3-1
10/11/05 at #1 Nebraska Time Warner L 0-3
11/09/07 at Missouri State Mediacom W 3-1
11/10/07 at #24 Wichita State Cox Wichita L 0-3
10/05/08 at #2 Nebraska NET/CBSCS L 0-3
10/03/09 Missouri State NET-HD L 0-3
10/23/10 at #14 Northern Iowa Mediacom L 0-3
11/27/10 at #11 Northern Iowa FSN Midwest L 1-3
09/08/11 at #11 Nebraska NET-HD L 0-3
11/03/11 Wichita State Cox/Kansas 22 W 3-2
09/19/12 at Kansas MetroSports/Cox L 2-3
09/25/12 South Dakota Cox 2 W 3-1
11/10/12 Illinois State Cox 2 W 3-1
11/24/12 Wichita State FSN Midwest W 3-0
Offensive Production Up
Creighton is averaging 13.91 kills per set through two weekends of play, easily the top mark in the BIG EAST. 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 12.65 kills per set. That figure would be the best mark by a CU defense since 2008.
Baumert Shows Offensive Side, Too
Junior Maggie Baumert had 13 kills in 34 attack attempts last weekend 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 last weekend, 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 is playing 13 matches in the month of September, all during a 24-day stretch between Sept. 5-28. That stretch began last weekend with three matches at the Commonwealth Classic.
The 13 matches are 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.
Creighton is 3-55 all-time against top-25 foes, including an 0-29 mark in true road matches.
When it took on No. 6 USC and No. 16 Kentucky last Saturday, 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 with two ranked teams, joining the Pacific/Nike Invitational (1998), Santa Clara Invitational (2001), Holiday Inn Downtown Classic (2007) and the Bluejay Invitational (2008).
Tough With A Lead
Creighton is 54-4 since September 1, 2011 when winning set one.
Creighton has won 34 straight home matches when winning set one dating to an Aug. 28, 2010 loss to Lipscomb.
Creighton has won 63 straight matches when leading 2-0 (dating to Sept. 12, 2009) and has also won 50 consecutive matches when leading 2-1 in a match (dating to Oct. 16, 2009).
All-time under Kirsten Bernthal Booth, Creighton is 136-2 when leading a match 2-0 and is also 91-7 when leading a match 2-1 after three sets.
Or Not So Familiar
When Creighton left the Missouri Valley Conference last July, two of its biggest rivals were Northern Iowa and Wichita State. The Bluejays beat UNI last Friday, and meet Wichita State on Saturday.
Creighton's veteran side features 10 women on the roster who have appeared in a match against Wichita State. By comparison, a young Shocker squad has only five players that have previously faced off against Creighton.
Keep On Digging
Libero Kate Elman keeps on digging her way up the record books. The junior from Omaha has had 10 or more digs in 29 straight matches, third-longest in CU history.
Elman also owns 27 career matches with 20 or more digs, and 67 matches with 10 or more digs to rank in the top-five in school history in both of those categories, as well.
In Elman's 71 career matches, she's never had fewer than eight digs.
Consecutive Matches, 10 or More Digs
43 Janeen Piller, Oct. 10, 2003-Nov. 26, 2004
32 Kate Elman, Aug. 24 - Nov. 30, 2012
29 Kate Elman, Sept. 30, 2013 - Present
27 Bianca Rivera, Aug. 24-Nov. 9, 2007
Matches With 20+ Digs, Career
20+D Name Years
32 Julianne Mandolfo 2010-11
27 Bianca Rivera 2007-08
27 Kate Elman 2012-Pres.
20 Janeen Piller 2001-04
Matches With 10+ Digs, Career
10+D Name Years
74 Janeen Piller 2001-04
71 Allie Oelke 2007-10
67 Kate Elman 2012-Pres.
65 Melissa Weisensee 1994-97
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 79-76 in the 52 regular-season tournaments it has participated in all-time, including a 19-7 mark since the start of 2012. Kirsten Bernthal Booth's teams are 59-43 in 36 regular-season tournaments, including eight titles.
Creighton won two regular-season tournaments in 2012, taking the season-opening USF Invitational as well as the Northern Colorado Classic, and also won the Hampton Inn Invitational in 2013.
Creighton had won just two of 16 regular-season tournaments prior to Booth's arrival.
Big Time Schedule
Creighton's non-conference slate contains 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 177-21 overall under Kirsten Bernthal Booth when it wins set one. In that same time span, CU is just 36-110 under Booth when it drops the first set.
Creighton has also won 34 home straight contests when winning the first set.
Since the start of the 2012 season, Creighton is 41-4 when winning the opening set of a match. In that time, Creighton is 54-4 when leading in sets played at any point of a match.
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 213-2 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 193-8 (.960) all-time when leading a match 2-0, including a 135-2 mark under Kirsten Bernthal Booth. They own an 90-4 all-time mark in home matches they lead 2-0 in.
Conversely, the Jays are 8-176 (.043) all-time when trailing a match 0-2, including an 0-60 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 total of 67.
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.
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%)
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
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 ??? ???
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) and 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.
While the schedule is still being finalized, preliminary plans call for the first eight home matches to be broadcast.
Players Mentioned
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/ VolleyballCreighton's Ava Martin Highlights - 9/22/25
Monday, September 22
Creighton Volleyball Postgame Press Conference vs. Kansas - 9/21/25
Monday, September 22
Creighton Volleyball Highlights vs. Kansas, 9/21/25
Monday, September 22
Creighton Volleyball vs. South Florida Press Conference - 9/20/25
Saturday, September 20
