Volleyball Hosts #4 Nebraska on Tuesday at CenturyLink Center Omaha
9/14/2015 6:29:00 PM | Volleyball
This Week's Schedule
Sept. 15 7:00 pm #4 Nebraska at Creighton (1180 AM KZOT) Omaha, Neb. (CenturyLink Center Omaha)
Sept. 18 3:30 pm Kansas State vs. #11 Wisconsin Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
Sept. 18 6:00 pm Arkansas at Creighton (1180 AM KZOT) Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
Sept. 19 11:00 am Arkansas vs. Kansas State Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
Sept. 19 1:00 pm #11 Wisconsin at Creighton (1180 AM KZOT) Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
Sept. 19 8:00 pm #11 Wisconsin vs. Arkansas Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
Sept. 20 2:00 pm Kansas State at Creighton (1290 AM KOIL) Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena)
Next Match
Creighton Volleyball (4-5) will host four teams this week with a combined 29-4 record, a stretch that starts Tuesday with a showdown against No. 4 Nebraska (7-1).
The teams will meet at CenturyLink Center Omaha (17,290), home to this year's NCAA Volleyball Championships, in Omaha, Neb.
First serve is set for 7 pm, with doors opening at 6 pm. A crowd of 8,000 or more is anticipated.
Radio/Video Broadcast Information
Tuesday's match vs. Nebraska will air on KZOT (1180 AM), with Brad Burwell and Erin Swanson Russell on the call. Each broadcast includes a 10-minute pregame show as well as a postgame show.
Audio from the matches are streamed free of charge at http://v6.player.abacast.net/2760.
The match will also be streamed for free in HD on JaysVideo. To access, visit GoCreighton.com and click on the “TV” icon in the top right of the home page.
Live Stats Information
Tuesday's match will have free live stats. Visit www.gocreighton.com and click on the Live Stats icon near the top right of the page for the exact links to each match, or visit creighton.statbroadcast.com.
Scouting Creighton
Creighton is 4-5 on the season against a rigorous non-conference schedule. Nebraska will be fourth different top-10 team Creighton has faced this fall, and sixth different 2014 NCAA Tournament qualifier on the young season.
The Bluejays own wins over Miami University Ohio (3-2), No. 10 Kentucky (3-0), Lipscomb (3-0) and CSU Bakersfield (3-1), but have lost to Louisville (3-2), No. 8 Illinois (3-0), No. 8 USC (3-0), Northern Iowa (3-1) and Pacific (3-1).
The Bluejays return 11 letterwinners and four starters (plus its libero) from last year's team that finished 25-9 overall and won the BIG EAST regular-season and tournament titles.
Creighton has made three consecutive NCAA Tournaments and were ranked 36th in the preseason AVCA poll.
Spearheading the returners is Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year Jess Bird (2.68 kps., 3.12 dps.). Bird was a First Team All-BIG EAST choice last fall despite missing most of September following knee surgery.
In the middle, Lauren Smith (2.44 kps., 1.09 bps., .379%) was a Second Team All-BIG EAST pick and also named Most Valuable Player of the 2014 BIG EAST Championships. Smith has started her junior season with All-Tournament Team plaudits at all three events that CU has played in.
Senior Maggie Baumert (8.40 aps.) earned the bulk of the time at setter last year and has split time this fall with sophomore Kenzie Crawford (10.19 aps., 2.43 dps., 1.14 kps., .408%).
In the back row, senior Kate Elman (3.97 dps.) is already Creighton's all-time career digs leader and has spent most of her career at libero.
Creighton was a unanimous pick to win the BIG EAST, while Elman, Bird and Smith were named preseason all-league picks.
Creighton averages 12.47 kills, 1.26 aces, 15.65 digs and 2.19 blocks per set while hitting .226 as a team.
Scouting No. 4 Nebraska
Ranked No. 4 in this week's AVCA Top 25 poll, Nebraska is off to a 7-1 start, but the only loss came in NU's only previous true road match in five sets at No. 3 Texas.
The Cornhuskers have nine women with 25 kills or more, a group led by Kadie Rolfzen (3.24 kps., 2.68 dps., .304%) and Mikaela Foecke (2.66 kps., .365%), while Kelsey Fien (3.18 kps., .349%), Olivia Boender (2.80 kps., 3.20 dps., .288%) and Amber Rolfzen (1.73 kps., 1.53 bps.) are three others to keep an eye on.
Kelly Hunter (11.28 aps., 2.41 dps.) has taken on the setting role with great success, while Justine Wong-Orantes (4.00 dps.) continues to excel as the team's libero.
As a team, Nebraska hits .314 and averages 14.79 kills, 0.93 aces, 15.55 digs and 2.14 blocks per set.
The Coaches
Creighton is coached by Kirsten Bernthal Booth (Truman State, 1997), who owns a 239-142 record in her 13th 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 four NCAA Tournament bids in the program's modern history. She's also led the Jays into the top-25 each of the previous 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 was helped by associate head coach Tom Mendoza, assistant coach Angie Oxley Behrens and volunteer assistant Kyle South.
John Cook (San Diego, 1979) owns a 443-59 record in his 16th year with Nebraska. That moves his career mark to 604-132 in 23 years overall for the former Wisconsin coach. Cook led the Huskers to national titles in 2000 and 2006 and is a two-time AVCA National Coach of the Year. Cook is assisted by Dani Busboom Kelly, Chris Tamas and Jen Tamas.
Series History vs. Nebraska
Since restarting its volleyball program in 1994, Creighton is 0-13 all-time against Nebraska in the fall.
The only times CU won a set came in 2006 and 2014, when the Bluejays took the opening frame each time.
Nine of the 13 matches have taken place in Lincoln, while they've also played twice at CenturyLink Center Omaha, once at D.J. Sokol Arena and once at North Platte High School on the western side of the state.
Nebraska has been ranked in the top-11 of every meeting.
Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 0-9 all-time against the Huskers, and 0-9 against John Cook. Cook is 12-0 against Creighton.
In last year's meeting Kelli Browning had 17 kills and seven blocks on .400 hitting, while Maggie Baumert had 39 assists, nine digs and six blocks for CU. Nebraska was paced by Kadie Rolfzen's 16 kills and 10 digs in its 21-25, 25-22, 25-20, 25-20 victory.
Last Weekend Summary
Creighton went 2-1 last weekend while hosting the Bluejay Invitational. Creighton swept Lipscomb and beat CSU Bakersfield in four sets before falling to Pacific in four sets with the title at stake.
Lauren Smith (2.64 kps., 1.64 bps., .382%) and Jaali Winters (3.73 kps., .297%) were named to the All-Tournament Team for Creighton.
The Challenging Week Ahead
Creighton closes its non-conference schedule this week with four more matches against elite competition. The four teams have combined for a 29-4 record, as each upcoming foe has exactly one loss.
In fact, CU's three opponents in this weekend's Creighton Classic are a combined 16-0 in the month of September.
Date Opponent 2015 W-L Only Loss
Tuesday #4 Nebraska 7-1 #3 Texas
Friday Arkansas 8-1 Kansas
Saturday #11 Wisconsin 6-1 Western Kentucky
Sunday Kansas State 8-1 Miami (Fla.)
Creighton's Gauntlet
With Nebraska ranked fourth and Wisconsin 11th this week, it ensures that Creighton will face five different top-11 teams (at time of the match) during its non-conference schedule.
Creighton has already faced then-No. 8 Illinois, No. 8 USC and No. 10 Kentucky.
By the end of this weekend Creighton, with five, will be the nation's only team that will have played four or more top-11 teams through the first four weeks of the season, as seen below:
Most Matches vs. Top 11 Teams (Thru 9/20)
# Team Opponents
5 Creighton Illinois, USC, Kentucky, Nebraska, Wisconsin
3 USC BYU, North Carolina, Kentucky
3 Oklahoma Florida State, USC, Washington
3 Colorado Illinois, Penn State, Florida State
Connections To Lincoln
Two of Creighton's coaches and two student-athletes have ties to Lincoln or the University of Nebraska.
Head coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth went to high school in Lincoln and is a member of the Lincoln East High School Hall of Fame.
Creighton assistant coach Angie Oxley Behrens was a four-year starter for the Huskers from 1997-2000, including Nebraska's unbeaten NCAA champion team in 2000 that was coached by John Cook.
In addition, Lauren Smith is a junior who attended Pius X while Marysa Wilkinson is a sophomore who matriculated through Lincoln Southwest High School.
Smith and Nebraska's Sydney Townsend were high school teammates at Lincoln Pius X, though they are two years apart.
Experience Against Nebraska
Though Creighton has played Nebraska in the regular-season just once in the last few years, that doesn't mean that these two teams aren't familiar foes.
Creighton defeated Nebraska on April 12, 2013 (25-17, 22-25, 27-25, 20-25, 15-13) in a spring contest that was the final scheduled match at the NU Coliseum. Leah McNary had 15 kills to pace CU, while Katie Neisler had a 13 kills in 48 swings to lead CU. Three current Bluejays (Smith, Jansen and Elman) played in that match.
The teams also met on April 26, 2014 for the “Rumble at Rice” on the Wayne State campus, which raised more than $17,500 for tornado relief. Eight of the 11 women that played in that match that spring for CU are still on the Bluejay roster.
Largest Crowds To See The Jays
A crowd of more than 8,000 fans is expected for Tuesday's tilt at CenturyLink Center Omaha. It would mark the fourth time in Creighton's history that more than 5,000 fans attended a home volleyball match.
In three previous volleyball matches at CenturyLink Center Omaha, Creighton has played before an average of 11,077 fans.
Below is a list of the largest crowds (and home crowds) in Creighton Volleyball history:
Largest Home Crowds
Att. Opponent Date CU Result Facility
13,081 #18 Cal Poly 09/02/07 L 0-3 CenturyLink
12,112 #1 Nebraska 09/24/06 L 1-3 CenturyLink
8,037 #2 Nebraska 10/05/08 L 0-3 CenturyLink
2,514 #7 Nebraska 08/31/10 L 0-3 Sokol
2,325 Northern Iowa 10/05/12 W 3-1 Sokol
Largest Crowds (All Sites)
Att. Opponent Date CU Result Facility
13,081 #18 Cal Poly 09/02/07 L 0-3 CenturyLink
12,112 #1 Nebraska 09/24/06 L 1-3 CenturyLink
8,627 at #5 Nebraska 09/29/02 L 0-3 Devaney Ctr.
8,060 at #9 Nebraska 09/17/14 L 1-3 Devaney Ctr.
8,037 #2 Nebraska 10/05/08 L 0-3 CenturyLink
6,297 at #6 Hawaii 09/08/00 L 0-3 Sheriff Ctr.
5,967 vs. Northwestern 09/07/00 W 3-1 Sheriff Ctr.
Top 10 History
Creighton is 1-22 all-time against top-10 competition, but that lone victory came in its most recent attempt on Sept. 5 when the Bluejays swept No. 10 Kentucky (coached by former Husker assistant Craig Skinner).
Creighton has won the first set in six of those 23 contests, including twice against Nebraska (2006, 2014).
Winters Having A Great Fall
Freshman Jaali Winters continues to lead Creighton in kills, and heads into Tuesday night's match with 110 kills after passing the century mark on Saturday night against Pacific.
Winters is the first Creighton player to ever reach 100 kills before September 15th of her freshman season, and is just the second player to need nine or fewer matches (JoDe Cieloha, 8 in 1994) to reach triple-figures.
Should she sustain her team lead, Winters would join Cieloha (1994) and Melissa Walsh (1998) as the only players to lead Creighton in kills during their first campaign with the Bluejays.
Below are lists of Creighton's players who have needed the fewest matches to reach 100 career kills, as well as the most kills in a player's first 10 career matches at CU (Tuesday will be Winters' 10th career match). With two kills on Tuesday, Winters would have the most kills of any Creighton player ever after 10 matches.
In addition, with 10 or more kills, she'd tie Cieloha as the only players in CU history to start her career with eight matches of 10+ kills among the first 10 matches of a career.
Creighton's Quickest Players To 100 Kills (Career)
Name MP Date Opponent
JoDe Cieloha 8 09/23/94 at Drake
Jaali Winters 9 09/12/15 Pacific
Melissa Walsh 10 09/26/98 at Bradley
Carolyn Decker 10 09/18/04 Illinois State
Allie Oelke 11 09/15/07 vs. Charlotte
Rachelle Von 12 10/10/97 Evansville
Megan Waldren 12 10/07/94 at Evansville
Melanie Jereb 12 09/19/12 at Kansas
Lauren Smith 12 09/22/13 at Wichita State
Most Kills, First 10 Creighton Matches
Name Year Kills After 10 Matches
JoDe Cieloha 1994 111
Jaali Winters 2015 110 (thru 9 matches)
Melissa Walsh 1998 106
Carolyn Decker 2004 101
Allie Oelke 2007 95
Jaali Doing It Like Jereb
Jaali Winters has led Creighton in kills during each of the last three matches. She's the first Bluejay freshman to do that since Melanie Jereb had a stretch of four straight matches from Nov. 2-10, 2012.
Jereb would end her freshman campaign as the only player in program history to be named First Team All-Conference.
Jereb Up For Senior CLASS Award
Creighton Volleyball's Melanie Jereb is one of 30 candidates for the Senior CLASS Award. Jereb hails from Cary, Ill., and is the program's active leader in starts (79) and digs (1,009).
Jereb is the only student-athlete that plays in Nebraska on the list, and also the only BIG EAST representative.
Jereb owns a 3.98 GPA while majoring in Environmental Science and Biology. She's been on the Dean's List every semester, including a 4.00 GPA last spring, and has twice been named to the BIG EAST All-Academic Team.
Jereb has also served more than 175 hours of community service during her first three years as a Bluejay, most on the team in that span.
On the floor, Jereb remains the only player in program history to be named first-team all-conference as a freshman, has been named to a pair of all-tournament teams, was a three-time MVC Freshman of the Week in 2012, and has twice been named to an all-tournament team in her career.
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.
Jereb 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 in 2014.
Hometown Flavor
Creighton's 2015 roster boasts nine players from the state of Nebraska, the second-most in program history.
CU's 2014 team had 10 Nebraskans on the roster, while the 2004, 2005 and now 2015 teams have each had nine homestate natives.
Previously At The Link
Tuesday will mark Creighton's fourth volleyball match ever at CenturyLink Center Omaha, with all four contests coming against top-20 foes.
In 2006, Creighton won the first set 30-27 and led the second set 23-22 in a match vs. No. 1 Nebraska before 12,112 fans, eventually losing in four sets.
In 2007, Creighton was swept by No. 18 Cal Poly before a program-record 13,081 fans. Trailing 1-0 in the match, Creighton led 27-22 in the second set before the fading late and losing 30-28.
In 2008, Creighton was swept by No. 2 Nebraska before 8,037 fans.
Service Leads To Smiles
Since starting the season with 10 aces and 28 service errors (in 209 service attempts) during the first two matches, Creighton has vastly improved its accuracy since.
In the last seven matches, Creighton has 33 aces against just 32 service errors in 511 attempts.
Last weekend Creighton had 18 aces over the course of three matches, including six from Melanie Jereb and four by Jess Bird.
AVCA Vote Update
Creighton had five points in last week's AVCA poll but dropped out of the poll completely in Monday's edition.
Three of Creighton's four matches this week (No. 4 Nebraska, No. 11 Wisconsin and 26th Kansas State) are against teams that got votes in this week's poll.
Creighton has been ranked in the top-25 of the poll 11 times, all in the last four years. CU's highest rank ever was No. 19 on Sept. 7, 2013 and it last was in the top-25 in the AVCA's 2014 Preseason Poll that was announced on Aug. 11, 2014.
Kentucky Win Ranks As Program's Best
Creighton's 3-0 sweep over No. 10 Kentucky on September 5 was notable for multiple reasons.
The 10th-ranked Wildcats were the highest-ranked foe that CU has ever beaten. The previous high had been No. 13 BYU on Aug. 30, 2013. The match was the 23rd in program history against a top-10 team.
The sweep over Kentucky also marked Creighton's first sweep ever over a top-25 foe in 63 all-time meetings vs. ranked teams.
Creighton improved to 4-59 all-time against top-25 opposition with the win over Kentucky. All four victories have come under the direction of Kirsten Bernthal Booth.
Marysa In The Middle
After a 1-4 start to the season, Creighton moved sophomore Marysa Wilkinson to the middle blocker position, and it paid immediate dividends in a 3-0 win over No. 10 Kentucky.
Wilkinson finished with six kills and tied her career-high with seven blocks in the win while hitting .214. Creighton's 11.5 blocks as a team were a season-high, and UK's .117 hitting percentage was the lowest by a Bluejay opponent all fall.
Since moving Wilkinson to the middle Creighton has gone 3-1 and averaged 3.18 blocks per set while holding teams to .140 hitting. Prior to that CU had been 1-4 with 1.50 blocks per set while teams hit .253 against it.
Jereb Reaches 1,000 Digs
Senior Melanie Jereb enters Tuesday's match with 1,009 career digs after she became the 13th Bluejay to reach 1,000 digs last Saturday vs. CSU Bakersfield. Her classmate Kate Elman reached the mark late in the 2013 season.
Below is a list of how long it has taken each Bluejay to reach that milestone.
Creighton's Quickest Players To 1,000 Digs (Career)
Name MP Date Opponent
Bianca Rivera 53 11/08/08 Illinois State
Julianne Mandolfo 56 10/22/11 Evansville
Kate Elman 59 11/16/13 at Seton Hall
Nayka Benitez 60 11/27/10 at Northern Iowa
Kailey Reyes 77 09/01/01 vs. UTSA
Janeen Piller 80 09/25/04 at Missouri State
Melissa Walsh 85 09/08/01 at #24 Santa Clara
Allie Oelke 95 09/04/10 vs. Iowa
Melissa Weisensee 97 10/04/97 at Missouri State
Sarah Schulze 101 11/13/09 Southern Illinois
Melanie Jereb 105 09/12/15 CSU Bakersfield
Korie Lebeda 108 10/17/08 Evansville
Megan Bober 118 10/27/12 Southern Illinois
Winters Wows 'Em
Freshman OH Jaali Winters couldn't have done much better at the Illini Classic, opening her career with a team-best 41 kills.
Her 17 kills vs. Miami (Ohio) were the most in Bluejay history for a debut, three more than the previous mark set by Jess Bird in 2013.
In addition, Winters' four blocks were tied for second-most in a debut (something Kelsey O'Connell also did) and her 14 digs were tied for fourth-most in a debut (Kate Elman set that record with 22 in 2012).
Winters also became the fifth player to debut with a double-double, and joined Bird as just the second outside hitter to accomplish the feat.
Last but not least, Winters became just CU's second player with 10 or more kills in each of the team's first three matches of a season, joining JoDe Cieloha (1994) who did it in the first eight contests of CU's first year back.
Select Company
Creighton is one of just 15 schools nationally who have won 23 games or more in each of the previous three seasons. That group consists of BYU, College of Charleston, Creighton, Florida, Florida State, Idaho State, LIU Brooklyn, Marquette, Nebraska, North Carolina, Penn State, Stanford, Texas, Washington and Western Kentucky.
Creighton is also one of 26 teams to have appeared in each of the last three NCAA Tournaments. That group features Arizona State, BYU, Colorado State, Creighton, Florida, Florida State, Hawaii, Iowa State, Kansas, Kentucky, LIU Brooklyn, Marquette, Miami (Fla.), Michigan State, Nebraska, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Penn State, San Diego, Stanford, Texas, Texas A&M, USC, Washington and Yale.
Throw in three straight NCAA Tournament bids to that group of teams with three straight 23-win seasons and the group narrows to 12 teams: That group consists of BYU, Creighton, Florida, Florida State, LIU Brooklyn, Marquette, Nebraska, North Carolina, Penn State, Stanford, Texas and Washington.
Crawford Goes 3D
Kenzie Crawford made a bit of history on Aug. Aug. 29 when she turned in a triple-double (51 assists, 11 digs, 10 kills) against Louisville.
Crawford is the seventh player in Creighton history to record a triple-double, and her performance was the 30th overall in Bluejay annals.
Some more notes about Crawford's special night...
- Crawford was making just her third career start. She's the first Bluejay to ever record a triple-double within her first three career starts.
- Crawford earned her triple-double while also hitting .600. The .600 hitting was the best in Creighton history for any five-set match.
- Crawford's .600 was the second-best mark by a Bluejay in a match with a triple-double, trailing only Megan Bober's .636 hitting vs. Bradley on Oct. 6, 2012.
- Crawford had just the fifth performance in CU history of a “50-10-10” match. Kailey Reyes did it twice, while Bober and Melissa Weisensee had each done it once.
Coaching Them Up
When Kenzie Crawford earned the starting nod on Aug. 28, she became Creighton's fourth different starting setter on Opening Day in as many years.
The revolving door at setter hasn't hurt the team in that time, as each of the previous three seasons ended in the NCAA Tournament, and two of them saw Creighton win conference titles.
Megan Bober was CU's Opening Day setter in 2012 vs. UCF before Michelle Sicner took over in the 2013 lid-lifter vs. BYU. Last season, Maggie Baumert started the opener at setter against Lipscomb.
High Five
Creighton rallied from a 2-1 deficit to defeat Miami (Ohio) in the Aug. 28 season-opener.
The victory improved the Bluejays to 3-0 all-time in five-set matches to open the season, joining victories in 2011 (UTSA) and 2004 (New Mexico). CU trailed 2-1 after three sets in all three victories.
Creighton then made history when it also played a five-set match in the second match of the season, the first time it had ever played two straight five-setters to open a season.
Magnificent Marysa
Marysa Wilkinson had four matches during her entire freshman season with 10 or more kills, and never had two in a row.
Now a sophomore, Wilkinson opened her second season with three straight matches of double-figure putaways as she had 11 vs. Miami (Ohio), 13 vs. Louisville and 10 kills on .391 hitting in three sets at No. 8 Illinois. She also reached double-figures in the kills column on Sept. 12 with 11 vs. CSU Bakersfield.
Set 1 Result = Match Result
Creighton is 200-23 overall under Kirsten Bernthal Booth when it wins set one. In that same time span, CU is just 39-119 under Booth when it drops the first set.
Last Saturday's 3-1 loss to Pacific snapped Creighton 47-match home win streak when winning the first set, and was the first such loss since Aug. 28, 2010 vs. Lipscomb.
Last year Creighton was 20-2 when winning the first set and 5-7 when dropping the opener. This year's team is 4-1 when winning the first set but 0-4 when it falls behind in the first set.
Taking The Fifth
Creighton is 40-22 in five-set matches under Kirsten Bernthal Booth, including a 1-1 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 seven of its last eight true road matches to go five sets, including wins in 2012 over league rivals Northern Iowa, Wichita State and Missouri State, wins in 2013 at Denver and at Wichita State, and wins last year at Butler and at St. John's.
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 3-2 25-9
2015 1-1 4-5
Total 55-50 332-294
Some Fab Freshmen
Creighton has started seven different true freshmen in a season opener in the previous six years, and 13 such players since 2000.
Since 2000, the only true freshmen to start CU's season-opener have been Brittany Coleman (2003), Carolyn Decker (2004), Korie Lebeda (2005), Allie Oelke (2007), Brooke Boggs (2009), Heather Thorson (2009), Julianne Mandolfo (2010), Katie Neisler (2011), Michelle Sicner (2011), Melanie Jereb (2012), Ashley Jansen (2012), Jess Bird (2013) and Jaali Winters (2015). In addition, CU also started redshirt freshmen Lauren Smith (2013) and Brittany Lawrence (2015), as well as and transfer Maggie Baumert (2014) in season-openers.
Seven of those women (Coleman, Decker, Lebeda, Oelke, Mandolfo, Sicner and Jereb) went on to land a spot on the MVC's All-Freshman Team, an award that Bird likely would've received strong consideration for if the BIG EAST had such a team.
Highly-Touted Recruiting Class
Creighton Volleyball's recruiting class was named the nation's 11th-best by PrepVolleyball.com in May.
The website annually ranks the nation's top recruiting classes, and this is the first time in the 13-year history of the rankings that Creighton has cracked the top-30. The site had previously named Taryn Kloth the nation's 18th-best prospect on its Senior Aces list, while Jaali Winters was tabbed the 41st-best.
Creighton previously had earned “highest honorable-mention” four times (2008, 2009, 2011, 2014), “high honorable-mention” twice (2010, 2012), “honorable-mention” once (2005) and “best of the rest” once (2004) in the PrepVolleyball.com recruiting rankings.
Regular-Season Tournament History
Creighton is 87-83 in the 57 regular-season tournaments it has participated in all-time, including a 27-14 mark since the start of 2012. Kirsten Bernthal Booth's teams are 67-50 in 41 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 last year's Bluejay Invitational.
Creighton had won just two of 16 regular-season tournaments prior to Booth's arrival.
A Bunch Of Winners
Creighton has experienced a great deal of success in recent seasons, and last year's squad enjoyed victories at historic levels. Consider the following numbers:
Creighton owns 77 wins in the previous three seasons (2012-14), the winningest three-year span in program history and eight more than the mark set from 2011-13.
CU's 94 victories in the previous four seasons (2011-14) were four more than any other four-year span in program history, which was done from 2009-12. This year's senior class entered 2015 with 77 wins, and can break the record with 18 victories.
BIG EAST Preseason Poll
For the third straight season, Creighton has been picked to win the BIG EAST Conference in a preseason poll of league coaches.
CU was a unanimous choice and received 81 points in the poll and all nine possible first-place votes. Marquette was picked second while Xavier, St. John's and Butler rounded out the top half of the poll.
Creighton also had three women named to the 13 member on the BIG EAST's preseason all-conference team, as Jess Bird, Lauren Smith and Kate Elman were all honored, with Bird selected as Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year.
Creighton has finished in the spot predicted of them or better in the preseason poll in 10 of the past 12 years, including five years where it's finished exactly where it was predicted.
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 1st - -
2015 1st ??? ???
The Votes Add Up
Creighton has five non-conference matches scheduled against teams that are in the preseason AVCA Top 25 poll, tied for the most in the nation.
Creighton plays matches against teams that were preseason ranked No. 5 (Wisconsin), No. 5 (Nebraska), No. 8 (Illinois), No. 15 (Kentucky) and No. 22 (USC).
Besides Creighton, the only other school to play five different non-conference teams that are in the preseason top-25 is North Carolina. Of the nine teams that play four non-conference matches against preseason top-25 teams, Creighton will meet three of them (Illinois, UNI, Louisville).
Creighton is 4-59 all-time against top-25 foes, including an 0-31 mark in true road matches.
CU's Sept. 12 win over No. 10 Kentucky was the highest-ranked team that Creighton has ever beaten.
Since the start of the 2012 season, 13 of Creighton's 27 losses have come against ranked teams. In that same period, Creighton is 79-13 against unranked teams.
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 239-2 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 211-8 (.963) all-time when leading a match 2-0, including a 154-2 mark under Kirsten Bernthal Booth. They own an 101-4 all-time mark in home matches they lead 2-0 in.
Conversely, the Jays are 9-184 (.047) all-time when trailing a match 0-2, including an 0-63 mark in those home matches. Those nine comebacks from down 0-2 are listed below.
Notably, last year's team joined the 2004 club as the only one to win multiple matches in the same season when trailing 0-2 at intermission.
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
11/08/14 at Butler 25-16, 25-20, 15-13 Booth
Can You Dig It?
Kate Elman already owns a school-record 1,651 career digs. Elman also owns Creighton career marks for matches with 10+ digs and matches with 20+ digs.
Most Career Digs, Creighton History
Name Sets No. Years
1. Kate Elman 369 1,651 2012-Pr.
2. Janeen Piller 336 1,392 2001-04
Matches With 10+ Digs, Career
10+D Name Years
87 Kate Elman 2012-Pres.
74 Janeen Piller 2001-04
Matches With 20+ Digs, Career
20+D Name Years
35 Kate Elman 2012-Pres.
32 Julianne Mandolfo 2010-11
Marian Pipeline
This is the 13th straight season that Creighton Volleyball had at least one product of Omaha Marian High School on the roster, as seniors Kate Elman and Ashley Jansen remain in the program and joined by freshman Kelsey O'Connell.
Interestingly, the Bluejays had never had a volleyball player from Marian between 1994-2002. Here's a look at Creighton's pipeline of players from Marian.
2015: Kate Elman, Ashley Jansen, Kelsey O'Connell
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 11-of-16 letterwinners to the court from last season, including four starters. Below is a breakdown of the production that returns:
Stat Returners Departures
Digs 1625 (76.4%) 502 (23.6%)
Assists 1682 (74.7%) 426 (25.3%)
Aces 105 (71.9%) 41 (28.1%)
Matches Started 105 (61.8%) 65 (38.2%)
Blocks 175.5 (51.5%) 165.0 (48.5%)
Points 1192.5 (51.9%) 1105.0 (48.1%)
Kills 911 (50.3%) 900 (49.7%)
Last Year Summary
Last year's Creighton team finished 25-9 and won the BIG EAST regular-season and tournament titles.
Jess Bird and Kelli Browning were named First Team All-BIG EAST, with Browning also being named a Third-Team All-American by the AVCA. Lauren Smith was a second-team all-league choice and was named MVP of the BIG EAST Championship.
Defensively, Kate Elman led Creighton in digs and became the school's all-time leader in the category.
Radio Broadcast Information
Brad Burwell and former Bluejay volleyball player Erin (Swanson) Russell will broadcast at least 13 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.
9/15 Nebraska (KZOT)
9/18 Arkansas (KZOT)
9/19 Wisconsin (KZOT)
9/20 Kansas State (KOIL)
9/27 Villanova (KOIL)
10/6 Georgetown (KZOT)
10/9 DePaul (KZOT)
10/23 Providence (KZOT)
10/25 St. John's (KZOT)
11/15 Butler (KZOT)
11/28 BIG EAST Tourney (TBD)
11/29 BIG EAST Tourney (TBD)
