#12 Volleyball Closes Regular Season At Home vs. #9 Marquette; DePaul

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This Weekend
Nov. 22   6 pm   #9 Marquette at #12 Creighton (BEDN)   Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena) | LIVE VIDEO | LIVE STATS | TICKETS |
Nov. 24   11 am   DePaul at #12 Creighton (Senior Day)   Omaha, Neb. (D.J. Sokol Arena) | LIVE VIDEO | LIVE STATS | TICKETS |

This Week
No. 12 Creighton (22-4, 15-1 BIG EAST) plays its final two regular-season matches this weekend, and will do so with a chance to win an unprecedented sixth straight outright regular-season BIG EAST volleyball title.
   The big weekend gets started on Friday at 6 p.m. when the Bluejays host No. 9 Marquette (25-3, 15-1 BIG EAST). The victor of that match-up will clinch at least a share of the regular-season title, and CU can lock up the No. 1 seed at next week's BIG EAST Championships with another victory over the Golden Eagles.
   On Sunday at 11 a.m., Creighton ends the regular-season when it hosts DePaul (13-15, 5-11 BIG EAST). The Bluejays will honor seniors Megan Ballenger, Madelyn Cole, Megan Sharkey and Brittany Witt following the contest.
   Both matches will be played at D.J. Sokol Arena inside the Wayne and Eileen Ryan Athletic Center in Omaha, Neb.

Broadcast Information
Both matches free video webcasts this weekend.
   Friday's match will be aired on BEDN, which can be seen at on Twitter at @BIGEAST or on-line at https://www.youtube.com/BIGEASTConference or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3JohUh4pFw. Thor Tripp and Shannon Smolinski will announce.
   Sunday's broadcast will feature Donny Baarns and Kate Elman on the call and can be seen at http://GoCreighton.com/watch.
   Exact links to both broadcasts can be found on the GoCreighton.com volleyball schedule page.

Live Stats Information
All Creighton home matches will have free live stats at http://creighton.statbroadcast.com.
   Fans can also find links to road matches on the GoCreighton.com volleyball schedule page.

Scouting #12 Creighton
Ranked 12th nationally, Creighton is 22-4 on the season. The Bluejays are tied for first in the BIG EAST with a 15-1 league mark. The Bluejays defeated No. 12 Kentucky and No. 15 USC on back-to-back days in non-conference play, and also own a win at No. 10 Marquette, the league's preseason favorite.
   With All-BIG EAST setter Madelyn Cole (11.06 aps., 2.69 dps., 0.40 saps.) directing the offense, five women are averaging 1.95 or more kills per set for the Bluejays.
   Keeley Davis is a nine-time BIG EAST Freshman of the Week and leads CU with 3.35 kills per set. Davis had 31 kills in the win at No. 10 Marquette, one shy of CU's school record, to help her earn AVCA National Player of the Week honors on Oct. 15.
   Davis is supported by fellow attackers Jaela Zimmerman (2.94 kps.), Erica Kostelac (2.86 kps., 0.39 saps.), Megan Ballenger (2.15 kps., .326%, 0.94 bps.) and Naomi Hickman (1.95 kps., .308%. Zimmerman was named MVP of the Creighton Classic on Sept. 21, while Hickman was named MVP of the UNI Tournament on Sept. 7.
   Three-time Preseason All-BIG EAST libero Brittany Witt (5.08 dps.) anchors the defense and leads the BIG EAST in digs per set.
   Creighton averages 14.16 kills, 15.53 digs, 2.01 blocks and 1.74 aces per set on .260 hitting.

Scouting #9 Marquette
Ranked ninth nationally, Marquette is 25-3 overall and 15-1 in the BIG EAST. The Golden Eagles were swept by Baylor and also own five-set losses to Illinois and Creighton.
   The Golden Eagles knocked off No. 13 BYU and No. 4 Wisconsin on the road earlier this year, and are in position to earn a national seed in this year's NCAA Tournament with a strong finish.
   Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year Allie Barber leads the league with 4.68 kills per set and also hits at a .315 clip. She's supported offensively by Hope Werch (2.74 kps., .312%., 0.51 saps.) and Hannah Vanden Berg (1.93 kps.).
   Lauren Speckman (6.96 aps.) and Sarah Rose (4.89 aps.) split setting duties, and Martha Konovodoff (4.50 dps.) handles the libero role.
   Marquette hits .282 and averages 14.91 kills, 1.68 aces, 15.51 digs and 1.65 blocks per set.

Scouting DePaul
DePaul is 13-15 this season and 5-11 in BIG EAST play after closing its home schedule last weekend with wins over Villanova (3-2) and Georgetown (3-1).
   Preseason All-BIG EAST pick Brittany Maxwell leads the Blue Demons with 3.64 kills per set and with 29 service aces.
   Katie Dolan (5.10 aps.) and Natalie Hayward (5.44 aps.) share time at setter, and libero Isabelle Banez (4.71 dps.) is among the BIG EAST leaders in digs per set.
   The Blue Demons average 13.35 kills, 1.16 aces, 14.76 digs and 1.88 blocks per set on .224 hitting.

Creighton Coaches
Creighton is coached by Kirsten Bernthal Booth (Truman State, 1997), who owns a 368-169 record in her 17th season with the Bluejays. She's led Creighton to five straight BIG EAST titles, and six league crowns in the last seven years. Booth led the Bluejays to their first two Sweet 16's (2015, 2016) and first Elite Eight (2016) in program history. In 2016 she was recognized as VolleyballMag.com National Coach of the Year, BIG EAST Coach of the Year and AVCA East Region Coach of the Year.
   The winningest coach in school history, Booth has taken Creighton to its only eight NCAA Tournament bids in the program's modern history. She's also coached CU into the top-25 each of the last eight 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 assisted by Angie Oxley Behrens, Craig Dyer and Noel Carpio.

Series History vs. Marquette
Creighton is 17-4 all-time against Marquette, including six straight victories. The Bluejays are 13-1 since the start of the 2014 season against MU, and have posted at least one 3-0 win in Omaha over the Golden Eagles in each of the previous four years.
   Teams to win the first set are 18-3 in the history of the series, and CU has owned a 2-0 lead at intermission in nine of the last 14 meetings.
   Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 17-4 against Marquette and 13-1 against Ryan Theis.

Series History vs. DePaul
Creighton has won 13 of 14 previous meetings with DePaul, and is 13-0 since the two schools became BIG EAST rivals.
   DePaul swept the first meeting in 2001 in DeKalb, Ill., before Creighton's recent run, which has included one five-set win (a CU comeback from down 0-2 in Omaha in 2015), five different four-set wins and seven sweeps.
   Creighton has swept each of the last six meetings, and owns 20 straight set victories overall vs. DePaul entering Sunday.
   Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 13-0 against DePaul and 3-0 versus Marie Zidek.

With a Win...
With a win on Friday, Creighton would...
-Clinch at least a share of a sixth straight BIG EAST title, and lock up the No. 1 seed in next week's BIG EAST Championship.
-Become the first program in Creighton history to win six straight regular-season conference titles.
-Clinch an eighth straight season with 23+ wins.
-Improve to 14-1 in its last 15 meetings against Marquette, including seven wins in a row.
-Win a 44th straight regular-season BIG EAST home match.
-Beat a top-10 team at home for the first time in nine tries.
-Tie a school-record first set in 2018 with its fourth win vs. a ranked team this season.
-Improve to 26-1 all-time on BEDN.
-Improve to 113-10 all-time in regular-season BIG EAST play, and 59-2 in league home matches.

5 Straight BIG EAST Regular-Season Titles
With its 2018 title, Creighton became the first team in BIG EAST volleyball history to win five straight outright regular-season titles. With two Creighton wins, or two Marquette losses this weekend, CU will claim a sixth straight outright title.
   No team had won five straight regular-season BIG EAST titles (including shares) since Notre Dame won seven in a row from 1999-2005.
   The only other team in Creighton history to win five straight regular-season titles was the men's soccer program, which claimed five straight MVC crowns from 1992-96. All five of those soccer titles were also outright titles. No CU team in any sport has ever won six straight league titles.

Title Hunting
Creighton Volleyball is seeking the school's 12th different regular-season crown won by the school since joining the BIG EAST in the summer of 2013.
   As seen below, nearly half of those titles have been won by the volleyball program.
Creighton's BIG EAST Regular-Season Titles (11)
Baseball: 2014, 2017, 2019
Men's Soccer: 2014, 2018
Volleyball: 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018
Women's Basketball: 2016-17 (tie)

Creighton & Marquette In Select Company
The BIG EAST's Creighton and Marquette are two of 16 teams nationally to have appeared in each of the last seven NCAA Tournaments. That group features BYU, Colorado State, Creighton, Florida, Florida State, Hawaii, Kentucky, Marquette, Nebraska, Oregon, Penn State, San Diego, Stanford, Texas, USC and Washington.
   Creighton and Marquette are two of 14 schools that entered this fall with seven straight seasons of 20+ wins (2012-18). That list features American, BYU, Colorado State, Creighton, Florida, Florida State, Kentucky, Marquette, Nebraska, Penn State, Stanford, Texas, Washington, Western Kentucky.

What's Your Scenario?
Creighton clinched its 17th straight appearance in a conference tournament with a win at Georgetown on Nov. 9, and can seal its sixth straight No. 1 seed with two CU wins this weekend, or two Marquette losses this weekend.
   There's also a chance that if both Creighton and Marquette go 1-1 this weekend that CU could be the No. 1 seed, but the Bluejays would need to either win Friday's match (and lose Sunday vs. DePaul), or lose Friday's match in exactly five sets and be outscored by fewer than eight points total against the Golden Eagles.
   The race for the third and fourth seed will be decided this weekend, as well. Both St. John's and Villanova have clinched bids in the four-team event, but both are currently 11-5 in league play and tied for third place. The teams will meet up on Sunday in Pennsylvania.
    Regardless of its seed, Creighton will play in the second semifinal on Nov. 29 at 5:30 p.m. Marquette will play in the first (2:30 p.m.) semifinal.
   Marquette will host the BIG EAST Championship on Nov. 29-30 in Milwaukee at Al McGuire Center.

Tie-Breaking Policies
Any ties with regards to seeding for the BIG EAST Championship or for an automatic berth to the NCAA tournament (if no conference tournament is played) will be broken using the BIG EAST volleyball tie-breaker.
Ties between two teams
1. Head to head match record
2. Head to head set record
3. Head to head point total
4. Match record vs. highest finishing conference opponent
5. Match record vs 2nd highest finishing conference opponent (and so forth)
6. Coin toss
Ties of three teams or more
1. Tied teams are viewed as a mini-conference. As soon as one team breaks the tie, the tiebreaking procedure starts over.
2. Best match record within the mini-conference
3. Best set record within the mini-conference
4. Best point percentage (total points scored divided by total points played) within the mini-conference
5. Match record vs. highest finishing conference opponent
6. Match record vs. 2nd highest finishing conference opponent (and so forth)
7. Coin toss

BIG EAST's Best
Since the reconfiguration of the BIG EAST in the summer of 2013, Creighton and Marquette are the only teams to win any sort of BIG EAST volleyball title.
   Marquette won the regular-season and tournament title in 2013, while Creighton swept both titles in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018.
   Below is a look at the record of each BIG EAST team (through Nov. 21, 2019) since the league's reconfiguration in 2013:
BIG EAST VB Standings Since 2013 (through 11/21)
             BIG EAST only   All   matches
Team (NCAA Bids)   W   L   W   L
Creighton (6)   112   10   181   50
Marquette (6)   99   22   170   56
Xavier   75   47   111   102
Butler   68   54   120   96
Villanova (1)   65   57   123   93
St. John's   58   64   126   100
Seton Hall (1)   57   64   107   113
Georgetown   30   92   76   136
DePaul   24   98   74   134
Providence*   13   93   60   129
*Providence rejoined the league for volleyball in 2014 and
its 2013 overall record (12-20) is not included above.

First Class In Every Way
Creighton's senior quartet of Megan Ballenger, Madelyn Cole, Megan Sharkey and Brittany Witt arrived on campus at three different times and come from three different states, but they continue to represent the university in a first class manner both on and off the floor and will be recognized following Sunday's contest vs. DePaul.
   Since the fall of 2015 when Ballenger first arrived, Creighton has gone 84-4 in regular-season BIG EAST play and 8-0 in BIG EAST Championship action, winning all eight possible conference titles (so far) in that time.
   Combined they've contributed 1,080 kills, 2,848 assists, 2,835 digs, 254 aces and 475 blocks in a Bluejay uniform while helping CU to a 133-32 overall record since Ballenger enrolled, and a 106-23 mark since Ballenger and Witt began playing.
   In Ballenger's redshirt season in 2015, Creighton went 27-9 as the Bluejays earned the first national seed in team history, advanced to the program's first Sweet 16, and were ranked 19th in the year-end poll.
   Witt joined the team in 2016 and along with Ballenger, Creighton tied a school-record with 29 wins and they became the first volleyball team in BIG EAST history to finish league play 18-0. The Bluejays then became the first team in history to open an NCAA Tournament with three straight five-set wins to advance to the program's first Elite Eight, and wrapped up the year ranked ninth nationally.
   In 2017 Witt and Ballenger helped the Bluejays as they went 26-7 and hosted the NCAA Tournament for the first time. CU posted road wins over No. 3 Washington and No. 7 Kansas early in the season en route to winning three straight non-conference tournaments.
   Last year's team picked up transfers Cole and Sharkey and went 29-5, once again running the table in league play.
   This year's team is 22-4 and two wins away from a sixth straight outright BIG EAST regular-season title.
   Creighton's 106 wins (so far) since 2016 are tied for sixth-most nationally and five shy of the most victories in any four-year span in program history.

Two In the Top 12
The BIG EAST owns the 11th-best league RPI this fall, but that doesn't mean it doesn't have some heavyweights at the top.
   This week's AVCA poll features a pair of BIG EAST teams in the top-15, as Creighton is ranked No. 12 and Marquette No. 9.
   October 28th and November 4th marked the first times since December 5, 2005 that the BIG EAST Conference has had two top-10 teams simultaneously. Back then, it was No. 7 Louisville and No. 9 Notre Dame holding it down. Neither team remains in the BIG EAST.
   Friday's tilt will mark just the first ever at D.J. Sokol Arena featuring a pair of top-12 teams. On Sept. 1, 2017, No. 7 Creighton swept No. 13 Kentucky before a then-arena record crowd of 2,578 in a match that boasted a pair of top-13 clubs.
   Creighton is 0-8 all-time at home against top-10 teams, including an 0-3 mark at D.J. Sokol Arena. The highest-ranked team that the Bluejays have ever beaten in Omaha was No. 13 Kentucky on Sept. 1, 2017.

Top 25 History
Creighton is 17-78 all-time against teams in the top-25 of the AVCA poll, but 12-12 since the start of the 2016 NCAA Tournament.
   An opening-weekend 2017 win at No. 3 Washington is the highest-ranked team that the Bluejays have ever beaten, surpassing a win at No. 4 Kansas the previous December.
   Creighton is 6-31 all-time against top-10 foes (6-24 under Kirsten Bernthal Booth).
   Creighton lost its first 31 true road matches against top-25 foes, but has 'improved' to 6-37 after wins in recent seasons at No. 23 North Carolina (2015), No. 4 Kansas (2016), No. 3 Washington (2017), No. 7 Kansas (2017), No. 18 Marquette (2018) and No. 10 Marquette (2019).
   Creighton is 109-26 all-time when playing as a ranked team, and also 13-17 all-time against ranked teams when ranked itself. That mark improves to 2-1 when both Creighton and its opponent are ranked in the top 10.
   Since the start of the 2012 season, 32 of Creighton's 54 losses have come against ranked teams. In that same period, Creighton is 195-22 against unranked teams. Creighton has won 58 straight home matches over unranked teams and all but one of its last 45 matches at all sites against unranked teams.
Ranked vs. Ranked (CU is 13-17)
Home: 3-5   Away: 5-6    Neutral: 5-6
Date   Winner   Loser   CU Score
11/19/12   #11 Minnesota   #21 Creighton   1-3
08/30/13   #25 Creighton   #13 BYU   3-1
09/14/13   #11 UCLA   #24 Creighton   1-3
09/16/13   #7 Hawaii   #23 Creighton   2-3
08/30/14   #22 Kansas   #23 Creighton   1-3
09/03/16   #23 Kentucky   #22 Creighton   0-3
12/02/16   #21 Creighton   #4 Kansas   3-2
12/09/16   #21 Creighton   #17 Michigan   3-2
12/10/16   #5 Texas   #21 Creighton   0-3
08/26/17   #9 Creighton   #3 Washington   3-1
09/01/17   #7 Creighton   #13 Kentucky   3-0
09/02/17   #18 USC   #7 Creighton   0-3
09/08/17   #17 Purdue   #9 Creighton   1-3
09/09/17   #9 Creighton   #7 Kansas   3-0
09/16/17   #19 Iowa State   #8 Creighton   2-3
12/12/17   #12 Michigan St.   #15 Creighton   1-3
08/24/18   #13 Creighton   #5 Kentucky   3-2
08/25/18   #10 USC   #13 Creighton   2-3
09/06/18   #7 Nebraska   #14 Creighton   2-3
09/15/18   #8 Illinois   #10 Creighton   1-3
09/23/18   #10 Creighton   #21 Marquette   3-0
10/26/18   #10 Creighton   #18 Marquette   3-1
11/24/18   #9 Creighton   #16 Marquette   3-1
12/01/18   #22 Washington   #9 Creighton   0-3
08/30/19   #2 Nebraska   #18 Creighton   1-3
08/31/19   #20 Baylor   #18 Creighton   0-3
09/06/19   #23 Creighton   #12 Kentucky   3-1
09/07/19   #23 Creighton   #15 USC   3-1
09/14/19   #12 Washington   #17 Creighton   1-3
10/12/19   #13 Creighton   #10 Marquette   3-2
11/22/19   #9 Marquette at #12 Creighton   6 p.m.

A 1 And A 2...
Not only are Creighton and Marquette tied atop the league standings with identical 15-1 conference records, but they're also first and second (in some order) in five other categories during conference action.
   Creighton is first and Marquette second in digs per set and aces per set.
   Marquette is first and Creighton second in hitting percentage, kills per set and assists per set,

31 Flavors For Davis
Keeley Davis entered Creighton's match at No. 10 Marquette on Oct. 12 with a season-best of 14 kills, only to go off for 31 kills in the 3-2 win over the Golden Eagles.
   Ten of Davis' kills came in the third set and six came in the first 15 points of the fifth set. Overall, 23 of her kills came after intermission.
   Her 31 kills were one shy of the program record set by Michelle Prorock vs. Evansville in 1996.
   The 31 kills were the most by a Bluejay in any five set match, and also the most ever by a Bluejay freshman in any contest.
   Davis' 31 kills were the most by any BIG EAST player since St. John's Gina Traballi had 32 at Marquette in 2016, and her 33.5 points the most by a BIG EAST performer since Georgetown's Symone Speech vs. Seton Hall in 2017.
   Davis' 33.5 points were the most by a Bluejay in program history since the points statistic was introduced with the implementation of rally scoring in 2001.
Most Kills, Match, Creighton History
   32   Michelle Prorock vs. Evansville (4s)   11-2-96
   31   Keeley Davis at Marquette (5s)   10-12-19
   30   Melissa Walsh at Indiana State (5s)   10-16-98
   28   Melissa Walsh vs. Drake (5s)   10-10-98
   28   Melissa Walsh at Drake (5s)   10-1-99
   28   Melissa Walsh vs. Northern Iowa (4s)   10-27-00
   28   Leah Ratzlaff at Southern Illinois (4s)   11-22-03
   28   Jaali Winters at St. John's   10-2-15
   28   Jaali Winters vs. Butler (5s)   10-13-17

Most Points, Match, Creighton History
   33.5   Keeley Davis at Marquette (5s)   10-12-19
   31.5   Leah Ratzlaff at Southern Illinois (4s)   11-22-03
   31.0   Jaali Winters at St. John's (4s)   10-02-15
   30.5   Jessica Houts at Evansville (5s)   11-18-06
   30.0   Kelly Goc vs. Drake (4s)   11-16-07
   30.0   Jaali Winters vs. Butler (5s)   10-13-17

BEDN Brings Out The Best In the Bluejays
CU's victory at Marquette on October 12 appeared on BIG EAST Digital Network.
   Since the network originated in 2014, Creighton is 25-1 on BEDN. Six of those victories came in five sets.
   CU's next appearance on BEDN is scheduled for Nov. 22 vs. Marquette.

News, Notes, Nuggets
Creighton accomplished a lot of statistical marks on Oct. 11 (DePaul) and Oct. 12 (Marquette) that it hadn't in some time. Consider...
- Creighton's 26 block assists at Marquette were its most since 26 vs. Seton Hall on Oct. 16, 2016.
- Creighton's .714 hitting percentage in the third set at DePaul was the program's best since hitting .818 in the first set at DePaul on Oct. 6, 2017, and tied for its third best hitting percentage in any set ever.
- Creighton's victory at No. 10 Marquette was the program's first top-25 true road win since a win at No. 18 Marquette on Oct. 26, 2018, its first top-10 win at any site since a win vs. No. 5 Kentucky on Aug. 24, 2018 and its first top-10 road win since a 3-0 sweep at No. 7 Kansas on Sept. 9, 2017.
- Keeley Davis' 31 kills made her the first Bluejay with 20 or more kills in a match since Jaali Winters at No. 18 Marquette on Oct. 26, 2018 and the first Bluejay with 30 or more kills in a match since Melissa Walsh had 30 at Indiana State on Oct. 16, 1998.
- Brittany Witt's 35 digs made her the first Bluejay with 30+ digs in a match since Witt herself had 34 at Marquette on Nov. 25, 2017. Witt's the first Bluejay with 35 or more digs in a match since Kate Elman had 35 at Wichita State on Nov. 16, 2012.
- Naomi Hickman's 10 block assists and 11 total blocks were the most by a CU player in a match since Lauren Smith had 10 blocks assists and 11 overall blocks on Nov. 20, 2015 at Georgetown.

Bouncing Back
Creighton is 129-11 (.921) in league play since the start of the 2012 campaign, a stat that includes CU's final season in the MVC.
   On the rare 11 occasions where it lost, Creighton responded with a victory in its next match.
   Creighton lost on Nov. 8 at Villanova, but responded one day later with a 3-0 victory at Georgetown.

Crushing It Against The Top 25
Junior Naomi Hickman has been dominant against top-25 foes this season, averaging 2.21 kills and 0.83 blocks per set and hitting .447.
   That includes Hickman's career-high 17 kills in a win over No. 12 Kentucky, .733 hitting in a 3-1 victory over No. 15 USC, and a career-high 11 blocks in a win over No. 10 Marquette.
   In her last three matches against Marquette, Hickman owns 25 blocks in 13 sets (1.92 bps.) and has hit .261.

109 Wins While Ranked
Creighton owns a 109-26 record all-time when playing as a ranked team. The 100th win was a special one too, defeating No. 10 Marquette in five sets on Oct. 12.
   Ranked Creighton teams are 7-1 all-time against Marquette, and 5-0 with five sweeps against DePaul.
   Creighton is 13-17 all-time against ranked teams when ranked itself.
   The Bluejays are also 6-31 all-time in all matches against top-10 foes (6-24 under Kirsten Bernthal Booth).

Another 20 Win Season
Creighton is 22-4 this year. It's the 11th time in the program's modern history, and eighth straight season, of 20 or more victories.
   Keep in mind that when Kirsten Bernthal Booth was hired in 2003, Creighton's modern day single-season record for wins was 16, and the Bluejays were coming off a 3-23 campaign.
   Creighton was one of 14 schools with seven straight seasons (2012-18) of 20+ wins entering this fall. That list features American, BYU, Colorado State, Creighton, Florida, Florida State, Kentucky, Marquette, Nebraska, Penn State, Stanford, Texas, Washington, Western Kentucky.
   Among those to extend the streak to eight (or more) straight 20-win campaigns this year have been American, BYU, Colorado State, Creighton, Florida, Kentucky, Marquette, Nebraska, Penn State, Stanford, Washington and Western Kentucky.
   The following schools are still trying to extend their streak of 20-win seasons in 2019, through matches of November 18th.
Team   2019 W-L   Next Match
Texas   19-2   11/20
Florida State   17-8   11/22

23 x 7
Creighton is one of just seven schools nationally who have won 23 matches or more in each of the previous seven seasons (2012-18). That group consists of BYU, Creighton, Florida, Nebraska, Penn State, Stanford and Texas.
   None of those schools have already reached 23 wins, while the following schools are trying to extend their streaks.
Team   2019 W-L   Next Match
BYU   22-4   11/21
Creighton   22-4   11/22
Nebraska   22-3   11/22
Florida   21-4   11/20
Penn State   21-4   11/20
Stanford   20-4   11/22
Texas   19-2   11/20

Davis & Witt Honored With BIG EAST Awards
Creighton swept all three BIG EAST weekly honors on Oct. 15. Brittany Witt was named Defensive Player of the Week, while Keeley Davis brought home both the Offensive Player of the Week and the Freshman of the Week honor. It was the sixth straight week Davis has been named BIG EAST Freshman of the Week, extending her league record.
   Davis led all BIG EAST players with 4.75 kills per set during the week, hitting .370. The freshman from Highlands Ranch, Colo., started her week with seven kills, five digs and an ace on .286 hitting in a 3-0 win at DePaul.
   Davis then more than doubled her previous high as she pounded 31 kills in a 3-2 road win at No. 10 Marquette, all while hitting .390 and adding seven digs, two aces and a block assist. Davis' 31 kills were the most by any BIG EAST player since 2016, the most by a Creighton player since 1996, and just one shy of CU's single-match record. She had 10 kills in the third set alone, then added seven more in the fourth set. In the decisive fifth set, Davis had six early kills as CU blitzed to a 10-4 lead in an eventual 15-8 victory. In addition to her attacking prowess, Davis' seven digs tied her season-high.
   Witt led all BIG EAST players with 5.50 digs per set during the week. The senior libero was also targeted 35 times in serve receive on the weekend, allowing just one ace while helping with passes that led to 18 kills.
   The Omaha product opened her week with nine digs and a season-best four aces in a 3-0 sweep at DePaul on Friday. CU's defense held DePaul to just 32 kills in the match, 15 fewer than any other league contest for the Blue Demons this fall. Witt's four aces helped her move into the top five in program history for career aces.
   On Saturday, Witt had a career-high 35 digs in Creighton's 3-2 win at No. 10 Marquette in a battle for first place. Witt's 35 digs were the most by a Bluejay since 2012, and just three shy of the program record for one match.

Davis Also AVCA National Player of the Week
For her accomplishments listed above, Keeley Davis was also named Sports Imports/AVCA National Player of the Week on Oct. 15.
   Davis is the second Bluejay ever to earn the honor, joining Michelle Sicner, who earned the award exactly six years to the day earlier, also after wins vs. DePaul and Marquette.

Best Starts After 26 Matches
Creighton's 22-4 start is one win shy of the program's best mark after 26 matches in history, as the 2012 team started 23-3.
   This is the fourth time that Creighton has started 21-5 or better through 26 matches. Each of the first three clubs to do it not only reached the NCAA Tournament, but advanced to the Second Round.
Best Starts After 26 Matches, Creighton History
   W-L   Year   Final W-L (NCAA's)
   23-3   2012   29-4 (NCAA Round 2)
   22-4   2019   TBD
   22-4   2018   29-5 (NCAA Round 2)
   21-5   2017   26-7 (NCAA Round 2)

Cole Passes 1,000 Career Digs, 4,000 Assists
Madelyn Cole's name won't appear at the top of many of Creighton's career charts because she started her career at Marshall, but the senior is passed a couple of milestones nonetheless on Nov. 16 at Xavier.
   Cole enters this weekend contest with 4,039 career assists and 1,015 career digs.
   Cole owned 1,777 assists and 494 digs in 60 matches at Marshall and has 2,262 assists and 521 digs to her name in 60 matches as a Bluejay.
   The only four players to reach 4,000 assists and 1,000 digs as Bluejays (only) are Megan Bober (4,359 assists & 1,123 digs), Korie Lebeda (5,281 & 1,130), Kailey Reyes (4,207 & 1,258) and Melissa Weisensee (4,018 & 1,223).

Cole Nears 1,000 Assists This Year
Madelyn Cole enters this weekend with 973 assists this season as she looks to reach 1,000 for a second straight campaign with CU.
   Below is a listing of all the women who have reached 1,000 digs in a season. Cole, who needed 26 matches to reach the mark last fall, has played 26 contests this fall.
Single-Season Matches to 1,000 Assists
   Name   MP   Opponent   Year
Korie Lebeda   21   at Drake   2006
Brittany Coleman   22   at Southern Illinois   2004
Korie Lebeda   23   Missouri State   2005
Brittany Coleman   23   Northern Iowa   2003
Kailey Reyes   23   at Southern Illinois   1999
Melissa Weisensee   23   at Evansville   1996
Kailey Reyes   24   at Wichita State   2000
Melissa Weisensee   24   at Evansville   1997
Kailey Reyes   25   Wichita State   2001
Korie Lebeda   25   Southern Illinois   2007
Korie Lebeda   26   Bradley   2008
Lydia Dimke   26   Xavier   2016
Madelyn Cole   26   at Seton Hall   2018
Megan Bober   27   Evansville   2010
Lydia Dimke   27   Georgetown   2017
Megan Bober   28   at Northern Iowa   2009
Megan Bober   28   at Wichita State   2012
Michelle Sicner   28   Xavier   2013
Maggie Baumert   32   vs. Seton Hall   2014

Aces, In Spades
Madelyn Cole served up a career-high seven aces on Nov. 9 at Georgetown. The figure was one shy of the Creighton single-match record set by Carolyn Decker in 2004, and the most by a Bluejay since Michelle Sicner had seven aces vs. McNeese State in 2011.
   Cole owns 0.417 aces per set in her Bluejay career, just a fraction behind Molly Moran's (1998-2001) program record of 0.425 aces per set.
Service Aces, Match
   8   Carolyn Decker at New Mexico (3s)   9-4-04
   7   Molly Moran vs. Drake (3s)   9-22-00
   7   Kelli Koochi at Indiana State (4s)   10-19-01
   7   Nayka Benitez vs. Bradley (4s)   9-25-10
   7   Michelle Sicner vs. McNeese State (3s)   9-17-11
   7   Madelyn Cole at Georgetown (3s)   11-9-19

Service Aces Per Set (Min. 40 SA)
       Name   Sets   No.   Avg.   Years
   1.   Molly Moran   341   145   0.425   1998-01
   2.   Madelyn Cole   206   86   0.417   2018-Pr.
   3.   Nayka Benitez   233   82   0.352   2009-10
   4.   Melissa Weisensee   411   125   0.304   1994-97
   5.   Carolyn Decker   300   89   0.297   2004-08
   6.   JoDe Cieloha   398   113   0.284   1994-97
   7.   Shelly Kapler   388   104   0.268   1996-99
   8.   Brittany Witt   452   113   0.2500   2016-Pr.
   9.   Julianne Mandolfo   241   60   0.2496   2010-11
   10.   Michelle Prorock   299   72   0.241   1994-96

Over, Already?
Creighton is finishing matches at an unparalleled pace this season, both in league play and all matches.
   Creighton has played an average of just 3.385 sets per match this fall, putting it on pace to break the previous mark (3.452) set by the 2007 club.
   In league play, Creighton has played an average of 3.188 sets per conference match this fall, putting it on pace to break the previous mark (3.278) set by the 2016 club.
   By comparison, Creighton's foe on Sunday, DePaul, has played seven matches to go all five sets this season, including five league matches.
Fewest Sets Per Match (All Matches)
   Rank   Year   MP   Sets   Sets Per Match
   1.   2019   26   88   3.385
   2.   2007   31   107   3.452
   3.   2018   34   118   3.471
   4.   1994   25   87   3.480
   5.   2001   27   94   3.481

Fewest Sets Per Match (League Matches)
   Rank   Year   MP   Sets   Sets Per Match
   1.   2019   16   51   3.188
   2.   2016   18   59   3.278
   3.   2018   18   60   3.333
   4.   1994   20   69   3.450
   5.   2002   18   63   3.500
       2007   18   63   3.500

Jays On A Roll
Creighton's 31-match win streak in BIG EAST regular-season play was snapped on Nov. 8 at Villanova, but CU is still 34-1 in its last 35 contests against league foes.
   Creighton's 31 straight regular-season league wins was a program record.   Consecutive Regular-Season League Wins
       Wins   Dates   Snapped By   League
       31   Nov. 18, 2017 - Nov. 3, 2019   at Villanova, 3-0   BIG EAST
       28   Oct. 31, 2015-Sept. 30, 2017   at Marquette, 3-0   BIG EAST
       14   Sept. 29, 2012 - End of 2012   Never (left MVC)   MVC

Committee Likes The Jays
Creighton was listed 10th when the NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Committee released a top 10 listing on Sunday, Nov. 3.
   The reveal is based on the criteria used to select and seed the 64 teams for the Division I Women's Volleyball Championship and includes strength of schedule, Rating Percentage Index, head-to-head competition, results versus common opponents, and significant wins and losses.   It included matches through November 2.
   The announcement is part of the continued team evaluations that will culminate with the final bracket, revealed during the selection show on Sunday, December 1, at 7:30 p.m. Central on ESPNU.
   In 2016, the first year of the early preview, nine of the 10 teams in the early November rank remained a national seed, with No. 5 San Diego not earning any kind of national seed on Selection Sunday.
   In 2017, the early committee ranking saw 8-of-10 teams hold onto a top-10 ranking, but No. 10 Wisconsin didn't end up as a top-16 seed.
   Last year Creighton was the No. 10 seed in the preliminary rankings and ended up as the No. 9 seed. Nine of the 10 teams in last year's mock top-10 ended up as top 10 seeds, with mock No. 7 USC dropping to the No. 11 national seed.
   Here's the top 10 that was announced by the committee on Nov. 3 this season:
Rk.   Team   W-L
1.   Texas   16-2
2.   Baylor   19-1
3.   Wisconsin   16-4
4.   Stanford   16-4
5.   Pitt   23-1
6.   Nebraska   18-3
7.   Washington   17-5
8.   Minnesota   17-3
9.   Florida   18-3
10.   Creighton   19-3

Quick Witted
Brittany Witt continues to play defense at a high level, leading the BIG EAST in digs per set.
   Witt owns 32.96 percent of Creighton's digs in league play this season, a higher rate than any other player for their BIG EAST team this fall.
   Witt also owns a dig on 15.24 percent of opposing attacks in BIG EAST play, which is the highest rate for any player for their team this fall.
Highest Percentage of Team's League Digs
Rk.   Player, Team   Digs   Team D   % of Team D
1.   Brittany Witt, CU   266   807   32.96%
2.   Regan Lough, VU   264   830   31.81%
3.   Elizabeth LaBue, BU   286   916   31.22%
4.   Isabelle Banez, DPU   290   940   30.85%
5.   Madi Kutruff, XU   286   930   30.75%
6.   Amanda Sanabia, SJU   228   806   28.29%
7.   Jessica Cusi, GU   231   830   27.83%
8.   Martha Konovodoff, MU   239   868   27.53%
9.   Raygan Murray, SHU   220   800   27.50%
10.   Mackenzie Taylor, PC   153   827   18.50%

Highest Percentage of Digs on Opposing Attacks
BIG EAST Matches Only
Rk.   Player, Team   Digs   Opp ATK   % of ATK
1.   Brittany Witt, CU   266   1745   15.24%
2.   Regan Lough, VU   264   1972   13.39%
3.   Isabelle Banez, DPU   290   2225   13.03%
4.   Elizabeth LaBue, BU   286   2206   12.96%
5.   Madi Kutruff, XU   286   2232   12.81%
6.   Martha Konovodoff, MU   239   1911   12.51%
7.   Amanda Sanabia, SJU   228   1908   11.95%
8.   Jessica Cusi, GU   231   1972   11.71%
9.   Raygan Murray, SHU   220   2064   10.66%
10.   Mackenzie Taylor, PC   153   1947   7.86%

Can You Dig It?
Senior Brittany Witt ranks second in Creighton history on the all-time digs chart as she continues her pursuit of predecessor Kate Elman's record of 2,054.
   Witt has averaged 17.19 digs per match this season. At that rate, she would need to play in five more matches to surpass Elman. CU currently has two regular-season matches left, but is in strong position to earn a spot in both the BIG EAST Championship as well as the NCAA Tournament that could prolong her career.
Most Career Digs, Creighton History
       Name   Sets   No.   Years
   1.   Kate Elman   464   2,054   2012-15
   2.   Brittany Witt   452   1,981   2016-Pr.
   3.   Janeen Piller   336   1,392   2001-04
   4.   Jaali Winters   494   1,386   2015-18
   5.   Allie Oelke   445   1,382   2007-10

Witt Surpasses 100 Aces
Brittany Witt became CU's seventh player to reach 100 aces in a career, doing so on Oct. 5 at St. John's.
   Witt reached the century mark in her 117th match, making her the fifth-fastest Bluejay player to reach 100 aces.
   She is tied for third place on CU's all-time list for career aces.
Creighton's Quickest Players To 100 Aces (Career)
Name   MP   Date   Opponent
Molly Moran   73   08/31/01   vs. DePaul
Melissa Weisensee   77   11/01/96   Southern Illinois
JoDe Cieloha   85   09/06/97   at UNLV
Shelly Kapler   95   10/15/99   Bradley
Brittany Witt   117   10/05/19   at St. John's
Kate Elman   120   11/15/15   Butler
Jaali Winters   135   11/17/18   Providence

Most Career Service Aces, Creighton History
       Name   Sets   No.   Years
   1.   Molly Moran   341   145   1998-01
   2.   Melissa Weisensee   411   125   1994-97
   3.   JoDe Cieloha   398   113   1994-97
       Brittany Witt   452   113   2016-Pr.
   5.   Kate Elman   464   105   2012-15

Pencil Her In For 10+ Digs
Brittany Witt has led Creighton in digs during all but two matches (Oct. 26 at Providence; Nov. 9 at Georgetown) this season, reaching double-figures in 23 of those contests.
   With 35 digs at Marquette on Oct. 12, Witt became the second player in program history with 10+ digs in 100 or more career matches.
   Her 109 matches with 10 or more digs is one shy of Kate Elman's school record.
Matches With 10+ Digs, Career
   10+ Digs   Name   Years
   110   Kate Elman   2012-15
   109   Brittany Witt   2016-Pres.
   74   Janeen Piller   2001-04
   71   Allie Oelke   2007-10
   65   Melissa Weisensee   1994-97

Brittany's Best
Brittany Witt was named BIG EAST Libero of the Year in 2017, but continues to surpass the figures that won her that recognition as a sophomore.
   During that 2017 season, Witt averaged 4.22 digs per set as Bluejay opponents hit .170 through 26 matches.
   This season Witt is averaging 5.08 digs per set as Bluejay opponents are hitting .152 through 26 matches.
   With Witt spearheading the defense, Creighton has won the dig battle in all but two of CU's last 39 matches (including the postseason) against BIG EAST opponents.
   The opposing liberos that Creighton has faced have had more digs than Witt just three times this season (Nebraska, Wichita State and Villanova). Witt has been outdug in a BIG EAST match just once in CU's last 18 league contests.
Brittany Witt Through 26 Matches
Week   Team W-L   DPS   Opp Hit %   REC %
2016   20-6   4.10   .173   .959
2017*   21-5   4.22   .170   .968
2018   22-4   4.40   .173   .949
2019   22-4   5.08   .152   .959
*BIG EAST Libero of the Year

Hurler Honored By AVCA
Brian Hurler is one of 14 recipients of the 2019 Coaches 4 Coaches Scholarship, the American Volleyball Coaches Association. The scholarship provides the opportunity for up-and-coming volleyball coaches to attend their first AVCA Convention with the scholarship money used to pay for Convention registration and hotel costs. Scholarship recipients will have the opportunity to interact with successful coaches from all levels and explore the limitless networking and educational opportunities available at the AVCA Convention that make this an annual can't-miss event.
   Hurler is in his first season on the Bluejay bench as a graduate manager and technical coordinator. He spent the previous three years as an assistant coach at Montclair State in New Jersey, and also owns experience working as a volunteer for the U.S. Women's National Team and Pan American Cup Team.
   "Brian has been a huge addition to our program this year," said Creighton head coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth. "He's finding statistical information that makes us better and can connect with our players so that when we train them to do something, we have the numbers to back it up with even more credibility on why we want to do it. Brian is a perfect recipient for this because he has incredible work ethic and wants to be great. His future in college volleyball is very bright."

Davis Is Killing It
Keeley Davis continues to lead Creighton in kills, as the freshman averages 3.31 kills per set. In program history, only three freshmen have ever averaged more than three kills per set over the course of a season, as seen below:
Most Kills Per Set, Creighton Freshman
(min. 100 kills)
   KPS   Name   Year
   4.07   Jaali Winters   2015
   3.75   Melissa Walsh   1998
   3.39   JoDe Cieloha   1994
   3.31   Keeley Davis   2019
   3.29   Allie Oelke   2007
   2.85   Amanda Cvejdlik   2005
   2.84   Jessica Houts   2005

Most Kills, Creighton Freshmen
   Kills   Name   Year
   546   Jaali Winters   2015
   352   Allie Oelke   2007
   341   Melissa Walsh   1998
   306   Melanie Jereb   2012
   297   Jess Bird   2013
   291   Keeley Davis   2019

Outside Weapons
Erica Kostelac and Jaela Zimmerman continue to produce in league play at levels typically seen among the best outside hitters in the conference.
   Kostelac ranks second in the BIG EAST in aces per set (0.51), sixth in points per set (3.86), ninth in hitting percentage (.284) and seventh in kills per set (3.14).
   Zimmerman ranks eighth in points per set (3.71) and eighth in kills per set (3.04).
   The only other players besides Kostelac in the BIG EAST who ranks in the top-10 in both kills per set and hitting percentage during league play is Marquette's Hope Werch and Allie Barber, a 2018 Second Team All-American.
   Since the reconfiguration of the BIG EAST in 2013, only seven women have finished a season ranked in the top-10 in both categories during league play. That list consists of Nele Barber (2013), Autumn Bailey (2013, 2014), Kelli Browning (2014), Amanda Hansen (2015), Taryn Kloth (2016, 2018), Allie Barber (2017, 2018) and Symone Speech (2017).

See You In 2020
Creighton has locked up its role as host of the 2020 BIG EAST Championship. Per league policy, the host of the championship will be the regular season champion from the previous year. However, an institution is prohibited from hosting back to back BIG EAST Championships (two years in a row). In the instance that the same team is the regular season champion two consecutive seasons, the regular season runner up will host.
   Since the only team that can match or surpass is 2019 host Marquette, Creighton is ensured the 2020 event.

Senior Class Reaches 100 Wins
Creighton owns a sparkling 106-23 record since the start of the 2016 season, which puts CU sixth nationally in victories in that span.
   Brittany Witt has played in all 106 victories and on Nov. 25 became the seventh volleyball player to appear in 100 victories at CU. Megan Ballenger has played in 104 wins since she missed a pair of victories in 2016, reaching the century mark on Nov. 1st.
   Creighton has achieved 100 or more victories in a four-year span five times now.
Most Wins, Four-Year Span
   W-L   Years
   111-28   2015-18
   107-32   2014-17
   106-23   2016-Present
   104-31   2012-15
   104-34   2013-16
   94-36   2011-14

Most Wins, Appeared In As A Creighton Player
   111   Jaali Winters   2015-18
   109   Taryn Kloth   2015-18
   106   Marysa Wilkinson   2014-17
   106   Brittany Witt   2016-Present
   104   Lauren Smith   2013-16
   104   Megan Ballenger   2016-Present
   102   Melanie Jereb   2012-15
   101   Ashley Jansen   2012-15

Most Wins Since Start of 2016 Season (11/19)
   Rk.   Wins   Team   Next Match
   1.   114   Nebraska   11/22
   2.   112   BYU   11/21
   3.   111   Stanford   11/22
   4.   109   Western Kentucky   11/22
   5.   107   Pittsburgh   11/22
   6.   106   Creighton   11/22
       106   Stephen F. Austin   11/22
   8.   104   Florida   11/20
       104   Minnesota   11/22
       104   Penn State   11/20

CU Stat Leaders in League Play
One reason Creighton is atop the BIG EAST standings is because it is dominating the league stats, both individually and as a group.
   As a team, CU leads the way in opponents hitting percentage (.137), digs per set (15.82) and aces per set (2.06).
   Individually, a pair of Bluejays lead a category.
   Madelyn Cole owns a conference-best 11.41 assists per set.
   Brittany Witt leads all players with 5.22 digs per set.

2-0 Leads Are Familiar
Creighton has led 2-0 at intermission in 24 of its last 25 regular-season BIG EAST matches. Creighton is 83-0 all-time in regular-season BIG EAST play (not to mention 7-0 in BIG EAST Championship play) when leading 2-0. That improves Kirsten Bernthal Booth to 159-0 all-time in regular-season conference matches when owning a 2-0 advantage, and a 170-0 mark against league foes when you include league tournament play.
   Creighton is 24-4 since joining the BIG EAST when tied 1-1 at intermission, with that last happening on Oct. 13, 2018 at Villanova.
   Creighton has trailed 0-2 at intermission just 11 times in league play since joining the BIG EAST and is 5-6 when that happens. The last time it occurred was Nov. 8, 2019 at Villanova.

Just Win, Baby
Creighton had its season-best 14-match win streak snapped on Nov. 8 at Villanova. That ranked as the fourth-longest mark in program history, and also marked the sixth straight campaign with at least one 10-match win streak.
   All eight win streaks of 10 or longer have taken place in the past eight seasons, after never having done it from 1994-2011.
   Most Consecutive Wins, Creighton History
       Wins   Dates   Snapped By
       23   Sept. 23-Dec. 9, 2016   at #5 Texas, 3-0
       21   Sept. 21 - Nov. 30, 2018   #22 Washington, 3-0
       17   Sept. 29-Nov. 30, 2012   at #11 Minnesota, 3-1
       14   Sept. 19 - Nov. 3, 2019    at Villanova, 3-0
       12   Sept. 20-Oct. 25, 2015   at Villanova, 3-2

October Ends With Another Sweep
Two victories over Providence on Oct. 25 & 26 wrapped up a near-perfect October for Creighton.
   The Bluejays went 8-0 with seven sweeps during the month. The lone exception was a 3-2 win at No. 10 Marquette in which the Jays held a pair of match points in the third set.
   Creighton has swept 13 of its 16 BIG EAST Conference matches so far this season.
   Since losing home matches to St. John's (in 2013) and Seton Hall (in 2014), CU has won all but one set against both the Red Storm and Pirates inside D.J. Sokol Arena.

RPI Update
Despite nine 3-0 wins (and one 3-0 loss) over the course of its last 10 matches, Creighton has dropped from 10th (on Oct. 14) to 20th in this week's official NCAA RPI rankings.
   The chart below shows where Creighton has been in the official RPI each week since 2010. Week 1 refers to the first Monday in October, which is when the NCAA first releases the RPI publicly each year.
Creighton Volleyball RPI by Week
   '10   '11   '12   '13   '14   '15   '16   '17   '18   '19
Week 1   55   --   26   10   41   20   29   8   21   18
Week 2   32   --   29   7   42   23   23   14   22   10
Week 3   40   65   29   5   46   23   27   13   20   16
Week 4   44   63   34   7   40   26   19   15   22   20
Week 5   41   55   32   9   39   23   20   15   17   19
Week 6   46   53   33   10   31   23   16   14   16   21
Week 7   44   58   31   12   31   20   17   9   14   20
Week 8   39   61   29   16   34   21   18   16   16
Week 9   29   69   26   16   24   15   17   10   13
NCAA Seed   --   --   --   --   --   16   --   9   9
FINAL   32   74   24   18   34   14   12   14   16

Not Half Bad
Creighton is 15-1 on the season in BIG EAST play, having reached midway point of league action following its Oct. 26 contest at Providence.
   Creighton has started league play 8-1 or 9-0 for the sixth straight season, and eighth time in the past nine years.
   This is the 20th straight time that Creighton has owned a .667 win percentage or better in either the first or second half of a conference season.
League Record by Year
Year   1st Half   2nd Half   Final Place
1994   2-8   1-9   T-9th MVC
1995   3-7   3-7   T-7th MVC
1996   2-7   3-6   T-6th MVC
1997   6-3   4-5   T-3rd MVC
1998   2-7   3-6   8th MVC
1999   5-4   4-5   5th MVC
2000   5-4   5-4   T-4th MVC
2001   7-2   5-4   4th MVC
2002   1-8   1-8   T-9th MVC
2003   5-4   4-5   T-5th MVC
2004   5-4   5-4   5th MVC
2005   4-5   6-3   5th MVC
2006   7-2   5-4   4th MVC
2007   7-2   7-2   T-2nd MVC
2008   7-2   8-1   2nd MVC
2009   4-5   6-3   T-4th MVC
2010   7-2   6-3   3rd MVC
2011   6-3   6-3   4th MVC
2012   8-1   9-0   1st MVC
2013   6-2   6-2   T-2nd BIG EAST
2014   8-1   8-1   1st BIG EAST
2015   9-0   8-1   1st BIG EAST
2016   9-0   9-0   1st BIG EAST
2017   8-1   8-1   1st BIG EAST
2018   9-0   9-0   1st BIG EAST
2019   9-0   6-1 so far   TBD
Total   151-84   145-88   --

The Road Less Traveled
Creighton is 16-2 in its last 18 true road matches, but one of those setbacks came Nov. 8 at Villanova. The loss to the Wildcats snapped CU's seven-match road win streak.
Creighton's Longest Road Win Streaks
Wins   Dates   Snapped By
   9   Sept. 30-Dec. 2, 2016   at #5 Texas, 3-0
   8   Sept. 29 - Nov. 30, 2012   at #11 Minnesota, 3-1
   8   Sept. 28 - Nov. 3, 2018   at #2 Nebraska
   7   Sept. 21-Nov. 9, 2007   at #24 Wichita State, 3-0
   7   Nov. 21, 2009-Oct. 2, 2010   at Drake, 3-1
   7   Sept. 6 - Oct. 26, 2019   at Villanova, 3-0

No. 12 Jays
Creighton is 12th in this week's AVCA poll, improving two spots over last week's slot.
   Creighton has spent 20 weeks in program history in the top 10, which includes 12 straight weeks in 2018.
   Creighton is one of just nine programs to have spent at least one week in the AVCA Top 10 in each of the last four seasons, a list that consists of BYU, Creighton, Florida, Minnesota, Nebraska, Penn State, Stanford, Texas and Wisconsin.
   Creighton is 1-1 all-time when ranked exactly No. 12.
   Creighton is in the top 25 of the AVCA poll for the 51st straight week. The streak started on Oct. 31, 2016. Nationally, that's the 10th-longest active streak, as seen below:
Consecutive Active Weeks in AVCA Top 25
   Streak   Team   Current Rank
   555   Stanford   4
   555   Nebraska   6
   472   Penn State   8
   445   Florida   15
   249   Texas   1
   104   Wisconsin   5
   103   BYU   13
   74   Minnesota   7
   55   Kentucky   14
   51   Creighton   12

All-Time Weekly AVCA Top-10 Rankings
December 19, 2016 (Year-End)   9th
August 9, 2017 (Preseason)   9th
August 28, 2017   7th
September 4, 2017   9th
September 11, 2017   8th
September 10, 2018   10th
September 17, 2018   10th
September 24, 2018   10th
October 1, 2018   10th
October 8, 2018   10th
October 15, 2018   10th
October 22, 2018   10th
October 29, 2018   9th
November 5, 2018   9th
November 12, 2018   9th
November 19, 2018   9th
November 26, 2018   9th
October 21, 2019   10th
October 28, 2019   9th
November 4, 2019   9th

Home Sweet Home
Creighton has gone unbeaten at home in league play in five of its previous seven seasons (2012, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018).
   Creighton is 58-2 all-time (.967) in regular-season BIG EAST play at D.J. Sokol Arena, falling once each to St. John's (2013) and Seton Hall (2014).
   Since D.J. Sokol Arena opened in 2009, Creighton is 89-7 (.927) all-time in regular-season conference matches in the facility, including 43 straight victories.
   Creighton has won all 13 meetings with St. John's since that 2013 upset, and all 12 encounters versus Seton Hall since dropping the home match in 2014.
   The Bluejays have had a winning record in conference home matches each of the last 14 seasons (including 2019). That streak that dates back to its days at the Omaha Civic Auditorium, a site that was torn down three years ago and no longer exists.

Ace, Ace, Baby
Madelyn Cole had her streak of 12 consecutive matches with an ace snapped on Oct. 26 at Providence. Cole is the only Bluejay with a streak or nine or longer since 2011, and has actually done it three times in that span.
Consecutive Matches With An Ace
   15   Amanda Cvejdlik, Sept. 29-Nov. 18, 2006
   12   Madelyn Cole, Sept. 14 - Oct. 25, 2019
   11   Kim Whitman, Sept. 5-Oct. 4, 1998
   11   Molly Moran, Oct. 7-Nov. 10, 2000
   11   Julianne Mandolfo, Oct. 2-Nov. 13, 2010
   11   Madelyn Cole - Oct. 27 - Dec. 1, 2018
   9   Melissa Weisensee, Sept. 1-20, 1995
   9   Madelyn Cole, Aug. 31 - Sept. 21, 2018

Cole Reaches 2,000 Creighton Helpers
With 42 assists on Oct. 25 at Providence, Madelyn Cole surpassed the 2,000 assist milestone transferring to Creighton prior to the 2018 season. She did it in her 53rd match as a Bluejay.
   Here's how long it took Creighton's previous setters to reach 2,000 career assists.

Creighton's Quickest Players To 2,000 Assists (Career)
Name   MP   Date   Opponent
Korie Lebeda   43   09/22/06   Drake
Brittany Coleman   45   10/02/04   Southern Illinois
Kailey Reyes   49   09/01/00   at Iowa State
Lydia Dimke   52   10/13/17   Butler
Madelyn Cole   53   10/25/19   at Providence
Megan Bober   55   11/05/10   at Wichita State
Melissa Weisensee   66   09/15/96   at UMKC
Michelle Sicner   109   11/23/14   Seton Hall

Let's Get It Started
Creighton started 11-0 or better in league play for the fourth time in the last five seasons. All three previous times CU has started 7-0 or better, it has gone on to win league regular-season and tournament crowns.
   Below is a list of Creighton's best starts in conference play all-time:
Start   League   Year   Final W-L   Final Place
18-0   BIG EAST   2016   18-0   1st
18-0   BIG EAST   2018   18-0   1s
12-0   BIG EAST   2019   TBD   TBD
11-0   BIG EAST   2015   17-1   1st
6-0   MVC   2007   14-4   T-2nd

Witt Gets To Everything
Brittany Witt collected a career-high 35 digs in Creighton's 3-2 win at No. 10 Marquette on October 12th. That performance ranks tied for sixth-most in program history for a single match.
   Witt had multiple digs on five different points, including a pair of times in the third set where she had three digs on the same point.
Most Digs, Match, Creighton History
   38   Melissa Weisensee vs. Evansville (4s)   10-10-97
   38   Bianca Rivera at Drake (5s)   9-11-07
   36   Janeen Piller vs. Drake (4s)   10-8-04
   36   Nayka Benitez vs. Wichita State (4s)   10-2-09
   36   Julianne Mandolfo at Illinois State (5s)   10-29-11
   35   Janeen Piller vs. Bradley (5s)   10-31-03
   35   Janeen Piller at Missouri State (4s)   9-25-04
   35   Janeen Piller vs. Wichita State (5s)   10-23-04
   35   Kate Elman at Wichita State (5s)   11-16-12
   35   Brittany Witt at Marquette (5s)   10-12-19

Davis Keeps Improving
Keeley Davis won seven consecutive BIG EAST Freshman of the Week honors from Sept. 10-Oct. 22, and with good reason. Her team continued to win, and her stats improved week-by-week.
   Davis' initial Freshman of the Week accolade came during week two, and she won it the following six weeks, as well.
   After not winning the award the week of October 28, Davis won her eighth honor on Nov. 5th and her ninth recognition on Nov. 19th.
Week   W-L   KPS   HIT%   SAPS   DPS   BPS
Week 1   0-2   2.57   .136   .29   .29   .14
Week 2*   3-0   2.62   .168   .15   .85   .38
Week 3*   2-1   2.82   .239   .18   1.00   .45
Week 4*   2-0   3.67   .327   .67   1.00   .83
Week 5*   2-0   3.00   .220   .57   .71   .29
Week 6*   2-0   3.17   .125   .67   1.00   .33
Week 7*   2-0   4.75   .370   .38   1.50   .12
Week 8*   2-0   3.83   .353   .17   1.33   .50
Week 9   2-0   2.00   -.020   .17   1.00   .33
Week 10*   2-0   3.83   .431   .17   .67   .83
Week 11   1-1   3.33   .216   .17   1.17   .00
Week 12*   2-0   5.00   .243   .50   1.67   .83
*Named BIG EAST Freshman of the Week

Comparing Seasons
Now in its seventh year in the BIG EAST, this year's Creighton team compares favorably with some of its past teams.
   The 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018 teams all would win the BIG EAST Championship and regular-season league title.
Creighton in BIG EAST Play (League Stats Only)
Year   W-L   KPS   HIT%   SAPS   DPS   BPS
2013   12-4   13.75   .213   1.00   16.20   3.13
2014   16-2   14.09   .242   1.30   17.09   2.86
2015   17-1   15.02   .271   1.33   16.97   2.47
2016   18-0   15.37   .317   1.69   16.08   2.41
2017   16-2   14.81   .302   1.31   16.62   2.05
2018   18-0   14.45   .294   2.13   15.67   2.38
2019   15-1   14.69   .275   2.06   15.82   2.03

Another Strong Start
Here's how this year compares to Creighton's last two teams, statistically, after 26 matches:
Year   2017   2018   2019
Match W-L   21-5   22-4   22-4
Set W-L   67-22   71-22   68-20
vs. Top-25   3-3   3-3   3-3
Tourney Titles   3   2   2
Kills/Set   14.35   14.23   14.16
Hitting %   .278   .260   .256
Aces/Set   1.34   1.56   1.74
Digs/Set   16.17   16.38   15.53
Blocks/Set   2.13   2.32   2.01
Kill/Set Leader   Winters, 3.44   Kloth, 4.04   Davis, 3.31
Dig/Set Leader   Witt, 4.22   Witt, 4.40   Witt, 5.08

Serving Better
After being plagued by serving accuracy woes to start the season, Creighton has made vast improvements since mid-September.
   Creighton started the year with 42 aces and 99 service errors in its first nine contests, during which time CU won 20-of-34 sets. Creighton served just 87.0 percent of its 762 serves inbounds in that span.
   In 17 matches since then, Creighton has 111 service aces and 127 service errors while winning 48-of-54 sets played. CU has served 1,305 times, serving it inbounds 90.3 percent of the time. Keeley Davis (21 aces, 21 errors), Erica Kostelac (22/18), Madelyn Cole (28/21) and Jaela Zimmerman (17/12) have fueled the resurgence behind the service stripe.

Championship Season
Creighton has saved some of its best work for the months of October and November in recent seasons.
   Since the start of the 2012 season, Creighton is 62-5 in October, and 60-6 in the month of November.
   Since the start of the 2014 season, Creighton is a combined 93-6 in the months of October (49-3) and November (44-3).

Against The BIG EAST
Since the BIG EAST was restructured in 2013, Creighton owns a winning record against each of the other teams currently in the BIG EAST.
   The Bluejays own 123 wins against BIG EAST competition (including BIG EAST Championship play) since 2013, 20 more wins than Marquette for most in the league as of November 20th.
   CU still has not lost to four league foes (DePaul, Georgetown, Providence, Xavier) since joining the BIG EAST, and Seton Hall (3), Marquette (3) and Villanova (3) are the only BIG EAST programs to top the Bluejays multiple times since 2013.
Opponent   Reg. Season   BE Tourney   Total
Butler   13-1   -   13-1
DePaul   13-0   -   13-0
Georgetown   14-0   -   14-0
Marquette   11-2   3-1   14-3
Providence   12-0   -   12-0
Seton Hall   11-3   2-0   13-3
St. John's   13-1   -   13-1
Villanova   11-3   3-0   14-3
Xavier   14-0   3-0   17-0
Total   112-10   11-1   123-11

Any Venue Will Do
Since joining the BIG EAST, Creighton has a .570 winning percentage or better (in all matches) at every venue in which it has played a BIG EAST match.
Site   Creighton W-L
D.J. Sokol Arena (CU)   86-14
Al McGuire Center (MU)   9-2
Hinkle Fieldhouse (BU)   8-1
Carnesecca Arena (SJU)   7-0
McGrath-Phillips Arena (DPU)   7-0
McDonough Arena (GU)   7-0
Cintas Center (XU)   7-0
Alumni Hall (PC)   6-0
Walsh Gym (SHU)   5-2
Jake Nevin Field House (VU)   4-3

5 Straight BIG EAST Championship Titles Too
Creighton won its fifth straight BIG EAST Championship title in 2018, becoming the first team to do so since Pittsburgh's seven straight league tournament titles from 1988-94.
   Creighton is the only school in the country to win a league tournament each of the last five seasons.
   Creighton is 11-1 all-time in six appearances at the BIG EAST Championships, reaching the final each time.
   Dating back to its Missouri Valley Conference days, Creighton has made 16 straight appearances in a league tournament after appearing in just 4-of-9 tournaments prior to Kirsten Bernthal Booth's arrival.

Setting An Example
Since the start of last season, Creighton is 35-1 against BIG EAST competition. The Bluejays are 105-13 in sets against league foes in that time, dropping four sets in four matches against Marquette, meaning they've gone 93-9 in sets against everyone else.
   Marquette is 31-4 against league opponents in that same span, with all four losses coming to Creighton. The Golden Eagles are 97-20 in sets against league foes in that time, with 12 of those set losses against Creighton, meaning they've gone 93-8 in sets against everyone else.

Witt Keeps On Digging
Senior Brittany Witt has seven matches this fall with 20 or more matches, giving her 25 in her career. That ranks fourth-most in team history.
   Witt is tied for second in program history with four career matches of 30 or more digs.
Matches With 20+ Digs, Career
   20+D   Name   Years
   41   Kate Elman   2012-15
   32   Julianne Mandolfo      2010-11
   27   Bianca Rivera   2007-08
   25   Brittany Witt   2016-Pres.
   20   Janeen Piller   2001-04
   19   Nayka Benitez   2009-10

Matches With 30+ Digs, Career
   30+D   Name   Years
   9   Julianne Mandolfo   2010-11
   4   Janeen Piller   2001-04
   4   Bianca Rivera   2007-08
   4   Nayka Benitez   2009-10
   4   Brittany Witt   2016-Pres.
   2   Kate Elman   2012-15
   1   Melissa Weisensee   1994-97
   1   Melissa Walsh   1998-01
   1   Melanie Jereb   2012-15

Match 1 of Weekend vs. Match 2
One of the challenges of going on the road in the BIG EAST is typically having to play matches on back-to-back days, without the benefit of a travel day in between that Creighton opponents are afforded when they come to Omaha.
   Creighton, however, has managed to enjoy success, regardless of when it plays on the road.
    Since joining the BIG EAST in the summer of 2013, Creighton is 54-8 in league road matches. That includes a 23-7 mark in its first road game of a multi-game weekend, and a 29-1 record (with 26 straight wins) when playing a second road day in a row. CU is also 2-0 in single matches against travel partners that don't have an accompanying match.
   Creighton is also 58-2 in league home matches, including a 25-1 mark (with 23 straight wins) when playing the first match of a three-day weekend, as well as a 25-1 mark (with 18 straight wins) when playing two days later. Creighton is also 2-0 when playing a solo home match, and 3-0 both on day one and day two when playing on consecutive days at home without a break.

BIG EAST Preseason Poll
For the second straight season, Creighton was picked to finish second in the BIG EAST. Last year CU was picked second and went 18-0 in league play en route to a fifth straight regular-season title.
   This year a preseason poll of BIG EAST coaches tabbed Marquette the favorite with 80 points and eight first-place votes, edging out Creighton's 73 points and two first-place votes. St. John's was picked third in the league's preseason poll, with Villanova fourth and Butler fifth. Rounding out the poll are Georgetown, DePaul, Seton Hall, Xavier and Providence.
   Creighton also had three women named to the 12 member on the BIG EAST's preseason all-conference team, as Megan Ballenger, Madelyn Cole and Brittany Witt were all honored. It was the third straight preseason honor for Witt.
   Creighton has finished in the spot predicted of it or better in the preseason poll in 14 of 16 years under Booth, including eight years where it's finished exactly where it was picked.
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   1st   - -
2016   1st   1st   - -
2017   1st   1st   - -
2018   2nd   1st   #1
2019   2nd   TBD   TBD

What's The Difference?
En route to its league titles in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018, Creighton compiled an 85-5 record in BIG EAST regular-season play. The Jays won those five titles by a combined 12.5 games over their nearest competitors, meaning if you took the record for the best second-place club each year they'd be 72-17.

Sweeeeeeeeeep!!!
Creighton swept 14-of-18 matches at all sites in BIG EAST play last season, and has swept 17 of its last 19 regular-season home matches against league foes dating to 2017.
   During Creighton's 43-match home winning streak in league play, the Bluejays have dropped only 15 (of 144) sets at home, with nine of those setbacks coming in set two.
   Creighton is 40-3 in set one, 34-9 in set two, 41-2 in set three, 10-1 in set four and 4-0 in set five during that home streak in league play, which means they are 85-5 in sets that they spend at least some time on the south bench.
   During this 43-match regular-season home win streak in league play, only one opponent has won more than three sets against CU in Omaha, Villanova (4), while neither Providence nor Marquette have won a set.
   In Creighton's 122 all-time regular-season BIG EAST matches at all sites, Creighton is 72-5 in three-set matches, 28-2 in four-set matches and 12-3 in five-set contests.

Nice Work, Ace
In 34 regular-season league matches since the start of last fall, Creighton allowed three aces or less in 25 of them, and one ace or less 12 times.
   Creighton has served more aces than its opponent in 30-of-34 league matches in that time, and was tied on two other occasions.
   The Bluejays have won 90 of its last 91 matches against BIG EAST foes when owning more aces than its competition since a Nov. 1, 2013 loss to St. John's.

All-Tourney Trio in Omaha
Three Bluejays were named to the All-Tournament Team at the Creighton Classic -- Jaela Zimmerman, Madelyn Cole and Keeley Davis.
   Zimmerman took home MVP honors after averaging 4.50 kills per set on .404 hitting. She had a career-high 16 kills vs. Wyoming. It's the first All-Tournament Team and MVP honor of the sophomore's career.
   Cole was recognized after averaging 10.83 assists, 2.50 digs and 1.33 blocks per set in two wins. It's her second All-Tournament Team accolade this fall, and the fourth of her career.
   Davis averaged 3.67 kills per set and hit .327 to earn the first All-Tournament Team recognition in her young career.

Only JoDe & Jaali More Quickly Than Keeley
Keeley Davis surpassed the 100 kill milestone during the 10th match of her career on Sept. 21 vs. Wyoming. Only two women in program history have gotten there in fewer matches, JoDe Cieloha (8 matches) and Jaali Winters (9).
   Davis surpassed 200 career kills vs. Xavier on Oct. 20 in her 18th career match, tied for third-fastest ever to that milestone. Erica Kostelac did it on Oct. 26 in her 20th match to rank sixth on that list.
   Having amassed 291 kills in 26 contests to date, Davis could be on the verge of reaching the 300 mark this weekend.
Creighton's Quickest Players To 100 Kills (Career)
Name   MP   Date   Opponent
JoDe Cieloha   8   09/23/94   at Drake
Jaali Winters   9   9/12/15   Pacific
Melissa Walsh   10   09/26/98   at Bradley
Carolyn Decker   10   09/18/04   Illinois State
Keeley Davis   10   09/21/19   Wyoming
Allie Oelke   11   09/15/07   vs. Charlotte

Creighton's Quickest Players To 200 Kills (Career)
Name   MP   Date   Opponent
Jaali Winters   15   9/27/15   Villanova
Melissa Walsh   16   10/16/98   at Indiana State
Keeley Davis   18   10/20/19   Xavier
JoDe Cieloha   18   10/30/94   at UMKC
Allie Oelke   18   10/06/07   at Southern Illinois
Erica Kostelac   20   10/26/19   at Providence
Shelly Kapler   22   11/09/96   at Bradley

Creighton's Quickest Players To 300 Kills (Career)
Name   MP   Date   Opponent
Jaali Winters   21   10/16/15   at Butler
Melissa Walsh   23   11/08/98   at UMKC
JoDe Cieloha   26   09/02/95   vs. Green Bay
Allie Oelke   27   11/09/07   at Missouri State
Shelly Kapler   30   09/05/97   vs. UTSA

Iron Woman Witt
Brittany Witt has played in all 452 sets that Creighton's participated in since enrolling on campus in the fall of 2016.
   Witt is just the fourth woman in program history to have played in every set the team has played in over any four-year span; Lauren Smith (511 from 2013-16), Megan Bober (480 from 2009-12) and Korie Lebeda (428 from 2005-08).

September To Remember
Creighton went 9-1 in September. It was just the second month in program history with a .900 winning percentage or better in 10+ matches, joining October of 2015.
Best Winning Percentage, Month (Min. 10 Matches)
   Pct.   W-L   Month, Year
   .909   10-1   October 2015
   .900   9-1   September 2019
   .818   9-2   September, 2018
   .769   10-3   September 2006
   .750   9-3   September, 2012

Ballenger Can Block
Megan Ballenger tied her career-high with eight blocks on Sept. 19 vs. Wichita State, then established a new best with nine rejections two days later vs. Wyoming.
   She became the first Bluejay with eight or more blocks in consecutive contests since Kelli Browning did so on Oct. 3-4, 2014.
   Ballenger, owns 351 blocks in her career, three spots out of 10th on CU's all-time list.

Survival of the Fittest
Creighton has won nine matches under Kirsten Bernthal Booth after surviving an opponent's match point, including last year's season-opening win over No. 5 Kentucky. Three of those comeback wins have come against Wichita State.
   On the other hand, Creighton is 368-2 under Booth when it reaches a match point opportunity, falling only when it wasted two match points on Sept. 4, 2010 to Iowa and two other match points on Nov. 1, 2013 in a 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
09/20/15   Kansas State   23-24 (4th set)   15-13
11/20/15   at Georgetown   23-24, 26-27 (4th set)   15-7
08/24/18   vs. #5 Kentucky   16-15, 19-18   22-20

Booth Earns 350th Win at Creighton
Kirsten Bernthal Booth picked up her 350th victory at Creighton on Sept. 13 with a 3-0 triumph over Nebraska-Omaha. The victory gave her a record of 350-167.
   Booth has beaten 89 different schools while at Creighton, adding USC, Nebraska-Omaha and Wyoming this season.
   Here's a look at Booth's record at the time of some of her milestone victories at Creighton:
W-L   Opponent   Date
1-1   vs. Auburn (in Ames, Iowa)   08/30/03
50-43   Jacksonville State   09/01/06
100-71   at Drake   10/31/08
150-108   Illinois State   09/30/11
200-123   Xavier   10/18/13
250-144   at Xavier   10/17/15
300-157   Villanova   09/24/17
350-167   Nebraska-Omaha   09/13/19

Just A Few Streaks...
- Creighton has won 82 straight matches against unranked teams when winning set one.
- Creighton has won 58 straight home matches against unranked teams and is 103-3 in its last 106 matches at all sites against unranked teams.
- Creighton has also won 37 matches in a row against teams that enter the match with a record below .500.

Hickman Earns Two Honors
Naomi Hickman entered September with a career-high of nine kills, only to reel off double-figure kills in each match of the UNI Tournament en route to MVP honors.
   Hickman opened her month with a career-high 17 kills in CU's win over No. 12 Kentucky on Sept. 6, hitting .640 in 25 swings.
   Hickman then had 10 kills during the victory over Northern Iowa before wrapping up the weekend with 11 kills in 15 errorless swings as she hit .733 in the victory over No. 15 USC.
   For the weekend, Hickman averaged 2.92 kills per set and hit .465 with 38 kills in 71 swings against just five attack errors.
   The rosters of the four teams in the UNI Tournament featured 10 players who have previously been named All-Americans by the AVCA.
   For her efforts, Hickman was also named BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week.

Friday Night Fun?
September 6 was a special day for the Creighton Volleyball and Men's Soccer programs, as both teams picked up top-25 victories. Volleyball beat No. 12 Kentucky in the afternoon before the men's soccer program downed No. 21 Akron at night.
   In school history, Creighton has picked up wins over ranked men's soccer and volleyball teams on the same day just three times.
   Last year on Aug. 24, the men's soccer team defeated No. 11 Clemson, 2-0, and No. 13 Bluejay Volleyball beat #5 Kentucky, 3-2.
   The first time it happened occurred on Aug. 30, 2013, when men's soccer beat No. 14 Tulsa 2-0 and volleyball knocked off No. 13 BYU, 3-1.

The Gauntlet
Creighton played five different non-conference teams that were in the top-25 of the preseason AVCA coaches poll. That was tied for the third-most of any team in the nation, and trailed only preseason No. 1 Stanford and Wichita State's six. Among the other teams with five ranked non-conference foes are 2019 Bluejay opponents Kentucky, Northern Iowa and Washington.
   The Bluejays met up with preseason No. 2 Nebraska, No. 7 Kentucky, No. 13 Washington, No. 14 USC and No. 20 Baylor in 2019.
   This is the seventh straight season that Creighton will face four or more non-conference foes that are in the preseason Top 25.
   The four teams to have beaten Creighton this season are a combined 84-17 and are currently ranked No. 3 (Baylor), No. 6 (Nebraska) and No. 13 (Washington), as well as a 20-win Villanova squad that is unranked.

All-Tourney Trio
Junior middle blocker Naomi Hickman was named Most Valuable Player of the UNI Tournament and joined on the All-Tournament team by Creighton teammates Megan Ballenger and Madelyn Cole.
   The trio were key cogs in Creighton's 3-0 weekend that included four-set wins over No. 12 Kentucky and No. 15 USC, as well as a 3-2 win against tournament host and defending Missouri Valley Conference champion Northern Iowa.
   Hickman and Ballenger shared team-high honors with 38 kills in 13 sets (2.92 kps.). Hickman hit .465 while Ballenger hit .437 as the Bluejay middle blocking duo dominated all weekend long. Cole quarterbacked a Bluejay offense that hit .266 on the weekend, dishing 153 assists in 13 sets (11.77 aps.). Cole also hit .455 in 22 swings and contributed 39 digs (3.00 dps.), 11 blocks (0.85 bps.) and two aces (0.15 saps.).
   Hickman entered the week with a career-high of nine kills, only to reach double-figures in all three matches in Cedar Falls. She posted 17 kills on .640 hitting in the Bluejay victory over Kentucky, adding three blocks and two digs. Hickman then added 10 kills and four blocks in CU's 3-2 triumph over Northern Iowa on Friday night. She capped her weekend with 11 kills in 15 errorless swings, hitting a career-best .733, in the Bluejays' first win over USC in program history.
   Ballenger had 12 kills on .579 hitting in the victory over Kentucky, adding five blocks. She then finished with 10 kills and a pair of blocks while hitting at a .348 clip later that night vs. UNI. Ballenger then tied her career-high with 16 kills in the title game victory over USC, hitting .414 in the process.
   Cole had double-doubles in all three matches. She had 53 assists, 14 digs and five blocks as CU hit .319 in the win vs. Kentucky. Cole added 48 assists and tied a season-high with 15 digs in a five-set win vs. UNI. She closed the weekend with 52 assists, 10 digs, five kills and four blocks as the Jays hit .355 in the win over USC.
   Joining Hickman, Ballenger and Cole on the All-Tournament Team were Kentucky's Gabby Curry and Leah Edmond, USC's Emilia Weske and UNI's Karlie Taylor.

Top 25 x 3
Creighton was the only volleyball team in the nation to start the season by playing three different ranked teams, as it met No. 2 Nebraska, No. 20 Baylor and No. 12 Kentucky.
   Illinois also opened with three straight matches against ranked teams, but two of those were against Tennessee in back-to-back contests.
   This season marks the first time that Creighton's first three matches of the season have come against top-25 competition.

Top 25 x 5
Per research by Liberty SID Joe Carmany and Texas SID Jocelyn VerVelde, Creighton was one of three teams to open the year with five straight matches against teams that ended the 2018 campaign with a top-25 RPI.
   USC and Texas are also among that group.
Creighton: Nebraska, Baylor, Kentucky, UNI, USC
USC: Texas State, Texas, Kentucky, UNI, Creighton
Texas: UNI, USC, Minnesota, Stanford, BYU

100+ Starts For Ballenger and Cole
Senior middle blocker Megan Ballenger has made 121 career starts, including each of Creighton's last 88 contests. The last time she didn't start came on Sept. 3, 2016 against USC.
   Ballenger 121 career starts is fifth in program history. The school record is 138 starts, set last year by Ballenger's former high school and college teammate, Jaali Winters.
   Ballenger's senior teammate Madelyn Cole has made 114 career starts (including 109 straight) when you factor in 54 starts before transferring in from Marshall.

New Blood
Junior Naomi Hickman has started Creighton's season opener each of the past three years, and next year has a chance to become the 16th player to start four season openers.
   Jaali Winters finished off the feat last fall, as seen below.
Four Opening Day Starts
Name   Years
JoDe Cieloha   1994-97
Melissa Weisensee   1994-97
Shelly Kapler   1996-99
Erin Swanson   1998-01
Kailey Reyes   1998-01
Melissa Walsh   1998-01
Carolyn Decker   2004-06, 08
Korie Lebeda   2005-08
Jessica Houts   2006-09
Allie Oelke   2007-10
Heather Thorson   2009-12
Megan Bober   2009-12
Jess Bird   2013-16
Lauren Smith   2013-16
Jaali Winters   2015-18

Select Company
The BIG EAST's Creighton and Marquette are two of 16 teams nationally to have appeared in each of the last seven NCAA Tournaments (2012-18). That group features BYU, Colorado State, Creighton, Florida, Florida State, Hawaii, Kentucky, Marquette, Nebraska, Oregon, Penn State, San Diego, Stanford, Texas, USC and Washington.
   Creighton is one of 13 teams to win a match in each of the last four NCAA Tournaments (2015-18). That group includes BYU, Creighton, Florida, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Purdue, Penn State, Stanford, Texas, USC, Washington and Wisconsin.
   Creighton is also one of 10 teams to be in the year-end AVCA poll in 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018. That list includes BYU, Creighton, Florida, Minnesota, Nebraska, Penn State, Stanford, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin.
   Creighton is one of 14 schools with seven straight seasons of 20+ wins (2012-18). That list features American, BYU, Colorado State, Creighton, Florida, Florida State, Kentucky, Marquette, Nebraska, Penn State, Stanford, Texas, Washington, Western Kentucky.
   Creighton is one of just seven schools nationally who have won 23 matches or more in each of the last seven seasons (2012-18). That group consists of BYU, Creighton, Florida, Nebraska, Penn State, Stanford and Texas.
   Creighton is one of just nine programs to have spent at least one week in the AVCA Top 10 in each of the last four seasons, (2016-19) a list that consists of BYU, Creighton, Florida, Minnesota, Nebraska, Penn State, Stanford, Texas and Wisconsin.

Up To Speed on Seeds
Creighton is one of 12 schools to be a national seed in three of the last four NCAA Tournaments.
   BYU, Minnesota, Nebraska, Penn State, Stanford and Texas have been national seeds all four times.
   Creighton, Florida, UCLA, USC, Washington and Wisconsin have each been national seeds three times in that span.

Ranked To Start The Year
Creighton started this season ranked No. 18 in the AVCA Coaches poll. It's the sixth time in the past seven campaigns that CU's been ranked in the preseason AVCA poll, and fourth straight fall.
   Only 12 teams have been ranked in the preseason each of the last four years: BYU, Creighton, Florida, Kentucky, Minnesota, Nebraska, Penn State, Purdue, Stanford, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin. Those same 12 teams are the only programs to be ranked in the preseason in six of the last seven campaigns.
   Being ranked in the preseason poll is no guarantee of future success, however. In the last 11 seasons (including 2018), only 197-of-275 teams (71.6 percent) would be in both the preseason and postseason AVCA Top 25 polls.
   Since 2008, all but 28 teams (of 275) named in the preseason AVCA Top 25 poll would go on to reach the NCAA Tournament (89.8 percent).
   The only previous time that Creighton Volleyball was ranked 18th in the preseason was the 2016 campaign, which saw the Bluejays reach the Elite Eight.
Creighton's History in the AVCA Preseason Poll
   Year   Preseason Rank   Final W-L   Final Rank
   2013   25th   23-9   NR
   2014   23rd   25-9   NR
   2016   18th   27-9   9th
   2017   9th   26-7   16th
   2018   13th   29-5   13th
   2019   18th   TBD   TBD

Setting The Table
For just the second time in the last eight years, Creighton started the same opening day setter in consecutive seasons.
   The Jays started the season with Megan Bober in 2012 vs. UCF before Michelle Sicner took over in the 2013 lid-lifter vs. BYU. In 2014 Maggie Baumert started the opener at setter against Lipscomb, while Kenzie Crawford got the call versus Miami (Ohio) in 2015. Lydia Dimke started the initial contest in both 2016 and 2017, before graduating.
   Last year Madelyn Cole started the season-opener against No. 5 Kentucky, producing a double-double in the five-set victory. She had another double-double in this year's lid-lifter against No. 2 Nebraska.
   The revolving door at setter hasn't hurt the team in that time, as each of the previous seven seasons ended in the NCAA Tournament, and six of them saw Creighton win conference titles.
   Creighton won six of those eight (including 2019) season-opening matches.

2-0 Better Than 0-2
Creighton is 306-10 (.968) all-time when leading a match 2-0, including a 249-4 mark (.984) under Kirsten Bernthal Booth. CU is 176-2 when up 2-0 dating to September of 2009, and 91-0 all-time at D.J. Sokol Arena when up 2-0 at the break.
   Per RichKern.com, Division I teams that won the first two sets in 2018 won 94.8 percent of their matches, and have won 95.0 percent of their matches in the last 10 years.
   Conversely, the Jays are 14-198 (.066) all-time when trailing a match 0-2. Those 14 comebacks in program history 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
11/08/14   at Butler   25-16, 25-20, 15-13   Booth
09/20/15   Kansas State   25-23, 26-24, 15-13   Booth
10/09/15   DePaul   25-21, 25-12, 15-11   Booth
11/20/15   at Georgetown   30-28, 26-24, 15-7   Booth
10/13/17   Butler   25-21, 25-23, 15-9   Booth
10/18/18   Xavier   25-17, 25-17, 15-13   Booth

Set 1 Result A Strong Indicator
Creighton is 307-30 (.911) overall under Kirsten Bernthal Booth when it wins set one. In that same time span, CU is just 61-139 (.305) under Booth when it drops the first set.
   Per RichKern.com, Division I teams that lost the first set in 2018 won just 20.7 percent of their matches last season, and 20.2 percent of their matches in the previous 10 seasons.
   Since Aug. 29, 2010, Creighton has gone 101-2 in its last 103 home matches when taking a 1-0 lead, losing only on Sept. 12, 2015 to Pacific and on Sept. 6, 2018 to No. 7 Nebraska.
   Last year's team was 24-2 when winning the first set and 5-3 when dropping the opener.
   This year's team is 20-0 when winning the first set, but is 2-4 when dropping the opener.
   Creighton has won 82 straight matches against unranked foes when winning the opening set.

Third Set's A Charm
One key factor to watch in 2018 was the result of the third set.
   Creighton was 26-0 last season when winning the third set, but 3-4 when dropping the third set.
   This year's team is 19-1 when taking the third frame, and 3-3 when losing the third set.
   Since an Oct. 10, 2014 loss at Seton Hall, Creighton is a perfect 94-0 against BIG EAST teams (86-0 in the regular-season and 8-0 in league tournament play) when winning the third set.

Taking The Fifth
Creighton is 57-29 in five-set matches under Kirsten Bernthal Booth. That's impressive since Creighton had never finished a season with a winning record in fifth sets prior to Booth's arrival.
   Creighton has won 15 of its last 19 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, wins in 2014 at Butler and at St. John's, a win at Georgetown in 2015, an NCAA Tournament win at No. 4 Kansas in 2016, 2017 victories at Butler, Georgetown and Marquette, a 2018 win at Butler and wins at UNI and No. 10 Marquette this fall.
   It's also worth noting that Creighton is 12-3 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   5-2   27-9
2016   4-3   29-7
2017   4-1   26-7
2018   3-2   29-5
2019   2-0   22-4
Total   72-57   461-321

Marian Pipeline
This is the 17th straight season that Creighton Volleyball had at least one product of Omaha Marian High School on the roster, as senior Brittany Witt returns and is joined by freshman Emily Bressman. It's also the eighth straight season with multiple Marian grads.
   Each of the last eight years, Creighton's year-end leader in digs has been a player that attended Marian.
   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.
2019: Emily Bressman, Brittany Witt
2018: Kelsey O'Connell, Brittany Witt
2017: Kelsey O'Connell, Brittany Witt
2016: Kelsey O'Connell, Brittany Witt
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 Returns
Creighton returns 9-of-15 letterwinners to the court from last season, including three starters and libero Brittany Witt.
   From last year's team, only Samantha Bohnet, Taryn Kloth, Kelsey O'Connell, Jaali Winters, Kari Zumach (transferred to Indiana and Alexa Roumeliotis (transferred to Colorado State) are not back.
   Below is a breakdown of the production that is back:
Stat   Returners   Departures
Assists   1485 (94.5%)   87 (5.5%)
Blocks   190 (67.7%)   90.5 (32.3%)
Aces   122 (59.8%)   82 (40.2%)
Matches Started   110 (53.9%)   94 (46.1%)
Digs   960 (49.9%)   963 (50.1%)
Points   927 (42.7%)   1246.5 (57.3%)
Kills   615 (36.4%)   1074 (63.6%)

Seven Straight NCAA's
Creighton Volleyball has made the NCAA Tournament in each of the last seven seasons. They are the first women's team in any sport at Creighton to make seven straight NCAA Tournament appearances.
   The only other sport in Creighton history to make seven straight NCAA Tournament appearances is the men's soccer program, which qualified in 17 straight seasons from 1992-2008, and also reached seven straight NCAA Tournaments from 2010-16.

Against NCAA Tournament Qualifiers
Last season Creighton played 13 matches against 2017 NCAA Tournament qualifiers, going 8-5 against such teams.
   This year's team is scheduled to play eight matches against teams that played in the 2018 NCAA Tournament, and currently is 4-3 in those contests.
   After going 3-35 against teams coming off NCAA Tournament bids prior to Kirsten Bernthal Booth's arrival, the Jays are 82-98 since.
Year   W-L vs. Previous Season NCAA Teams
1994   0-4
1995   0-2
1996   0-2
1997   0-3
1998   0-5
1999   2-4
2000   0-4
2001   1-6
2002   0-5
2003   0-3
2004   2-2
2005   0-6
2006   4-6
2007   4-9
2008   6-8
2009   1-11
2010   4-7
2011   2-6
2012   8-3
2013   6-6
2014   4-5
2015   11-5
2016   10-7
2017   8-6
2018   8-5
2019   4-3
TOTAL   85-133
TOTAL Under Booth   82-98

The Great Eight
Kirsten Bernthal Booth is in some select company, as she has now directed her troops to eight NCAA Tournaments. That puts her in the company of some of the greatest coaches in CU Athletics history.
   Booth is the second head coach in Creighton history to lead eight different NCAA Tournament teams, trailing only former men's soccer coach Bob Warming.
Name   Sport   NCAA's @CU
Bob Warming   Men's Soccer   11
Kirsten Bernthal Booth   Volleyball   8
Dana Altman   Men's Basketball   7
Brent Vigness   Softball   7
Elmar Bolowich   Men's Soccer   6

Climbing The List
Kirsten Bernthal Booth became Creighton Volleyball's winningest coach in the program's modern history on August 26, 2007, and hasn't let up.
   Booth won her 300th match at CU on Sept. 24 vs. Villanova, and now owns 368 victories on the Bluejay sideline to rank fifth in school history, through November 21st.
Coach, Sport   Victories
Brent Vigness, Softball   777*
Mary Higgins, Softball   564
Ed Servais, Baseball   558*
Tom Lilly, Men's & Women's Tennis   445*
Kirsten Bernthal Booth, Volleyball   368*
Jim Flanery, Women's Basketball   330*
Dana Altman, Men's Basketball   327
*still active coaching at Creighton

Year-By-Year In Non-Conference Play
Creighton collected eight non-conference wins in 2018 for the first time since the 2013 team went 9-3.
   Creighton is 6-9 against ranked non-conference foes over the last three seasons after going 2-43 all-time vs. ranked teams in regular-season non-conference matches.
Non-Conference Records, By Year, Under Booth
Year   Non-Con W-L   vs. Ranked Non-Con   Final W-L
2003   3-8   0-0   12-18
2004   8-2   0-1   18-11
2005   6-5   0-3   16-14
2006   8-3   0-1   21-10
2007   6-5   0-3   21-10
2008   3-5   0-3   18-9
2009   3-8   0-3   14-17
2010   5-5   0-1   21-12
2011   5-7   0-1   17-14
2012   9-2   0-1   29-4
2013   9-3   1-2   23-9
2014   7-6   0-5   25-9
2015   6-7   1-4   27-9
2016   6-6   0-4   29-7
2017   7-4   3-3   26-7
2018   8-4   1-3   29-5
2019   7-3   2-3   TBD

You Dig?
They say that defense wins championships, and that's certainly proven true for Creighton.
   Creighton has won 92 straight matches against BIG EAST teams when winning the dig battle, a streak that dates to Oct. 10, 2014 at Seton Hall.
   All but four of Creighton's last 86 matches (against all foes) have been won by the team with more digs, which goes back to Sept. 15, 2017.

This and That
Amaze your friends and neighbors with these nuggets...
• Kirsten Bernthal Booth earned AVCA East Region Coach of the Year honors in 2018. It's the third time that Booth has been recognized (also 2015 and 2016) in the East Region. She is the nation's only coach to be honored three of the last four seasons.
• This year marks the fifth straight campaign Creighton has beaten multiple top-25 programs.
• Creighton finished last season ranked 11th nationally in average home attendance (2,802).
• Naomi Hickman is averaging 2.21 kills per set while hitting .447 in six matches this season against top-20 competition.
• Since joining the BIG EAST, Creighton is 11-1 at the conference tournament. No other BIG EAST team has a winning record in league championship action in that time.
• Since joining the BIG EAST, Creighton Volleyball has 10 or more regular-season wins against each league foe, In that same time, the Bluejays have lost 10 total regular-season league matches.
• Despite owning 31 kills at Marquette on Oct. 12, Keeley Davis had kills on back-to-back points just once in the entire match (3-2 and 4-2 in the fifth set).

#12 Volleyball Closes Regular Season At Home vs. #9 Marquette; DePaul

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Players Mentioned

Megan Ballenger

Samantha Bohnet

Emily Bressman

Madelyn Cole

Keeley Davis

Naomi Hickman

Taryn Kloth

Erica Kostelac

Kelsey O'Connell

Alexa Roumeliotis

Megan Sharkey

Jaali Winters

Brittany Witt

Jaela Zimmerman

Kari Zumach