Sunday, November 24
Omaha, Neb.
11:00 AM
Creighton University
24-4, 17-1BIG EAST
3
vs
1
DePaul
14-16, 6-12BIG EAST
1
2
3
4
F
DePaul
19
21
27
21
1
Creighton
25
25
25
25
3
Seniors Megan Ballenger, Madelyn Cole, Megan Sharkey and Brittany Witt
Photo by: Steve Branscombe
#12 Volleyball Posts 3-1 Victory Over DePaul On Senior Day
11/24/2019 1:51:00 PM | Volleyball
Bluejays earn sixth straight outright BIG EAST regular season title
OMAHA, Neb. -- The No. 12 Creighton volleyball team ended the regular season with a four-set win against DePaul on Sunday during Senior Day at D.J. Sokol Arena. With the win Creighton (24-4, 17-1 BIG EAST) became the first team in BIG EAST history to win six straight outright volleyball titles.
The Bluejays defeated the Blue Demons by scores of 25-19, 25-21, 25-27, 25-21.
Jaela Zimmerman paced the Creighton offense for a second straight match with 17 kills, while Keeley Davis added 13 kills and added 11 digs for her first career double-double. Creighton tallied 14 aces as seniors Madelyn Cole and Brittany Witt each had four service winners. Cole also had 43 assists, while Witt ended the afternoon with 27 digs to become the second player to surpass the 2,000 dig milestone in her career.
The Bluejays also had 14 blocks, led by Naomi Hickman with 10 and Annika Welty with six. It was Hickman's third contest this fall with 10 or more blocks, and second straight.
Preseason All-BIG EAST hitter Brittney Maxwell led DePaul with 17 kills, while Natalie Hayward posted 41 assists and 15 digs. The Blue Demons had three different players record at least 15 digs as the squad finished with 72 digs.
Creighton trailed early in the first set before a DePaul service error and three straight service aces by Cole gave the Bluejays an 8-4 lead. DePaul pulled with one at 9-8 but never regained the lead. Kills by Jaela Zimmerman and Annika Welty and three more consecutive aces, this time by Witt, gave the Bluejays a 14-8 edge. Creighton led by as many as seven in the opening set before winning by six.Â
The Bluejays erased an early 2-1 deficit and took the second set by four points. Creighton gained its first lead of the second frame with a kills by Davis and three more points with Davis behind the serving line. DePaul battled back to tie the match at 8-8 before the Bluejays called timeout and responded with a six straight points, including two kills from senior Megan Ballenger, to grab a 14-8 advantage. DePaul never got closer than four the rest of the set and Creighton ended the set with six blocks.
The third set featured seven ties and three lead changes as DePaul earned a 27-25 win. Creighton trailed 19-13 and continued to fight back until tying the match at 24-24 with a kill by Zimmerman. The Bluejays saved two set points before a service ace by Maxwell ended the frame.Â
DePaul jumped out to an early 7-1 lead in the fourth set. Following a Creighton timeout, Cole delivered a kill and served to help the Bluejays cut the deficit to three at 7-4. Creighton trailed by only one at 11-10 after a service ace from Welty (her first of 2019) and the Bluejays gained a 16-12 edge with five of the next six behind two kills apiece from Davis and Ballenger, as well as an ace from Zimmerman. DePaul rallied to tie the match at 18-18, but Creighton did not give up the lead and Zimmerman ended the match with her 17th kill of the afternoon.Â
DePaul ended its season at 14-16 overall and 6-12 in BIG EAST action while seeing its three-match win streak come to an end.
Creighton will continue its season in the semifinals of the BIG EAST Championship. The top-seeded Bluejays will face fourth-seeded St. John's in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on Friday at 5:30 p.m. Creighton swept both regular-season matches with St. John's this season, and has won the last 13 meetings with the Red Storm, but the teams have never met in the postseason.
NOTES:Â Creighton improved to 14-0 against DePaul since joining the BIG EAST ... Creighton has won 45 straight regular-season BIG EAST matches at home ... Seniors Megan Ballenger, Madelyn Cole, Megan Sharkey and Brittany Witt were honored after the match as part of Senior Day festivities ... Creighton improved to 160-0 under Kirsten Bernthal Booth in regular-season conference matches after taking a 2-0 lead into intermission ... Creighton has won 83 in a row over unranked teams when winning the first set ... Creighton has won 59 in a row at home against unranked teams ... Creighton has won 19 of its last 20 matches, and 24 of its past 26 contests ... Brittany Witt's four aces give her 117 in her career, moving her to sole possession of third place in program history ... Witt also broke the school record she had shared with Kate Elman with her 111th career match with 10 or more digs ... Makenna Krause had her first career match with multiple aces.
Team Stats
DePaul
CU
Kills
52
55
Errors
22
22
Attempts
149
159
Hitting %
.201
.208
Points
62.0
83.0
Assists
50
50
Aces
1
14
Blocks
9.0
14.0
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
17
Aces
1
Blocks
3
Kills
13
Aces
2
Blocks
1
Kills
9
Aces
0
Blocks
4
Kills
6
Aces
0
Blocks
10
Players Mentioned
MB/RS
/ Volleyball
S
/ VolleyballOH
/ VolleyballMB/RS
/ Volleyball
DS
/ Volleyball
S
/ Volleyball
MB/RS
/ Volleyball
DS
/ VolleyballOH
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