Friday, September 9
Omaha, Neb. (Baxter Arena)
5:00 PM
Creighton University
vs
Florida State
#17 Volleyball Heads Across Town For Omaha Invite
9/8/2022 3:09:00 PM | Volleyball
Creighton will face Florida State and Omaha this weekend
Match #8: #17 Creighton vs. Florida State • Friday, Sept. 9 • 5 p.m. • Omaha, Neb. (Baxter Arena)
| LIVE VIDEO | LIVE STATS | CU NOTES | FSU NOTES |
Match #9: #17 Creighton at Omaha • Saturday, Sept. 10 • 3 p.m. • Omaha, Neb. (Baxter Arena)
| LIVE VIDEO | LIVE AUDIO | LIVE STATS | CU NOTES | UNO NOTES |
This Week
No. 17 Creighton (5-2) makes its first trip across town to Baxter Arena this weekend for a pair of matches in the Omaha Invite Presented by Sarpy County Tourism.
The event actually starts on Thursday when Omaha (4-1) meets Florida State (6-1) at 6:30 p.m.
Creighton returns to the floor on Friday at 5 p.m. for a neutral site match-up against Florida State.
The tournament concludes on Saturday at 3 p.m. when Creighton visits tournament host Omaha, also at Baxter Arena.
Broadcast Information
Friday's match vs. Florida State will be streamed via Mavs All-Access, which can be viewed for free at http://omavs.com/watch.
Saturday's match vs. Omaha will be televised statewide by Nebraska Public Media (channel 12 on Cox), with Larry Punteney and Kathi Wieskamp on the call. It'll also be webcast at https://nebraskapublicmedia.org/en/watch/live/.
The match will also be on radio in Omaha on 1180 The Zone (KZOT), which can be heard at http://GoCreighton.com/listen1180. Jon Schriner and Kate Elman will announce.
Live Stats Information
Both matches this weekend will have free live stats at https://omavs.com/sidearmstats/wvball/media. A link is also on the GoCreighton.com volleyball schedule page.
Scouting #17 Creighton
Ranked 17th nationally, Creighton is 5-2 this season with the lone losses coming to then-No. 16 Kentucky (3-1 on Sept. 3) and to No. 2 Nebraska (3-2 on Sept. 7). Creighton defeated Iowa State, Wichita State and Wyoming in Laramie to win the season-opening Rumble in the Rockies before picking up wins in Omaha last weekend over then-No. 25 USC and Northern Iowa..
Keeley Davis (2.81 kps., 2.52 dps., 0.41 saps.) and Kendra Wait (10.07 aps., 2.85 dps., 1.04 kps., .433%) have both been named to the All-Tournament Team after each event thus far.
Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year Norah Sis (3.89 kps., 2.22 dps.) was named MVP of the Rumble in the Rockies and has led CU in kills in all but two matches to date.
Creighton returns four starters from last season's 31-4 squad that reached a 10th straight NCAA Tournament and saw the Bluejays win an eighth straight BIG EAST regular-season title. Having added four freshmen and three graduate transfers in the off-season, CU is favored by league coaches to win an ninth straight title in 2022.
Creighton averages 13.19 kills, 1.52 aces, 15.19 digs and 1.81 blocks per set while hitting .234 as a team.
Scouting Florida State
Florida State is 6-1 this season heading into Thursday's match at Omaha, its best start since 2017. FSU owns wins over Illinois State, Dayton, Florida A&M, James Madison, Yale and Austin Peay and have only been beaten by Cincinnati.
The Seminoles rank eighth in the country with a .318 hitting percentage, paced by Khori Louis (2.48 kps., .463).
Audrey Koenig leads the team with 2.84 kills per set and 0.44 aces per set.
Andjelija Draskovic (5.84 aps.) and Ava Pitchford (5.40 aps.) share the setting duties, and four women own between 42-48 digs.
FSU averages 13.64 kills, 1.72 aces, 12.72 digs and 2.34 blocks per set.
Scouting Omaha
Omaha is 4-1 on the season and riding some momentum after winning the Omaha Challenge last weekend with wins over Wichita State (3-1) and Northern Colorado (3-2). The lone loss to date came on the road at South Carolina, a team coached by former Creighton assistant Tom Mendoza.
Shayla McCormick owns a double-double in three straight matches and leads the team with 4.30 kills per set.
Running the Maverick offense is Sami Clarkson, who boasts 11.15 assists per set to lead the Summit League.
Iowa State transfer Jaiden Centeno leads UNO with 3.45 digs per set.
As a team, Omaha averages 13.75 kills, 1.50 aces, 13.65 digs and 2.40 blocks per set on .239 hitting.
Creighton Coaches
Creighton is coached by Kirsten Bernthal Booth (Truman State, 1997), who owns a 419-181 record in her 20th season with the Bluejays. She's led Creighton to eight straight BIG EAST titles (2014-21), and nine league crowns in the last 10 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. Booth was tabbed BIG EAST Coach of the Year for the third time in 2019.
The winningest coach in school history, Booth has taken Creighton to its only 11 NCAA Tournament bids in the program's modern history. She's also coached CU into the top-25 each of the last 11 seasons (including 2022), 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, Brian Rosen and Elise Fulcher.
Series History vs. Florida State
Creighton has never faced Florida State.
Kirsten Bernthal Booth has never faced Florida State.
FSU coach Chris Poole is 1-0 all-time against Creighton and Booth, with that win coming when Poole's 2003 Arkansas team swept Creighton in Lawrence, Kan.
Series History vs. Omaha
Creighton is 3-0 at the Division I level against Nebraska-Omaha, though the teams have played each other regularly in the spring in recent seasons.
The first fall meeting came on Sept. 13, 2019 at D.J. Sokol Arena and was won by Creighton (25-15, 25-15, 25-22). Erica Kostelac led CU with 10 kills and Brittany Witt added 10 digs, while UNO was paced by nine kills from Claire Leonard.
Creighton opened the 2020 season (in the spring of 2021) with a 25-19, 25-19, 25-22 sweep over the Mavericks, as Jaela Zimmerman had 11 kills and 12 digs. McKenna Ruch had 13 kills and 12 digs in her UNO debut.
Last September, CU defeated UNO 25-17, 25-18, 25-16 at D.J. Sokol Arena as Zimmerman and Norah Sis each had 10 kills and Kendra Wait contributed 25 assists and 12 digs. CU had 13 blocks and held the Mavericks to .059 hitting.
Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 3-0 against the Mavericks and 3-0 against Matt Buttermore.
Getting Better & Better
Wednesday was Creighton's 600th match under Kirsten Bernthal Booth, and it continues to thrive under her direction.
Below is a look at Creighton's record under Booth in 50-match segments.
Match # W-L Opponent Date Result
50 25-25 Missouri State 10/22/04 L 0-3
100 56-44 Southern Illinois 09/16/06 W 3-1
150 88-62 vs. So. Illinois 11/23/07 W 3-1
200 115-85 at Missouri State 10/30/09 L 0-3
250 143-107 at #11 Nebraska 09/08/11 L 0-3
300 182-118 Illinois State 11/10/12 W 3-1
350 215-135 South Dakota 09/20/14 L 2-3
400 255-145 at DePaul 11/07/15 W 3-1
450 296-154 Northern Iowa 09/02/17 W 3-0
500 336-164 at #18 Marquette 10/26/18 W 3-1
550 377-173 DePaul 03/06/21 W 3-0
600 419-181 #2 Nebraska 09/07/22 L 2-3
Mojo With The Mavericks
Creighton junior Megan Skovsende was a teammate at Skutt Catholic High School of Omaha sophomore Shayla McCormick.
Creighton freshman Sky McCune was a teammate at Gretna High School of Omaha junior Kenedy Schaecher.
Omaha Athletic Director Adrian Dowell is a former Associate AD for Athletic Development at Creighton.
Omaha Executive Associate AD Mike West is a former Assistant AD for Marketing at Creighton.
Other members of the Omaha coaching staff in any sport who were former student-athletes at Creighton include Dion Acoff (men's soccer), Tim Walters (women's soccer), Erin Gunther (women's soccer) and Jen Daro (softball).
New Creighton softball head coach Krista Wood pitched UNO to a Division II national title in 2001 and was inducted into her alma mater's Athletic Hall of Fame in 2020.
Put It In Neutral
Creighton is 9-0 on neutral floors the past two seasons (7-0 last year, 2-0 this year), improving to 73-34 under Kirsten Bernthal Booth in neutral site matches.
The streak will be put to the test on Friday when CU meets Florida State at Baxter Arena.
Creighton's nine consecutive wins on neutral floors is tied for the nation's third-longest active win streak at a neutral site:
Longest Active Neutral Site Win Streaks
Rank Streak School
1. 32 Michigan State
2. 12 Western Kentucky
3. 9 Creighton
9 UNLV
9 Kentucky
9 Providence
Road Dubs Too
Creighton's success hasn't just been limited to neutral floors, as the Bluejays will take a seven-match winning streak in true road matches into Saturday afternoon's matinee at Omaha.
That ranks as the sixth-longest streak in the NCAA, and tied for the fourth-longest streak in school history.
Longest Active Road Win Streaks
Rank Streak School
1. 18 Louisville
2. 10 BYU
3. 9 Wright State
4. 8 Mississippi State
8 VCU
6. 7 Creighton
7 UNLV
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, 3-1
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, 2018 at Villanova, 3-0
7 Oct. 2, 2021-Present TBD
6 Oct. 14-Nov. 17, 2000 at Missouri State, 3-0
6 Oct. 31, 2015-Aug. 28, 2016 at USC, 3-2
Sky High
Freshman Sky McCune had a season-high 22 digs in Wednesday's match vs. Nebraska, 10 more than her previous best as a Bluejay.
McCune's 22 digs were the most by a non-libero for Creighton since Jaela Zimmerman had 22 vs. Butler on Nov. 7, 2021.
McCune's 22 digs were also the most by a freshman since Ellie Bolton closed her debut season with 27 digs vs. Morehead State on April 14, 2021.
Winning The Serving Game
Creighton owns 35 service aces and just 29 serving errors in the past five matches.
On Wednesday, Nebraska became Creighton's first opponent without an ace since DePaul on Nov. 26, 2021 in last year's BIG EAST Tournament.
It also marked the first time since Nov. 2, 2019 (vs. Penn State) that Nebraska did not record an ace.
Double-Double On the Double
Creighton had three women finish Wednesday's match vs. Nebraska with a double-double, as Norah Sis (15 kills, 12 digs), Keeley Davis (19 kills, 15 digs) and Kendra Wait (46 assists, 18 digs).
It's the first time that Creighton had three women post a double-double in the same match since the same three women did so vs. Kansas on Dec. 3, 2021.
Over The Mendoza Line
Creighton hit .202 on Wednesday vs. Nebraska. While that's a mark below CU's average of .234, it was still the first team all season to surpass .200 hitting against the Huskers.
Entering the night, NU had been holding foes to a nation-leading .077 mark.
After Going Five
Prior to Wednesday, the last time Creighton played a five-set match came on Oct. 16, 2021 in a loss at UConn. The Bluejays followed that up with 14 consecutive victories during a span in which CU dropped two total sets.
Husker Hangover?
Playing Nebraska hasn't resulted in an emotional or physical hangover the following match. Creighton is 10-4 under Kirsten Bernthal Booth in the match following squaring off against Nebraska.
Last season, Creighton won its next eight matches.
In 2016, Creighton went on a 23-match win streak after dropping a match to NU.
The Colorado Kid
Keeley Davis had a team-high 19 kills on Wednesday against Nebraska. While a dozen shy of her career-high (31) set in 2019 at Marquette, it was still her most since she also had 19 kills vs. Marquette on Feb. 5, 2021.
The Colorado native leads CU in aces (11), ranks second in kills (76) and third in digs (68), blocks (12) and assists (13).
Historically Speaking
No. 17 Creighton hosted 15,797 fans on Sept. 7 against No. 2 Nebraska, setting a record for the largest regular-season volleyball-only crowd in NCAA history.
Here's a look at the top volleyball-only regular-season crowds in NCAA history. Of note, each of the 13 figures of 11,000 or more have been in the state of Nebraska.
The second-largest crowd in the country this season is 8,157 fans by Nebraska vs. Tulsa.
Largest Regular-Season Volleyball-Only Crowds in NCAA History
Att. Opponent, Result Date Site
15,797 Nebraska def. Creighton, 3-2 9/7/22 Omaha, NE
14,022 Nebraska def. Creighton, 3-2 9/6/18 Omaha, NE
13,870 UCLA def. Nebraska, 3-2 9/13/09 Lincoln, NE
13,412 Nebraska def. LSU, 3-0 9/12/08 Lincoln, NE
13,396 Nebraska def. Hawai'i, 3-0 10/21/07 Lincoln, NE
13,081 Cal Poly def. Creighton, 3-0 9/2/07 Omaha, NE
Nebraska def. Penn State, 3-0
12,504 Nebraska def. Colorado, 3-0 11/4/00 Lincoln, NE
12,112 Nebraska def. Creighton, 3-1 9/24/06 Omaha, NE
11,892 Dayton def. W. Michigan, 3-0 9/11/10 Lincoln, NE
Nebraska def. Illinois, 3-2
11,529 Nebraska def. Colorado, 3-0 10/22/95 Lincoln, NE
11,279 Nebraska def. Creighton, 3-0 09/08/21 Omaha, NE
11,076 Nebraska def. UCLA, 3-1 8/25/07 Omaha, NE
Tennessee def. Utah, 3-2
11,032 UCLA def. Nebraska, 3-1 9/14/91 Lincoln, NE
10,927 Minnesota def. Illinois, 3-1 10/16/04 Minneapolis, MN
10,645 Purdue def. W. Michigan, 3-1 10/29/85 W. Lafayette, IN
10,576 Penn St. def. Hawai'i, 3-0 8/27/05 Omaha, NE
Nebraska def. Stanford, 3-0
10,570 Purdue def. Wisconsin, 3-2 10/17/08 W. Lafayette, IN
Largest Crowds To See The Jays
Wednesday's record crowd of 15,797 marked the seventh time in Creighton's history that more than 5,000 fans attended a home volleyball match.
In seven volleyball matches at CHI Health Center Omaha, Creighton has played before an average of 12,066 fans. That includes record-breaking crowds set in 2007 (13,081), 2018 (14,022) and 2022 (15,797).
Below is a list of the largest crowds (and home crowds) in Creighton Volleyball history:
Creighton's Largest Home Crowds All-Time
Att. Opponent Date CU W-L Facility
15,797 #2 Nebraska 09/07/22 L 2-3 CHI Health Ctr.
14,022 #6 Nebraska 09/06/18 L 2-3 CHI Health Ctr.
13,081 #18 Cal Poly 09/02/07 L 0-3 CHI Health Ctr.
12,112 #1 Nebraska 09/24/06 L 1-3 CHI Health Ctr.
11,279 #3 Nebraska 09/08/21 L 0-3 CHI Health Ctr.
10,131 #4 Nebraska 09/15/15 L 0-3 CHI Health Ctr.
8,037 #2 Nebraska 10/05/08 L 0-3 CHI Health Ctr.
2,578 #13 Kentucky 09/01/17 W 3-0 Sokol Arena
2,552 South Dakota 11/30/18 W 3-0 Sokol Arena
2,517 Coastal Carolina 12/01/17 W 3-1 Sokol Arena
2,514 #7 Nebraska 08/31/10 L 0-3 Sokol Arena
2,509 #22 Washington 12/01/18 L 0-3 Sokol Arena
Largest Crowds (All Sites)
Att. Opponent Date CU Result Facility
15,797 #2 Nebraska 09/07/22 L 2-3 CHI Health Ctr.
14,022 #6 Nebraska 09/06/18 L 2-3 CHI Health Ctr.
13,081 #18 Cal Poly 09/02/07 L 0-3 CHI Health Ctr.
12,112 #1 Nebraska 09/24/06 L 1-3 CHI Health Ctr.
11,279 #3 Nebraska 09/08/21 L 0-3 CHI Health Ctr.
10,131 #4 Nebraska 09/15/15 L 0-3 CHI Health Ctr.
8,627 at #5 Nebraska 09/29/02 L 0-3 Devaney Ctr.
8,450 at #2 Nebraska 08/30/19 L 1-3 Devaney Ctr.
8,277 vs. Montana St. 09/16/16 W 3-0 Devaney Ctr.
8,249 at #1 Nebraska 09/17/16 L 1-3 Devaney Ctr.
8,237 vs. #20 Baylor (@NU) 08/31/19 L 0-3 Devaney Ctr.
8,060 at #9 Nebraska 09/17/14 L 1-3 Devaney Ctr.
Freshmen Phenoms
Either Sky McCune or Ava Martin has started every match this season for the Bluejays.
Creighton has started a true freshman in each of its last 58 matches, and a true or redshirt freshman of any kind in each of its past 67 contests.
Keeley Davis started the final nine contests of 2019 as a redshirt freshman before Kiara Reinhardt started all 16 matches during the 2020 season. Last year Norah Sis and Kendra Wait each started all 35 matches.
Creighton is 54-13 in the past 67 matches, and 48-10 in the last 58 contests during these streaks.
Sis Races Past 500
Sophomore Norah Sis reached 500 career kills in last Saturday's match vs. #16 Kentucky. It came in her 40th career match, and 132nd career set.
The only other players in CU history to reach 500 kills in fewer matches are Jaali Winters and Melissa Walsh, both of whom graduated with the CU career record for kills. Winters reached 500 kills in 124 sets, while Walsh did so in 133 sets.
Creighton's Quickest Players To 500 Kills (Career)
Name MP Date Opponent
Jaali Winters 34 12/04/15 vs. Coastal Carolina
Melissa Walsh 37 09/25/99 Indiana State
Norah Sis 40 09/03/22 #16 Kentucky
JoDe Cieloha 43 10/15/95 at Indiana State
Keeley Davis 43 03/28/21 Xavier
Amanda Cvejdlik 44 10/13/06 at Wichita State
Tournament Tested
Creighton has played in 10 tournaments since the start of the 2021 calendar year, and won seven of them.
The only events that CU has not won were the '2020' NCAA Tournament (won by Kentucky) , the 2022 Bluejay Invitational (won by Kentucky) and the 2021 NCAA Tournament (won by Wisconsin). Kentucky and Wisconsin are the last two NCAA champions.
Let's take a closer look:
Creighton Tournaments Since Jan. 1, 2021
Year Event CU Record (Place)
2021 BIG EAST Tournament 2-0 (1st)
2021 NCAA Tournament 0-1 (T-25th)
2021 Mizzou Invitational 3-0 (1st)
2021 Bluegrass Battle 3-0 (1st)
2021 Bluejay Invitational 3-0 (1st)
2021 Shocker Volleyball Classic 3-0 (1st)
2021 BIG EAST Tournament 2-0 (1st)
2021 NCAA Tournament 1-1 (T-17th)
2022 Rumble in the Rockies 3-0 (1st)
2022 Bluejay Invitational 2-1 (2nd)
On A Roll
Creighton is 21-3 in its last 24 matches, with the only setbacks in that span being a 3-1 loss to Kansas in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament, last Saturday's loss to No. 16 Kentucky and Wednesday's 3-2 heartbreaker against No. 2 Nebraska.
The Bluejays are 67-14 in sets played in those 24 matches, and 14 of the victories have been 3-0 sweeps.
Top 25 History
Creighton is 150-37 all-time when playing as a ranked team, and also 16-22 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, 37 of Creighton's 66 losses have come against ranked teams. In that same period, Creighton is 242-29 against unranked teams. Creighton has won all but two of its past 83 home matches over unranked teams and all but eight of its last 99 matches at all sites against unranked teams.
After a total of three total top-25 wins from 1994-2014, Creighton has earned at least one top-25 win each of the last eight seasons (2015-22). That includes a record-tying four top-25 victories in 2019.
Eleven of Creighton's top 25 wins all-time have come against either Marquette (6) or Kentucky (5).
The highest ranked teams that Creighton has ever beaten at any site were No. 3 Washington (8/26/17 in Seattle) and No. 3 Kentucky (9/4/21 in Lexington). CU's highest-ranked opponent it has defeated at home was a 3-1 win over then-No. 9 Marquette on Nov. 22, 2019.
Ranked vs. Ranked (CU is 16-22)
Home: 6-9 Away: 5-7 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 #12 Creighton #9 Marquette 3-1
12/07/19 #7 Minnesota #15 Creighton 2-3
02/05/21 #19 Creighton #25 Marquette 3-2
02/06/21 #25 Marquette #19 Creighton 0-3
09/08/21 #3 Nebraska #19 Creighton 0-3
09/02/22 #17 Creighton #25 USC 3-1
09/03/22 #16 Kentucky #17 Creighton 1-3
09/07/22 #2 Nebraska #17 Creighton 2-3
MVP Sis Also Picks Up BIG EAST Honor
In addition to being named MVP of the Rumble in the Rockies, Norah Sis also brought home BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week accolades on Aug. 29th.
The Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year averaged 5.23 points, 4.91 kills, 2.27 digs and 0.36 blocks per set on .250 hitting.
The Papillion, Neb., product started her season with near-identical double-doubles on Friday in wins over Iowa State (17 kills, 10 digs, 1 assist) and Wichita State (15 kills, 10 digs, 1 block). The reigning VolleyballMag.com National Freshman of the Year then slammed 22 kills while adding five digs, three blocks and an ace in a 3-1 win at Wyoming to clinch the tournament title. Her 25.0 points against the Cowgirls were a career-best effort and helped her earned Tournament MVP honors for the second time in her young career.
Sis was honored as BIG EAST Freshman of the Week six times last season, when she was named BIG EAST Freshman of the Year, but this is her first BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week accolade.
Hall Call
Megan (Bober) Varasteh has been announced as part of the 2022 class for the Creighton Athletics Hall of Fame, McCormick Endowed Athletic Director Marcus Blossom announced on Friday, August 26th.
Varasteh is part of the 54th class of inductees (along with Renae Sinkler-O'Gorman and Carol Ketcham) and will give the Creighton Athletics Hall of Fame 94 inductees, plus the 1991 Creighton Baseball Team. The Athletics Hall of Fame started in 1968 with the induction of Bluejay great Bob Gibson.
Varasteh starred as a member of the Creighton Volleyball program from 2008-12, becoming the program's first player in earn AVCA All-America honors multiple times. She became the volleyball program's first woman named Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year as well as MVC Tournament MVP, helping the Bluejays to their first regular-season and conference tournament titles and a then-record 29 victories. She closed her career with a school-record 15 triple-doubles (second in MVC history) and as the only player in league history with at least 4,000 assists, 1,000 digs, 800 kills and 400 blocks.
In addition to being named Creighton's Female Athlete of the Year, she was also recognized as the Carl M. Reinert, S.J., Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year, repeated her spot on the MVC Scholar-Athlete First Team and was named a CoSIDA Academic All-American Second Team selection as a senior.
The 2022 Creighton Athletics Hall of Fame banquet will be held on Saturday, October 15 at Hilton Omaha.
Poll Road Ahead
Creighton has been ranked in each of the last 17 AVCA Top 25 polls. With little movement from week-to-week, however, CU is one of 20 teams to be ranked each of those polls, a group that includes Baylor, BYU, Creighton, Florida, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, Louisville, Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio State, Oregon, Penn State, Pitt, Purdue, Stanford, Texas, UCLA, Washington, Western Kentucky and Wisconsin.
Creighton has been ranked in all but six of the past 86 weeks the AVCA has put out a Top 25 poll.
Year-By-Year In Non-Conference Play
Despite annually facing one of the nation's toughest non-conference schedules, Creighton has continued to excel against elite competition.
Creighton is 8-12 against ranked non-conference foes over the last five seasons after going 2-43 all-time vs. ranked teams in regular-season non-conference matches.
Creighton owned 12 non-conference wins last season to set a program record for a regular-season. It's actually also the first season with 10 wins prior to league play.
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 25-6
2020 3-2 0-0 12-4
2021 12-1 1-1 31-4
2022 5-2 so far 1-2 so far TBD
Schmitt A Ki Player
Kiana Schmitt entered the 2022 season with three career matches (of 60 played) with 10 or more kills, but the senior already has three matches in double-figures this fall.
Schmitt had 10 kills on Aug. 26 vs. Wichita State, then tied her career-high with 12 kills one night later win at Wyoming. She then had 10 kills vs. No. 2 Nebraska on Sept. 7.
Creighton is 24-3 all-time when Schmitt has six or more kills.
Preseason Ranking
Creighton was ranked 18th in the AVCA preseason poll. It's the eighth time in the past 10 years that the Jays have been ranked in the preseason.
The No. 18 slotting was tied for the fourth-best preseason ranking in program history.
Over the previous 14 seasons, 255-of-350 teams (72.9 percent) of teams have been in both the preseason and final polls, and since 2008 318-of-350 teams (90.9 percent) in the preseason top-25 polls would go on to reach the NCAA Tournament.
This year marks the 11th straight season that CU has been ranked at least one week, extending a program record.
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 25-6 16th
2020 16th 12-4 NR
2022 18th TBD TBD
Some Fab Freshmen
Including Sky McCune on Aug. 26 vs. Iowa State, Creighton has started 15 different true freshmen in its season opener since 2009, and 19 such players since 2000.
Since 2000, the only true freshmen to start CU's season-opener have been Brittany Coleman (2003), Carolyn Decker (2004), Korie Lebeda (2005), Allie Oelke (2007), Brooke Boggs (2009), Heather Thorson (2009), Julianne Mandolfo (2010), Katie Neisler (2011), Michelle Sicner (2011), Melanie Jereb (2012), Ashley Jansen (2012), Jess Bird (2013), Jaali Winters (2015), Naomi Hickman (2017), Emily Bressman (2019), Kiara Reinhardt (2020), Kendra Wait (2021), Norah Sis (2021) and Sky McCune (2022), with Coleman, Lebeda and Wait the only freshmen to start at setter in the season-opener.
In addition, CU also started redshirt freshmen Lauren Smith (2013) and Brittany Lawrence (2015), as well as transfers Maggie Baumert (2014), Lydia Dimke (2016), Madelyn Cole (2018), Erica Kostelac (2019) and Mahina Pua'a (2020) in season-openers.
Ten of those women (Sis, Wait, Reinhardt, Coleman, Decker, Lebeda, Oelke, Mandolfo, Sicner and Jereb) went on to land a spot on the MVC or BIG EAST's All-Freshman Team (though the BIG EAST had no such team from 2013-19). Winters was named BIG EAST Freshman of the Year in 2015, Dimke was named BIG EAST Player of the Year in 2016, Davis was BIG EAST Freshman of the Year in 2019 and Sis recognized as BIG EAST Freshman of the Year in 2022.
Last year marked the first time that Creighton started multiple true freshmen in a season-opener since 2012, when Ashley Jansen and Melanie Jereb both earning a starting nod. The 2012 and 2021 teams are the two winningest single-season teams in program history.
Believe The Hype
Creighton's recruiting class of freshmen Morgan Colangelo, Ava Martin, Sky McCune and Ann Marie Remmes was recognized as the nation's No. 24 class by PrepVolleyball.
Martin was listed as the nation's No. 47 recruit, while McCune was tabbed 52nd-best. Creighton now owns eight players on its 2022 roster who were Top 100 recruits.
Top-100 PrepVolleyball.com Senior Aces
(list started in 2004)
Rank Year Player
68 2004 Carolyn Decker
55 2008 Laurel Sanford
60 2011 Michelle Sicner
73 2013 Jess Bird
50 2014 Lydia Dimke*
18 2015 Taryn Kloth
41 2015 Jaali Winters
77 2016 Erica Kostelac#
98 2017 Naomi Hickman
99 2017 Steph Gaston
49 2018 Jaela Zimmerman
42 2018 Keeley Davis
46 2020 Kiara Reinhardt
97 2020 Ellie Bolton
7 2021 Kendra Wait
28 2021 Norah Sis
31 2021 Eve Magill
47 2022 Ava Martin
52 2022 Sky McCune
* signed with Purdue and later transferred to Creighton
# signed with Cincinnati and later transferred to Creighton
PrepVolleyball.com Recruiting Rankings
(list started in 2004)
Year Rank Freshman Recruits
2004 Best of the Rest (Baumann, Decker, Goc, Lahm, Mehal)
2005 Honorable-Mention (Cvejdlik, Houts, Lebeda)
2006 None (Bloemke, Schulze, Workman)
2007 None (Feldman, Oelke, Vrbicky)
2008 Highest Honorable-Mention (Almgren, Bober, Sanford)
2009 Highest HM Boggs, Greisch, Moon, Templeton, Thorson)
2010 High HM (Fliss, Hackbarth, Malm, Mandolfo, S. Smith)
2011 Highest HM (Browning, McNary, Neisler, Sicner, Stivers)
2012 High Honorable-Mention (Elman, Jansen, Jereb, L. Smith)
2013 None (Bird, Crawford, Foje)
2014 Highest Honorable-Mention (Lawrence, Tupper, Wilkinson)
2015 11th (Ballenger, Bohnet, Kloth, O'Connell, Winters)
2016 High Honorable-Mention (Conlon, Taylor, Witt)
2017 25th (Gaston, Hickman, Roumeliotis)
2018 10th (Davis, Welty, Zimmerman, Zumach)
2019 Highest HM (Bressman, Krause, Schmitt, Van Eekeren)
2020 27th (Bolton, Maser, Reinhardt, Skovsende)
2021 5th (Magill, Milner, Sis, Wait)
2022 24th (Colangelo, Martin, McCune, Remmes)
Production Returns
Creighton returns 11-of-16 letterwinners to the court from last season, including four starters
From last year's team, only Abby Bottomley, Naomi Hickman, Eve Magill, Ally Van Eekeren, Annika Welty are not back.
All told, of the seven categories listed below, Creighton returns 511.8 of a possible 700% back (73.1 percent).
Below is a breakdown of the production that is back:
Stat Returners Departures
Assists 1,331 (87.4%) 192 (12.6%)
Kills 1,307 (80.2%) 323 (19.8%)
Points 1,627.0 (75.6%) 526.0 (24.4%)
Matches Started 154 (73.3%) 56 (26.7%)
Digs 1,460 (70.6%) 607 (29.4%)
Aces 128 (66.7%) 64 (33.3%)
Blocks 192 (58.0%) 139.0 (42.0%)
Jae-Z Plays The Hits
Jaela Zimmerman owns 997 kills, good for 15th in Creighton history. She stands just three kills of becoming the 15th Bluejay ever to reach the 1,000 kill milestone. Zimmerman has played in 103 career matches.
Career Kills
Name Sets No. Years
1. Jaali Winters 494 1,843 2015-18
2. Leah Ratzlaff 409 1,622 2002-05
3. Melissa Walsh 394 1,596 1998-01
4. Taryn Kloth 462 1,427 2015-18
5. Kelly Goc 394 1,414 2004-07
6. Jessica Houts 451 1,385 2005-09
7. JoDe Cieloha 398 1,375 1994-97
8. Leah McNary 458 1,257 2011-14
9. Marysa Wilkinson 499 1,183 2014-17
10. Lauren Smith 511 1,160 2013-16
11. Allie Oelke 445 1,126 2007-10
12. Kelli Browning 424 1,104 2011-14
13. Amanda Cvejdlik 343 1,029 2005-08
14. Shelly Kapler 388 1,000 1996-99
15. Jaela Zimmerman 342 997 2018-Pr.
Creighton's Quickest Players To 1,000 Career Kills
Name MP Date Opponent
Melissa Walsh 70 10/15/00 Eastern Illinois
Jaali Winters 73 08/25/17 vs. Saint Mary's
Leah Ratzlaff 76 10/22/04 Missouri State
JoDe Cieloha 83 09/13/97 at Drake
Kelly Goc 87 11/24/06 vs Northern Iowa
Jessica Houts 90 11/08/08 Illinois State
Leah McNary 96 09/12/14 Pepperdine
Amanda Cvejdlik 99 11/15/08 at Evansville
Shelly Kapler 103 11/18/99 vs. Missouri St.
Taryn Kloth 103 08/31/18 vs. NC State
Allie Oelke 107 10/09/10 Wichita State
Kelli Browning 110 10/26/14 DePaul
Lauren Smith 119 10/07/16 at Villanova
Marysa Wilkinson 120 09/30/17 at St. John's
10 Straight NCAA's
Creighton Volleyball has made the NCAA Tournament in each of the last 10 seasons. They are the first women's team in any sport at Creighton to make 10 straight NCAA Tournament appearances.
The only other sport in Creighton history to make 10 straight NCAA Tournament appearances is the men's soccer program, which qualified in 17 straight seasons from 1992-2008.
Creighton is one of nine teams nationally to have appeared in each of the last 10 NCAA Tournaments (2012-21). That group features BYU, Creighton, Florida, Kentucky, Nebraska, Penn State, San Diego, Texas and Washington.
There are also 13 schools that have appeared in 11 of the last 12 NCAA Tournaments, a group that includes Creighton, Florida State, Hawai'i, Minnesota, Purdue and Stanford.
Florida, Kentucky, Nebraska, Penn State, San Diego, Texas and Washington have appeared in every NCAA Tournament since at least 2010.
Dealing Up Aces
Keeley Davis had six aces on the opening weekend of the season, becoming the eighth player in CU history to reach century mark for her career.
Davis reached 100 career aces in her 82nd career contest, which ranks third-fastest in Bluejay history.
It's also worth noting that three of Davis' teammates entered the year having owned more than 100 career aces, though they've done so at other schools. Bethany Clapp owned 103 aces in 97 matches at Incarnate Word, Jazz Schmidt had 103 aces in 96 matches at Division II Palm Beach Atlantic and Allison Whitten had 103 aces in 115 contests at Morehead State.
Service Aces, Career
Name Sets No. Years
1. Molly Moran 341 145 1998-01
2. Melissa Weisensee 411 125 1994-97
3. Brittany Witt 471 122 2016-19
4. JoDe Cieloha 398 113 1994-97
5. Keeley Davis 305 109 2019-Pr.
6. Kate Elman 464 105 2012-15
7. Shelly Kapler 388 104 1996-99
8. Jaali Winters 494 101 2015-18
9. Madelyn Cole 225 93 2018-19
10. Carolyn Decker 300 89 2004-08
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
Keeley Davis 82 08/26/22 vs. Wichita St.
JoDe Cieloha 85 09/06/97 at UNLV
Shelly Kapler 95 10/15/99 Bradley
Brittany Witt 107 10/05/19 Seton Hall
Kate Elman 120 11/15/15 Butler
Jaali Winters 135 11/17/18 Providence
Survival of the Fittest
Creighton has won nine matches under Kirsten Bernthal Booth after surviving an opponent's match point, including season-opening wins over No. 5 Kentucky in 2018 and vs. UTSA in 2011. Three of those other comeback wins have come against Wichita State.
On the other hand, Creighton is 419-3 under Booth when it reaches a match point opportunity, falling only when it wasted two match points on Sept. 4, 2010 to Iowa, two match points on Nov. 1, 2013 in a loss to St. John's, and two match points on Dec. 7, 2019 in an NCAA Tournament loss at No. 7 Minnesota.
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
Taking The Fifth
Creighton is 62-34 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 16 of its last 22 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, wins at UNI and No. 10 Marquette in 2019 and at South Dakota in the 2020 campaign.
It's also worth noting that Creighton is 15-4 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 2-1 25-6
2020 4-2 12-4
2021 1-1 31-4
2022 0-1 5-2
Total 77-62 512-333
Champions Among Champions
Since the start of the 2012 season, Creighton, Texas and Western Kentucky are the nation's only schools to have won nine conference regular-season titles. All but one of Creighton's nine crowns were outright titles, whereas Texas shared one title and WKU shared five.
Creighton has also won eight conference tournament titles since 2012, tied for the most in the nation with Dayton and Western Kentucky.
Most Conference Titles 2012-2021
Regular-Season League Tournament
9 (1 shared) Creighton 8 Creighton
9 (1) Texas 8 Dayton
9 (5) Western Kentucky 8 Western Kentucky
8 BYU 7 Fairfield
8 (1) Colorado State 6 LIU
8 Fairfield 6 American
Home Sweet Home
Creighton enters its 10th season as a member of the BIG EAST since joining the league in the summer of 2013.
Since then, the Bluejays are 80-4 in home matches against BIG EAST teams (73-3 in the regular-season, 7-1 in the BIG EAST Tournament).
Since November of 2014, Creighton is 64-1 inside D.J. Sokol Arena against BIG EAST teams, which includes a 58-1 league mark and a 6-0 mark in the conference tournament. The only setback (on Feb. 6, 2021 vs. Marquette) was played as a non-conference match, only to be flipped to a league contest 19 days later.
Put another way, since enrolling at Creighton in 2018, Bluejay fifth-year senior Jaela Zimmerman is 35-1 in home matches against BIG EAST teams, winning 105-of-123 sets played.
BIG EAST Preseason Poll
Creighton Volleyball has been picked to win the BIG EAST in a preseason poll of league coaches.
Creighton earned 9-of-11 first place votes and 99 of a possible 100 points. That was just ahead of Marquette's 90 points and the other two votes for first place.
DePaul (72) was picked third, just ahead of UConn (71) and St. John's (66). Rounding out the bottom half of the poll were Villanova (54), Butler (47), Xavier (42), Georgetown (25), Providence (25) and Seton Hall (14).
Creighton also had three women among the 12 members on the BIG EAST's preseason all-conference team in Jaela Zimmerman and Kendra Wait as well as unanimous selection Norah Sis. Sis was also tabbed the BIG EAST's Preseason Player of the Year.
Creighton has finished in the spot predicted of it or better in the preseason poll in 17 of 19 years under Kirsten Bernthal Booth, including nine 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 1st #1
2020 1st (MW) 1st (MW) - -
2021 1st 1st - -
2022 1st ??? ???
BIG EAST'S Best
Since the reconfiguration of the BIG EAST in the summer of 2013, Creighton, Marquette and St. John's 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, 2018 and 2020. CU won the 2019 regular-season crown, while St. John's upset nationally-ranked Creighton and Marquette to bring home the 2019 tournament title. In 2020, Creighton won the Midwest Division regular-season title, while St. John's claimed the East Division crown. In 2021, Creighton and Marquette shared the regular-season title and CU won the tournament title.
Below is a look at the record of each BIG EAST team since the league's realignment in 2013:
BIG EAST VB Standings Since 2013 (thru 9/7)
BIG EAST only All matches
Team (NCAA Bids) W L W L
Creighton (9) 137 13 232 62
Marquette (8) 120 27 213 70
Xavier 84 64 134 130
Butler 81 69 146 124
Villanova (1) 77 73 147 118
St. John's (1) 71 79 157 127
Seton Hall (1) 66 83 134 141
DePaul 40 110 100 158
Georgetown 33 109 83 166
Providence* 22 112 85 150
Connecticut# 17 9 30 21
*Providence rejoined the league for volleyball in 2014 and
its 2013 overall record (12-20) is not included above.
#Connecticut rejoined the league in 2020 and
its record from 2013-19 (96-121) is not included above.
Set 1 Result A Strong Indicator
Creighton is 354-33 (.915) overall under Kirsten Bernthal Booth when it wins set one. In that same time span, CU is just 65-148 (.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 that season, and 20.2 percent of their matches from 2009-18.
Since Aug. 29, 2010, Creighton has gone 126-4 in its last 130 home matches when taking a 1-0 lead, losing only on Sept. 12, 2015 to Pacific, on Sept. 6, 2018 to No. 7 Nebraska and on Jan. 29, 2021 to South Dakota and on Sept. 3, 2022 to No. 16 Kentucky.
Creighton has gone 86-3 in its last 89 matches at all sites when winning the first set, compared to an 8-14 record in that same span when dropping the opener.
Creighton has gone 127-2 in its last 129 matches against unranked foes when winning the opening set.
2-0 Better Than 0-2
Creighton is 349-11 (.969) all-time when leading a match 2-0, including a 292-5 mark (.983) under Kirsten Bernthal Booth. CU is 218-3 when up 2-0 dating to September of 2009, and 111-1 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 won 95.0 percent of their matches from 2009-18.
Conversely, the Jays are 15-203 (.069) all-time when trailing a match 0-2, and 13-104 (.111) under Booth. Those 15 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
01/31/21 at So. Dakota 25-20, 25-23, 15-7 Booth
Eleventh Heaven
Kirsten Bernthal Booth is in some select company, as she has directed her team to 11 NCAA Tournaments.
That puts her in the company of some of the greatest coaches in CU Athletics history, as she's tied former men's soccer coach Bob Warming atop that list.
Name Sport NCAA's @CU
Bob Warming Men's Soccer 11
Kirsten Bernthal Booth Volleyball 11
Dana Altman Men's Basketball 7
Greg McDermott Men's Basketball 7
Brent Vigness Softball 7
Elmar Bolowich Men's Soccer 6
Against NCAA Tournament Qualifiers
Last season Creighton played four matches against 2020 NCAA Tournament qualifiers, going 3-1 against such teams.
This year's team owns eight matches (Iowa State, Kentucky, Nebraska, Florida State, Kansas State, Rice and Marquette) scheduled against teams that made the 2021 NCAA Tournament, and CU is 1-2 against those foes to date.
After going 3-35 against teams coming off NCAA Tournament bids prior to Kirsten Bernthal Booth's arrival, the Jays are 90-103 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 5-4
2020 3-1
2021 3-1
2022 1-2 so far
TOTAL 93-138
TOTAL Under Booth 90-103
Marian Pipeline
This is the 20th straight season that Creighton Volleyball had at least one product of Omaha Marian High School on the roster, as senior Emily Bressman keeps the streak alive.
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.
2022: Emily Bressman
2021: Emily Bressman
2020: Emily Bressman
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
8 Straight BIG EAST Regular-Season Titles
With its 2021 title, Creighton became the first team in BIG EAST volleyball history to win eight straight regular-season titles. The previous record had been seven by Notre Dame from 1999-2005.
The Bluejay volleyball team is also the first Creighton program in any sport to win eight or more straight league titles, surpassing the five in a row by the men's soccer program (1992-96).
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 owns 419 victories on the Bluejay sideline to rank fifth in school history across all sports.
Coach, Sport Victories (thru 9/8)
Brent Vigness, Softball 819
Ed Servais, Baseball 618*
Mary Higgins, Softball 564
Tom Lilly, Men's & Women's Tennis 498*
Kirsten Bernthal Booth, Volleyball 419*
Jim Flanery, Women's Basketball 387*
Ed Hubbs, Men's & Women's Tennis 347
Dana Altman, Men's Basketball 327
*still active coaching at Creighton
Against The BIG EAST
Since the BIG EAST was restructured in 2013, Creighton owns a .500 record or better against each of the other teams currently in the BIG EAST.
The Bluejays own 152 wins against BIG EAST competition (including BIG EAST Championship play) since 2013, 27 more wins than Marquette for most in the league.
CU still has not lost to four league foes (DePaul, Georgetown, Providence, Xavier) since joining the BIG EAST, and Seton Hall (3), Marquette (4), Villanova (3) and St. John's (3) are the only BIG EAST programs to top the Bluejays multiple times since 2013.
Opponent Reg. Season BE Tourney Total
Butler 17-1 - 17-1
Connecticut 0-1 1-0 1-1
DePaul 18-0 1-0 19-0
Georgetown 16-0 - 16-0
Marquette 15-3 5-1 20-4
Providence 13-0 - 13-0
Seton Hall 13-3 2-0 15-3
St. John's 14-2 0-1 14-3
Villanova 13-3 3-0 16-3
Xavier 18-0 3-0 21-0
Total 137-13 15-2 152-15
Last Season Summary
Creighton went 31-4 last season, won an eighth straight BIG EAST regular-season title and reached the Second Round while playing in its 10th consecutive NCAA Tournament.
Norah Sis was named a Third Team All-American by the AVCA and the National Freshman of the Year by VolleyballMag.com. Also named Honorable Mention All-American were Jaela Zimmerman and Kendra Wait.
CU's 31 victories were a school-record and included five tournament titles.
Players Mentioned
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/ VolleyballCreighton Volleyball - All-Access Spring Ball Trailer
Wednesday, May 27
Creighton Volleyball - All-Access Spring Ball Part 1
Tuesday, May 26
Creighton Volleyball vs Nebraska Postgame Press Conference Spring Match
Saturday, April 18
Nebraska Volleyball vs Creighton Postgame Press Conference Spring Match
Saturday, April 18
