The Marquette women’s volleyball team is coming off a big home victory against the Seton Hall Pirates, who sit atop the Big East standings and were undefeated coming into the Al McGuire Center Saturday.
The Golden Eagles took care of business in four sets, but must keep rolling to defeat a tough Creighton team on the road Friday.
The Creighton Bluejays won nine of its last 10 matches, including a four-set victory against Marquette Oct. 4. Sophomore Autumn Bailey led the Golden Eagles with 24 kills and 18 digs, and sophomore Nele Barber added 14 kills and 10 digs of her own in the match. Despite playing in front of the largest home crowd since 2009, Marquette could not get in a rhythm. The team never had a hitting percentage above .184 and had 28 attack errors, including 12 service errors. The Golden Eagles were out-blocked and out-dug 14-8 and 84-65, respectively.
Marquette won four of its five games since the Creighton loss, and Bailey was named the the Big East Offensive Player of the Week twice. The Golden Eagles are also ranked first or second in every major offensive category, with Bailey leading the league in kills and freshman Gabby Benda leading in assists.
But Creighton has a defensive answer to the Golden Eagles’ high-powered offense in senior Kelli Browning, who was named the Big East Defensive Player of the Week Monday. Browning, a Waukesha native, won the award twice in the last three weeks and leads the Big East in total blocks (54) and blocks per set (1.64). Creighton holds opponents to the lowest hitting percentage and fewest kills in the conference, establishing themselves as the premiere defensive team in the Big East.
Creighton and Seton Hall are tied for first in the Big East, each with conference records of 8-1, but Marquette is close behind at 7-2. The Bluejays and Golden Eagles were picked to finish first and second in the conference, respectively, and their match will clearly affect the final standings.
Friday’s battle with Creighton in Omaha, Neb., at 7 p.m. will also be streamed on the Big East Digital Network.
