The No. 24 Marquette Golden Eagles (8-3, 3-2 BIG EAST) lost to the Butler Bulldogs (4-5, 1-2 BIG EAST) in five sets Friday evening at the Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
This is the Golden Eagles’ first loss since Feb. 5 against Creighton University and it snapped the team’s five-game win streak.
In a back-and-forth battle throughout the night, Marquette struggled in many places, posting a hitting of under .100.
Graduate student middle blocker Savannah Rennie led Marquette with 12 kills and seven blocks. Senior outside hitter Hope Werch was also a leader for the squad throughout the game, but MU still came up short.
The first set seemed to set the pace for the night, as both teams had to work for every point they earned. The score was tied at 10 before the Bulldogs pulled in six consecutive points before taking the set 25-18.
Sophomore middle blocker Claire Nuessmeier started off the second set with a kill for Marquette to help the Golden Eagles get out to an early lead. Rennie tallied a kill to help build the lead. The set ended with a strong defensive showing by Marquette to tie the match up at one.
Butler took the reins to start the third set, going up 5-1 before Marquette went on a seven-point comeback stretch. Rennie and Werch added consecutive kills to lead them to a 25-17 win.
Butler got ahead quickly in the fourth set, but this time Marquette would not come out ahead. The Bulldogs were able to tie the match at two apiece to force a fifth set.
Marquette took its foot off the pedal in the fifth and was not able to take the lead in the set. Butler ended the game with a 15-7 set win.
Redshirt sophomore Brittany Robinson led for the Bulldogs with 17 kills.
Marquette will have a rematch against Butler tomorrow at 3 p.m. Central Standard Time at Hinkle Fieldhouse.
This article was written by Molly Gretzlock. She can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @MollyGretzlock.
