Saturday, September 11
Omaha, Neb.
7:30 PM
Creighton University
9-1,0-0Big East
3
vs
0
Nebraska-Omaha
2-6,0-0Summit Leagu
1
2
3
F
Omaha
17
18
16
0
Creighton
25
25
25
3
Photo by: Catherine Grosdidier
#19 Volleyball Wins Bluejay Invitational With Sweep of Omaha
9/11/2021 9:51:00 PM | Volleyball
Creighton wins third straight weekend tourney as Zimmerman named MVP
OMAHA, Neb. -- Jaela Zimmerman served a 12-0 run to spark a second set comeback and was named Bluejay Invitational MVP after helping Creighton to a 3-0 sweep of Nebraska-Omaha and a third straight tournament title to open the 2021 season.
Scores of the Bluejay sweep were 25-17, 25-18, 25-16, as Creighton improved to 9-1. Omaha fell to 2-6 after a winless weekend. Illinois took second at the Bluejay Invitational with a 2-1 mark while SMU was third after a 1-2 trip.
Zimmerman and Norah Sis each had 10 kills to pace CU's offense in the win, and Abby Bottomley had 14 digs. The Bluejays had seven blocks in the opening set and finished with 13 rejections overall, led by six from Annika Welty. Creighton finished with 36 kills, five aces, 50 digs and hit .224.
Omaha was paced by 10 kills and 10 digs from Rachel Fairbanks. The Mavs recorded 33 kills, one ace, 45 digs and 7.0 blocks on .059 hitting.
Creighton didn't take its first lead in the opening set until a kill from Zimmerman made it 10-9. Welty had four stuffs in the first frame as CU held the Mavericks to .024 hitting in 42 swings. Zimmerman led CU's offense with five kills in the opener.
Creighton fell behind 14-6 in the second set before summoning a comeback. The Bluejays trailed 18-13 after a kill from Fairbanks before a kill by Keeley Davis earned the Jays a sideout. Zimmerman took over from there, authoring a 12-0 run to close out the set, including a thunderous back row kill on game point. Bottomley had seven digs and a pair of assists in the second set.
The Bluejays pulled away to secure a sweep of the Mavericks, closing out the match on a serve by Sis that led to a UNO attack error. Sis had six kills in the final set as CU hit .323.
The Bluejays return to action next week with the Shocker Volleyball Classic in Wichita, Kan. The trip starts on Friday at 4:30 p.m. with a match vs. Wyoming. On Saturday, CU squares off against South Dakota (12 p.m.) and host Wichita State (7 p.m.).
NOTES: Jaela Zimmerman was named Tournament MVP for the second straight weekend (Bluegrass Battle), and the third time in her career (2019 Creighton Classic) ... Kendra Wait was recognized on the All-Tournament Team for the second time this fall and Norah Sis for the third time. Sis is the first Bluejay freshman in program history to be named All-Tournament Team following her first three events ... Creighton has won nine straight home matches at D.J. Sokol Arena ... Creighton's only previous 9-1 starts came in 2012 when the Bluejays opened 10-1, and in 2006 when CU began 10-1 ... Creighton has at least one block in 813 straight matches ... Abby Bottomley has at least 10 digs in 23 straight matches ... Including 2021, each of the last nine Bluejay Invitational champions (and 12 of 16) have been ranked or receiving votes in the AVCA Top 25 poll ... Creighton improved to 29-16 all-time at the Bluejay Invitational ... This is the fourth Bluejay Invitational title won by Creighton (also 2014, 2017, 2018), and just the third time (also 2014 & 2018) CU went undefeated in the event ... Former Creighton setter Maggie (Baumert) McKew is an assistant coach at Nebraska-Omaha ... Naomi Hickman had five block assists and now owns 375 in her career. that's one more than Marysa Wilkinson for sixth in program history ... Hickman also surpassed 400 career blocks in tonight's contest.
More to come...
2021 Bluejay Invitational Summary
September 10-11, 2021 – Omaha, Neb.
Â
Final Standings
1. #19 Creighton                         3-0
2. Illinois                                    2-1
3. SMUÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 1-2
4. Nebraska-Omaha                   0-3
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Match Scores
Friday, September 10, 2021
Illinois def. Nebraska-Omaha, 3-1 (25-15, 25-17, 18-25, 25-11)
#19 Creighton def. SMU, 3-0 (25-13, 25-12, 25-22)
Illinois def. SMU, 3-0 (25-14, 25-13, 25-18)
Saturday, September 11, 2021
#19 Creighton def. Illinois, 3-1 (25-18, 25-16, 25-27, 33-31)
SMU def. Nebraska-Omaha, 3-2 (25-15, 15-25, 25-17, 22-25, 15-12)
#19 Creighton def. Nebraska-Omaha, 3-0 (25-17, 25-18, 25-16)
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All-Tournament Team
Jaela Zimmerman, Creighton (MVP)
Norah Sis, Creighton
Kendra Wait, Creighton
Raina Terry, Illinois
Megan Cooney, Illinois
Lily Heim, SMU
Claire Mountjoy, Nebraska-Omaha
Bluejay Invitational Records Broken or Tied
None
Â
Scores of the Bluejay sweep were 25-17, 25-18, 25-16, as Creighton improved to 9-1. Omaha fell to 2-6 after a winless weekend. Illinois took second at the Bluejay Invitational with a 2-1 mark while SMU was third after a 1-2 trip.
Zimmerman and Norah Sis each had 10 kills to pace CU's offense in the win, and Abby Bottomley had 14 digs. The Bluejays had seven blocks in the opening set and finished with 13 rejections overall, led by six from Annika Welty. Creighton finished with 36 kills, five aces, 50 digs and hit .224.
Omaha was paced by 10 kills and 10 digs from Rachel Fairbanks. The Mavs recorded 33 kills, one ace, 45 digs and 7.0 blocks on .059 hitting.
Creighton didn't take its first lead in the opening set until a kill from Zimmerman made it 10-9. Welty had four stuffs in the first frame as CU held the Mavericks to .024 hitting in 42 swings. Zimmerman led CU's offense with five kills in the opener.
Creighton fell behind 14-6 in the second set before summoning a comeback. The Bluejays trailed 18-13 after a kill from Fairbanks before a kill by Keeley Davis earned the Jays a sideout. Zimmerman took over from there, authoring a 12-0 run to close out the set, including a thunderous back row kill on game point. Bottomley had seven digs and a pair of assists in the second set.
The Bluejays pulled away to secure a sweep of the Mavericks, closing out the match on a serve by Sis that led to a UNO attack error. Sis had six kills in the final set as CU hit .323.
The Bluejays return to action next week with the Shocker Volleyball Classic in Wichita, Kan. The trip starts on Friday at 4:30 p.m. with a match vs. Wyoming. On Saturday, CU squares off against South Dakota (12 p.m.) and host Wichita State (7 p.m.).
NOTES: Jaela Zimmerman was named Tournament MVP for the second straight weekend (Bluegrass Battle), and the third time in her career (2019 Creighton Classic) ... Kendra Wait was recognized on the All-Tournament Team for the second time this fall and Norah Sis for the third time. Sis is the first Bluejay freshman in program history to be named All-Tournament Team following her first three events ... Creighton has won nine straight home matches at D.J. Sokol Arena ... Creighton's only previous 9-1 starts came in 2012 when the Bluejays opened 10-1, and in 2006 when CU began 10-1 ... Creighton has at least one block in 813 straight matches ... Abby Bottomley has at least 10 digs in 23 straight matches ... Including 2021, each of the last nine Bluejay Invitational champions (and 12 of 16) have been ranked or receiving votes in the AVCA Top 25 poll ... Creighton improved to 29-16 all-time at the Bluejay Invitational ... This is the fourth Bluejay Invitational title won by Creighton (also 2014, 2017, 2018), and just the third time (also 2014 & 2018) CU went undefeated in the event ... Former Creighton setter Maggie (Baumert) McKew is an assistant coach at Nebraska-Omaha ... Naomi Hickman had five block assists and now owns 375 in her career. that's one more than Marysa Wilkinson for sixth in program history ... Hickman also surpassed 400 career blocks in tonight's contest.
More to come...
2021 Bluejay Invitational Summary
September 10-11, 2021 – Omaha, Neb.
Â
Final Standings
1. #19 Creighton                         3-0
2. Illinois                                    2-1
3. SMUÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 1-2
4. Nebraska-Omaha                   0-3
Â
Match Scores
Friday, September 10, 2021
Illinois def. Nebraska-Omaha, 3-1 (25-15, 25-17, 18-25, 25-11)
#19 Creighton def. SMU, 3-0 (25-13, 25-12, 25-22)
Illinois def. SMU, 3-0 (25-14, 25-13, 25-18)
Saturday, September 11, 2021
#19 Creighton def. Illinois, 3-1 (25-18, 25-16, 25-27, 33-31)
SMU def. Nebraska-Omaha, 3-2 (25-15, 15-25, 25-17, 22-25, 15-12)
#19 Creighton def. Nebraska-Omaha, 3-0 (25-17, 25-18, 25-16)
Â
All-Tournament Team
Jaela Zimmerman, Creighton (MVP)
Norah Sis, Creighton
Kendra Wait, Creighton
Raina Terry, Illinois
Megan Cooney, Illinois
Lily Heim, SMU
Claire Mountjoy, Nebraska-Omaha
Bluejay Invitational Records Broken or Tied
None
Â
Team Stats
UNO
CU
Kills
33
36
Errors
26
14
Attempts
118
98
Hitting %
.059
.224
Points
41.0
54.0
Assists
31
32
Aces
1
5
Blocks
7.0
13.0
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
10
Aces
1
Blocks
3
Kills
7
Aces
2
Blocks
3
Kills
4
Aces
0
Blocks
5
Players Mentioned
DS
/ VolleyballOH
/ VolleyballMB/RS
/ Volleyball
S
/ Volleyball
MB/RS
/ VolleyballOH
/ Volleyball
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