Thursday, September 5
Omaha, Neb.
6 PM
Creighton University
vs
#20 USC
Photo by: Justin Kreutzian
#11 Volleyball Hosts #20 USC; Kansas State in Creighton Classic
9/3/2024 3:02:00 PM | Volleyball
Bluejays seek a second straight tournament title to open the year
Creighton Classic
Match #4: #20 USC at #11 Creighton • Thursday, Sept. 5 • 6 p.m. | LIVE VIDEO | LIVE AUDIO | LIVE STATS | CU NOTES | USC NOTES |
Kansas State vs. #20 USC • Friday, Sept. 6 • 4 p.m. | LIVE VIDEO | LIVE STATS | USC NOTES | KSU NOTES |
Match #5: Kansas State at #11 Creighton • Saturday, Sept. 7 • 2 p.m. | LIVE VIDEO | LIVE AUDIO | LIVE STATS | CU NOTES | KSU NOTES |
All matches played at D.J. Sokol Arena in Omaha, Neb.
This Week
No. 11 Creighton (3-0) hosts a second straight tournament to open the season when No. 20 USC (2-0) and Kansas State (1-2) visit Omaha, Neb., for the Creighton Classic.
   Play begins on Thursday night at 6 p.m. when Creighton hosts USC in a nationally-televised battle on FS1.
   On Friday at 4 p.m., USC meets Kansas State in a neutral site contest that will have free admission.
   The event concludes on Saturday at 2 p.m. when Creighton hosts Kansas State.
   D.J. Sokol Arena (2,500) in Omaha, Neb., will host the action.
Weekend Promotions
With Thursday being National Cheese Pizza Day, a limited quantity of cheese pizza will be given away. As part of a Dorm Wars! promotion, the highest-attending dorm will win a pizza party.
   Saturday is National Tailgate Day. Arrive early to take part in tailgate festivities hosted by Creighton Volleyball including corn hole, pickleball and more. Plus, a limited quantity of Creighton Koozies will be distributed.
Broadcast Information
Thursday's Creighton/USC match will be nationally televised on FS1, with Kylen Mills and Anna Connelly on the call.
   Additonally, Jon Schriner and Megan Epperson will call Thursday's Creighton/USC match on the radio on 1180 the Zone (KZOT), as well as at http://GoCreighton.com/listen1180.
   The final two matches of the Creighton Classic will be streamed on Flo Sports, which requires a subscription.
   The video feed for Friday's match between Kansas State and USC will not have announcers, but will have crowd noise and the PA feed.
   Saturday's Creighton/Kansas State match will be announced by Jon Schriner and Kate Elman. That audio will also be simulcast on the radio on 1180 the Zone (KZOT), as well as at http://GoCreighton.com/listen1180.
   The Creighton Volleyball schedule page at GoCreighton.com has direct links to each broadcast, which even more specifics provided at http://GoCreighton.com/flosports. If you sign up via a "@creighton.edu" address, it costs $6.99 per month. If you don't have one of those, click on the video webcast link on the Creighton Volleyball schedule page and it will cost (and automatically renew) at $14.99 per month.
Live Stats Information
Every match this week will have free live stats at http://Creighton.StatBroadcast.com.
   Links will also be on the GoCreighton.com volleyball schedule page.
Scouting #11 Creighton
Creighton is off to a 3-0 start after sweeping NC State, Missouri and Drake en route to the Bluejay Invitational title last weekend.
   The 2023 BIG EAST Player of the Year Kendra Wait (11.22 aps., 3.11 dps., 1.11 kps., 0.89 bps., .421%) opened her senior campaign by collecting MVP honors last weekend.
   She was joined on the All-Tournament Team by classmates Norah Sis (3.44 kps., .328%) and Elise Goetzinger (3.00 kps., 1.00 bps., .444%). Sis is the Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year for the third time, while Goetzinger was a four-year starter at Kentucky before transferring to CU in the spring.
   Additionally, junior Ava Martin (3.00 kps., .275%) was named Preseason All-BIG EAST.
   CU returns four starters from last season's 29-5 squad that reached an 12th straight NCAA Tournament and saw the Bluejays win a 10th straight BIG EAST regular-season title and its ninth BIG EAST Tournament crown in the past decade. CU was a unanimous pick to win the BIG EAST by league coaches in 2024.
    CU averaged 14.89 kills, 1.22 aces, 14.89 digs and 2.67 blocks per set and hit .323 last week.
Scouting #20 USC
USC is 2-0 after winning 6-of-7 sets last weekend at preseason WCC favorite Pepperdine. That impressive showing helped the Women of Troy move from 21st in the preseason poll up to 20th in this week's AVCA Top 25.
   Nebraska transfer Ally Batenhorst (3.86 kps.) and London Wijay (3.71 kps., 3.57 dps.) pace USC on offense, which is directed by Mia Tuaniga (13.00 aps., 0.86 bps., 0.57 saps.).
   Gala Trubint (4.29 dps.) leads USC in digs, while Tyrah Ariail (1.29 bps.) is the top blocker.
   USC averages 14.86 kills, 16.00 digs, 2.21 blocks and 1.00 aces per set on .281 hitting.
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Scouting Kansas State
Kansas State went 1-2 at the Stacey Clark Challenge hosted by Purdue last weekend, falling to No. 8 Purdue (3-1) and UC Davis (3-2) before closing its trip with a 3-0 win vs. UMBC.
   Three-time All-Big 12 pick Aliyah Carter (4.67 kps.) and Izzi Szulczewski (10.83 aps.) were both named Preseason All-Conference. Brenna Schmidt (1.25 bps.) led KSU in blocks last weekend, while Ella Larkin (5.17 dps.) was tops in digs.
   K-State averaged 13.75 kills, 17.00 digs, 2.42 blocks and 1.17 aces per set while hitting .234 last weekend.
   The Wildcats were picked to finish seventh in the 16-team Big 12 this fall after going 16-11 last year. K-State set a program record with five Top 25 victories last season, including a win over national champion Texas.
Creighton Coaches
Creighton is coached by Kirsten Bernthal Booth (Truman State, 1997), who owns a 473-189 record in her 22nd season with the Bluejays.
   She's led Creighton to 10 straight BIG EAST regular-season titles (2014-23), and 11 league crowns in the previous 12 years. Booth guided the Bluejays to their first three Sweet 16's (2015, 2016, 2023) 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 fourth time in 2023.
   The winningest coach in school history, Booth has taken Creighton to its only 13 NCAA Tournament bids in the program's modern history. She's also coached CU into the top-25 each of the last 13 seasons (including 2024), another program first.
   She is also currently serving as President of the AVCA.
   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 Adam Kessenich.
Series History vs. USC
USC leads the all-time series with Creighton by a 6-3 count, but the Bluejays have won the past three meetings. Friday marks the 10-year anniversary of the first meeting between the teams.
   The last meeting came in Omaha on Sept. 2, 2022, a 3-1 Bluejay victory. Current Bluejays Norah Sis, Sky McCune, Kiara Reinhardt and Kendra Wait all started that match for CU, while Ava Martin provided seven kills off the bench.
   Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 3-6 all-time against the Women of Troy, and 2-0 against Brad Keller.
Series History vs. Kansas State
Kansas State has won 8-of-10 all-time meetings against Creighton, but the Bluejays beat the Wildcats in Houston (at Rice) when the squads last squared off in 2022.
   Only two of those match-ups took place in Omaha, where the teams have split two meetings. The last time K-State came to D.J. Sokol Arena (Sept. 20, 2015) marked the first time in 66 tries that Creighton overcame an 0-2 deficit at home to win.
   Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 2-5 against K-State, and has never faced off against Jason Mansfield.
With A Win...
With a win on Thursday vs. USC, Creighton would...
- Extend its program-record home win streak to 17.
- Pick up its fourth straight win over USC after losing the first six meetings against the Women of Troy.
- Earn a Top 25 win for the 10th straight season.
- Start the season 4-0 for the eighth time in program history, and first time since 2022.
- Improve to 205-45 in 250 matches all-time when playing as a ranked team, including a 22-25 mark against another ranked foe.
Small Screen Stars
Thursday is the first of at least eight matches that Creighton will play on television this season, and one of at least three on the FOX networks as both regular-season meetings vs. Marquette will also be shown. Additionally, the BIG EAST Tournament final will be broadcast on FS2, a match that Creighton has played in 10 of its first 11 years in the league.
   Creighton also plays at No. 2 Nebraska next Tuesday on BTN, as well as at No. 4 Louisville next Sunday on ESPN.
   Nebraska Public Media will also broadcast three matches statewide, CU home matches against Xavier (Oct. 18), St. John's (Nov. 1) and Villanova (Nov. 3).
Unblemished
Creighton is one of just 10 teams nationally that did not lose a set on the opening weekend, a list that also includes Illinois, Virginia, No. 23 Baylor, North Carolina, No. 3 Pittsburgh, South Dakota, Tennessee Tech, Texas-Arlington and Wright State.
   In 2021 Creighton won its first 11 sets of the season before dropping back-to-back sets vs. USC, only to respond by winning the fifth set. CU's only other team to win at least nine straight sets to start the season was its 2006 squad. That team won its first 10 sets and won its fourth contest of the season in five sets as well.
   Creighton has won 48-of-52 sets in its past 16 matches dating to midway through last season.
The Streak At Home
Creighton had its first unbeaten home season in program history last year, going a perfect 13-0 in matches and 39-3 in sets.
   With three more wins last weekend, the Bluejays have set a program record with 16 straight home wins, surpassing a 15-match home win streak from Sept. 7-Nov. 30, 2018 that had been the standard.
   Creighton's 16-match home win streak is tied for the fifth-longest active streak in the country entering the week.
   Creighton has also won 41 straight sets at home, which leads the country, a streak that is more than a year old since dropping a 36-34 second set to UNI on Sept. 3, 2023. That streak will be put to the test this weekend as the Bluejays have never swept either USC nor Kansas State in a combined 19 meetings.
Creighton's Longest Home Win Streaks
Wins   Dates   Snapped By
   16   Sept. 1, 2023 - Present   TBD
   15   Sept. 7 - Nov. 30, 2018   #22 Washington, 3-0
   13   Sept. 1, 2012 - Sept. 7, 2013   California, 3-0
   13   Sept. 9, 2016-Sept. 1, 2017   #18 USC, 3-0
Nation's Longest Active Home Win Streaks
Wins   Team   Next Home Match
   28   Stephen F. Austin   9/3 vs. High Point
   25   Nebraska   9/5 vs. The Citadel
   24   Yale   9/13 vs. Villanova
   17   Wisconsin   9/10 vs. Wisconsin-Milwaukee
   16   Creighton   9/5 vs. #20 USC
   16   Pittsburgh   9/3 vs. Buffalo
   16   High Point   9/6 vs. Ohio
Her Kind Of City
Kentucky transfer Elise Goetzinger is a perfect 11-0 in matches played in Omaha in her career.
   Goetzinger started all five of UK's matches en route to the 2020 national title (in the spring of 2021), which were played in CHI Health Center Omaha's convention center and arena. The Wildcats beat UNLV, No. 18 Western Kentucky, No. 9 Purdue, No. 7 Washington and No. 5 Texas en route to the championship.
   In 2022 Goetzinger was named to the All-Tournament Team while helping the Wildcats to the Bluejay Invitational title with wins over UNI, No. 17 Creighton and No. 25 USC.
   During those 11 wins, Goetzinger owns 70 kills and 36 blocks while hitting .442 in 36 sets played.
Honors Roll In
Jaya Johnson and Kendra Wait were recognized by the BIG EAST Conference on Monday. Johnson was named BIG EAST Freshman of the Week while Wait landed BIG EAST Setter of the Week accolades.
   Johnson's long-awaited debut saw the redshirt freshman average 2.22 kills, 1.33 digs and 0.78 blocks per set on .273 hitting to help Creighton to three sweeps over Top 52 RPI foes to win the Bluejay Invitational.
   The Olathe, Kan., product had a team-high 11 kills while hitting .526 in her debut, a 3-0 win over NC State that also included five digs. It made her the first player in program history to debut with 11 or more kills while hitting .500 or better.
   Wait averaged 11.22 assists, 3.11 digs, 1.11 kills and 0.89 blocks per set while hitting .421 to lead Creighton to a 3-0 start. The performance led to Wait being voted MVP of the Bluejay Invitational.
   It marked the second Tournament MVP distinction of Wait's career, her 12th career All-Tournament Team recognition, and her fourth consecutive All-Tournament Team honor at the Bluejay Invitational. While the Setter of the Week award is new this year, Wait is no stranger to league recognition. The 2023 BIG EAST Player of the Year and 2023 BIG EAST Setter of the Year is a three-time All-BIG EAST choice. She'd previously been named BIG EAST Freshman of the Week five times, BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week four times and BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week once.
   Bluejay teammates Elise Goetzinger and Kiara Reinhardt were also named to the BIG EAST's Honor Roll for their performances on the weekend.
Best Starts
Creighton has started 3-0 for the seventh time under Kirsten Bernthal Booth, and eighth time overall in program history. Each of the previous seven times the team started 3-0, it won its fourth match as well.
   CU started 6-0 in 2021, 5-0 in 2006, and opened 4-0 in 2000, 2012, 2013, 2017 and 2022 prior to this fall's 3-0 start so far.  Â
Top 25 History
Creighton is 204-45 all-time when playing as a ranked team, and also 21-25 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, 40 of Creighton's 74 losses have come against ranked teams. In that same period, Creighton is 291-34 against unranked teams. Creighton has won all but three of its past 109 home matches over unranked teams and all but 13 of its last 153 matches at all sites against unranked teams.
   Top 25 teams went 43-1 last week nationwide against unranked foes.
Ranked vs. Ranked (CU is 21-25)
Home: 9-9Â Â Â Away: 7-9Â Â Â Â Neutral: 5-7
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
10/14/22   #21 Creighton   #16 Marquette   3-2
11/19/22   #16 Marquette   #11 Creighton   0-3
11/26/22   #15 Creighton   #14 Marquette   3-2
08/26/23   #18 Creighton   #16 Purdue   3-0
09/06/23   #4 Nebraska   #16 Creighton   1-3
09/16/23   #14 Creighton   #9 Minnesota   3-2
11/05/23   #17 Creighton   #25 Marquette   3-0
12/07/23   #7 Louisville   #17 Creighton   2-3
09/05/24   #20 USC at #11 Creighton   6 p.m.
125 Weeks As A Ranked Team
Creighton is ranked 11th in this week's AVCA poll, the 125th time in program history it's been ranked. That's 41st-most of all programs in NCAA history.
   The No. 11 ranking matches the program's top mark since 2019, as it was also No. 11 for one week each in 2022 and 2023.
   All 125 rankings have occurred since 2012 and under the direction of Kirsten Bernthal Booth.
   The Bluejays are one of 15 schools (along with Baylor, BYU, Florida, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, Louisville, Nebraska, Oregon, Penn State, Pitt, Purdue, Stanford, Texas and Wisconsin) to have been ranked each of the last 47 polls.
   Since the start of the 2017 season, here's which teams have been ranked the most weeks:
Most Weeks Ranked Since 2017
   Rk.   Weeks   Team
   1.   120*   Florida
       120*   Kentucky
       120*   Texas
   4.   111   Nebraska
       111   Penn State
       111   BYU
       111   Purdue
       111   Wisconsin
   9.   109*   Baylor
   10.   105   Creighton
   11.   104*   Pittsburgh
   12.   103   Stanford
       103   Minnesota
   14.   96   Oregon
   15.   91   Washington
   16.   84*   Louisville
* includes 9 weeks in Fall of 2020 when most schools didn't play
Creighton Classic History
Since 2005 Creighton has hosted the Bluejay Invitational in all but season (the COVID-affected 2020 campaign played in the spring of 2021). When CU has multiple home tournaments, it has named that second event the Creighton Classic.
   This week be the fifth time that Creighton has hosted the Creighton Classic. The Jays are 7-4 all-time in the event. CU's lone title came during its lone undefeated Creighton Classic in 2019. The Bluejays have never gone winless in the event.
   Champions, by year, include UAB (2011), No. 16 Illinois (2014), No. 11 Wisconsin (2015) and No. 15 Creighton (2019).
   Between 19 Bluejay Invitationals, (2005-24), two Creighton First Serve Festivals (1996-97), four previous Creighton Classics (2011, 2014, 2015, 2019), one MVC Tournament (2009) and five BIG EAST Tournaments (2013, 2015, 2018, 2020, 2022), Creighton has won 11 of the 31 tournaments (excluding NCAA Tournament action) it has hosted since the program's 1994 restart.
   Those were the 2014 Bluejay Invitational, the 2015 BIG EAST Tournament, the 2017 Bluejay Invitational, the 2018 Bluejay Invitational, the 2018 BIG EAST Tournament, the 2019 Creighton Classic, the 2020 BIG EAST Tournament, the 2021 Bluejay Invitational, the 2022 BIG EAST Tournament, the 2023 Bluejay Invitational and the 2024 Bluejay Invitational which means that CU has won at least one home tournament each of the last eight seasons.
Jays Earn Tourney Titles
Creighton's Bluejay Invitational title on the opening weekend of the fall season marked the 13th straight season that Creighton has won at least one tournament, a streak that dates to 2012.
    During that span, the Bluejays have won 32 tournament titles, not to mention 10 regular-season league crowns.
   Creighton has also now won at least one home tournament each of the last eight seasons.
   Creighton won five different tournaments last season, tying a program record, and outside of the NCAA Tournament has now won each of the seven tournaments it has played in.
Creighton's Tournament Titles Since 2012
Year   Titles Won   Tourney Hosts
2012Â Â Â 3Â Â Â USF, UNC, MVC
2013Â Â Â 1Â Â Â BGSU
2014Â Â Â 1Â Â Â CU, BIG EAST
2015Â Â Â 1Â Â Â BIG EAST
2016Â Â Â 1Â Â Â BIG EAST
2017Â Â Â 4Â Â Â WASH, CU, KU, BIG EAST
2018Â Â Â 3Â Â Â SMU, CU, BIG EAST
2019Â Â Â 2Â Â Â UNI, CU
2020Â Â Â 1Â Â Â BIG EAST
2021Â Â Â 5Â Â Â MIZZ, UK, CU, WSU, BIG EAST
2022Â Â Â 3Â Â Â WYO, UNO, BIG EAST
2023Â Â Â 5Â Â Â Purdue, CU, UNO, MINN, BIG EAST
2024Â Â Â 1Â Â Â CU
Packed House
Creighton announced in July that it had sold out of season tickets, and fans showed up in a big way last weekend.
   The Bluejays averaged 2,377 fans per home match last weekend (10th-best nationally), including a crowd of 2,569 on Friday vs. NC State that was the third-largest volleyball crowd ever inside D.J. Sokol Arena.
Creighton Volleyball's Largest Home Crowds
   Att.   Opponent   Date   CU Result   Facility
   15,797   #2 Nebraska   09/07/22   L 2-3   CHI Health Ctr.
   14,022   #7 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.
   2,653   Auburn   12/02/22   L 2-3   D.J. Sokol Arena
   2,578   #13 Kentucky   09/01/17   W 3-0   D.J. Sokol Arena
   2,569   NC State   08/30/24   W 3-0   D.J. Sokol Arena
   2,568   Minnesota   12/02/23   W 3-0   D.J. Sokol Arena
   2,563   Colgate   12/01/23   W 3-0   D.J. Sokol Arena
   2,552   South Dakota   11/30/18   W 3-0   D.J. Sokol Arena
   2,517   Coastal Carolina   12/01/17   W 3-1   D.J. Sokol Arena
   2,514   #7 Nebraska   08/31/10   L 0-3   D.J. Sokol Arena
   2,509   #22 Washington   12/01/18   L 0-3   D.J. Sokol Arena
   2,504   #9 Marquette   11/22/19   W 3-1   D.J. Sokol Arena
Set For Success
Creighton had little trouble last weekend against three teams with Top 52 RPI's last season.
   The Jays trailed for just one time in the first set all weekend, falling behind 3-2 vs. Missouri.
   The second set was the closest set in all three contests, but CU still prevailed each time. The Bluejays have now won the second set in each of their last 21 contests.
   Creighton outscored its three opponents 75-42 in the third set, with that being the most lopsided set score in each contest. Creighton hit .357 in the third set (44-9-98) and sided out 84.8 percent (39/46) of the time.
A Bunch of Winners
Creighton's 29 victories last season were tied for sixth-most in the nation and its .853 win percentage was tied for ninth-best.
   Additionally, Creighton's 87 victories in the previous three seasons (2020-22) are tied for fourth in the country (behind only Louisville, Pitt and Wisconsin) and its 312 wins in the previous 12 campaigns is sixth-most (behind only WKU, Nebraska, Texas, Penn State and BYU).
   Creighton is one of just 10 teams that did not lose a set on the opening weekend, a list that also includes Illinois, Virginia, No. 23 Baylor, North Carolina, No. 3 Pittsburgh, South Dakota, Tennessee Tech, Texas-Arlington and Wright State.
   Creighton also ranked tied for first nationally in fewest sets lost (22) last year. Here's that list:
Fewest Sets Lost in 2023
Rk.   Sets Lost   Team
1.   22   Creighton
   22   Nebraska
   22   Dayton
4.   23   Wisconsin
   23   Tennessee
   23   Western Michigan
Any Stat Will Do
Since joining the BIG EAST a dozen years ago, Creighton has been dominant when it wins just about any stat category, as seen below:
Statistic   W   L   Pct.
With Better Hitting Pct.   277   8   .972
When Hitting .250+Â Â Â 195Â Â Â 6Â Â Â .970
When Hitting .300+Â Â Â 107Â Â Â 0Â Â Â 1.000
When Serving 10+ Aces   17   2   .895
When Owning More Kills   267   21   .928
When Owning More Aces   198   19   .913
When Owning More Digs   229   20   .921
When Owning More Blocks   210   16   .930
Olympians Made Here
Taryn Kloth made history earlier this summer when the 2018 graduate became the first former Creighton student-athlete to compete in the Olympics.
   The South Dakota native paired with Kristen Nuss to tie for ninth place in Beach Volleyball, winning their first three matches before losing to a team from Canada that went on to win the silver medal.
   Head coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth and associate head coach Angie Oxley Behrens both made the trip to Paris to watch three of Kloth's matches.
   Kloth was a First Team All-BIG EAST choice in 2016 and 2018 and named BIG EAST Tournament MVP in 2017. She ranks fourth in CU history with 1,427 career kills and won four BIG EAST regular-season and tournament titles.
61*
Creighton Volleyball traditionally owns one of the nation's top non-conference schedules, but head coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth might have outdone herself this year.
   All 11 of Creighton's non-conference matches are against teams with a Top 61 RPI last year.
   Each of the top four teams that Creighton plays from that list will be faced outside of Omaha.
2023 RPI   School   2024 CU Result
 1   at Nebraska
 6   at Louisville
13Â Â Â vs. Purdue
15Â Â Â at Kansas
30Â Â Â USC
34   Missouri   W 3-0
35Â Â Â vs. Northern Iowa
43   NC State   W 3-0
52   Drake   W 3-0
60Â Â Â vs. Rice
61Â Â Â Kansas State
Avoiding Losing Streaks
One key to Creighton's extended success over the last dozen years has been its ability to bounce back after a loss.
   The Bluejays have won their last 23 contests immediately following a loss and have not dropped consecutive matches since opening the season 0-2 to begin the 2019 campaign with back-to-back losses to No. 2 Nebraska and No. 20 Baylor in Lincoln, Neb.
   And if that's not enough, EVERY SINGLE OTHER TEAM in the country (all 347 of them) has had a multi-match losing streak since Creighton's last skid.
   Creighton has also not lost back-to-back matches against conference teams since a three-match losing streak in November of 2011.
   By comparison, every other team in the BIG EAST had a multi-match losing streak last season alone.
   Creighton has also won its last 15 matches after a five-set loss, a streak that dates back to early in the 2016 campaign.
No Losers Here
Creighton has been as good as anyone at avoiding losses in recent seasons.
   Creighton, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Texas, Western Kentucky and Wisconsin are the nation's only teams with five losses or less in the 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023 seasons.
   If you go back two years more, the nation's only teams to lose six times or less in the 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023 seasons are Creighton, Pittsburgh and Texas.
   Creighton is one of just two schools nationally who have won 25 matches or more in every season between 2014-23 (not counting the 2020 COVID-19 year). That group consists of BYU and Creighton.
12 Straight NCAA's
Creighton Volleyball has made the NCAA Tournament in each of the previous 12 seasons. They are the first women's team in any sport at Creighton to make 12 straight NCAA Tournament appearances.
   The only other sport in Creighton history to make 12 straight NCAA Tournament appearances is the men's soccer program, which qualified in 17 straight seasons from 1992-2008.
    Creighton is one of seven teams nationally to have appeared in each of the last 12 NCAA Tournaments (2012-23). That group features BYU, Creighton, Florida, Kentucky, Nebraska, Penn State and Texas.
   There are also 13 schools that have appeared in 13 of the last 14 NCAA Tournaments, a group that includes Creighton, Florida State, Hawai'i, Minnesota, Purdue, San Diego, Stanford and Washington. Florida, Kentucky, Nebraska, Penn State, and Texas have appeared in every NCAA Tournament since at least 2010.
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 10-13 against ranked non-conference foes over the previous seven seasons after going 2-43 all-time vs. ranked teams in regular-season non-conference matches.
Non-Conference Records, By Year, Under Booth
Year   Non-Con W-L   vs. Ranked Non-Con   Final W-L
2003Â Â Â 3-8Â Â Â 0-0Â Â Â 12-18
2004Â Â Â 8-2Â Â Â 0-1Â Â Â 18-11
2005Â Â Â 6-5Â Â Â 0-3Â Â Â 16-14
2006Â Â Â 8-3Â Â Â 0-1Â Â Â 21-10
2007Â Â Â 6-5Â Â Â 0-3Â Â Â 21-10
2008Â Â Â 3-5Â Â Â 0-3Â Â Â 18-9
2009Â Â Â 3-8Â Â Â 0-3Â Â Â 14-17
2010Â Â Â 5-5Â Â Â 0-1Â Â Â 21-12
2011Â Â Â 5-7Â Â Â 0-1Â Â Â 17-14
2012Â Â Â 9-2Â Â Â 0-1Â Â Â 29-4
2013Â Â Â 9-3Â Â Â 1-2Â Â Â 23-9
2014Â Â Â 7-6Â Â Â 0-5Â Â Â 25-9
2015Â Â Â 6-7Â Â Â 1-4Â Â Â 27-9
2016Â Â Â 6-6Â Â Â 0-4Â Â Â 29-7
2017Â Â Â 7-4Â Â Â 3-3Â Â Â 26-7
2018Â Â Â 8-4Â Â Â 1-3Â Â Â 29-5
2019Â Â Â 7-3Â Â Â 2-3Â Â Â 25-6
2020Â Â Â 3-2Â Â Â 0-0Â Â Â 12-4
2021Â Â Â 12-1Â Â Â 1-1Â Â Â 31-4
2022Â Â Â 8-3Â Â Â 1-2Â Â Â 27-5
2023Â Â Â 9-2Â Â Â 2-1Â Â Â 29-5
2024Â Â Â 3-0Â Â Â 0-0Â Â Â TBD
Starting At Home?
Creighton started the season with the Bluejay Invitational, the first time since the COVID-affected 2020 season (in the spring of 2021) that the Jays began at home.
   Take away that most unusual campaign and you'll find that Creighton hasn't started a fall season at home since 2010.
   This year marks the first time ever that Creighton has started a season with five straight home matches.
Milestone Watch
Creighton's student-athletes are approaching all sorts of milestones..
   Kendra Wait has 399 career kills and is one shy of 400.
   Sydney Breissinger has 296 career digs, putting her four short of 300. Breissinger also owns 98 career assists, just two away from 100.
   Norah Sis has 1,257 career kills and is tied with Leah McNary for eighth-most in program history.
   Kiara Reinhardt owns 383 career kills, just 17 away from 400.
Preseason Ranking
Creighton was ranked 12th in the AVCA preseason poll on Aug. 19th. It's the 10th time in the past 12 years that the Jays have been ranked in the preseason, and third year in a row.
   The No. 12 slotting was the second-best preseason ranking in program history.
   Over the last 16 seasons, 295-of-400 teams (73.8 percent) of teams have been in both the preseason and final polls, and since 2008 362-of-400 teams (90.5 percent) in the preseason top-25 polls would go on to reach the NCAA Tournament, as all but preseason No. 13 San Diego, No. 14 Ohio State and No. 23 Rice reached the 2023 NCAA Tournament.
   This year marks the 13th 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   27-5   21st
   2023   18th   29-5   15th
   2024   12th   TBD   TBD
Sis Is Killing It
Norah Sis enters Thursday tied with Leah McNary for eighth in Creighton history with 1,257 career kills.
   She has a chance to move into the top four by early October.
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
       Norah Sis   315   1,257   2021-Pr.
   10.   Marysa Wilkinson   499   1,183   2014-17
A Great Start
Ava Martin entered her junior season with 681 kills in her career. The 681 kills was the sixth-most ever by a Bluejay in their first two seasons.
   Martin added 27 more kills last weekend.
Most Kills, After 2 Seasons at Creighton
   Kills   Yr1   Yr2   Name   Year
   994   546   448   Jaali Winters   2015 & 2016
   924   435   489   Norah Sis   2021 & 2022
   769   341   428   Melissa Walsh   1998 & 1999
   733   270   463   Alicia Runge   2009 & 2010 (Jr. & Sr.)
   696   180   516   Leah Ratzlaff   2002 & 2003
   681   264   417   Ava Martin   2022 & 2023
   653   267   386   Jessica Houts   2005 & 2006
   640   225   415   Amanda Cvejdlik   2005 & 2006
Setting The Table
Three-time All-BIG EAST selection Kendra Wait has started all 103 matches she's played in during her career.
   Last Friday she became the fifth Bluejay setter to start four straight season-openers, joining Melissa Weisensee (1994-97), Kailey Reyes (1998-01), Korie Lebeda (2005-08) and Megan Bober (2009-12).
   In addition to Wait, Norah Sis also made her fourth Opening Day start last Friday night.
Five Opening Day Starts
Name   Years
Naomi Hickman   2017-21
Four Opening Day Starts
Name   Years
JoDe Cieloha   1994-97
Melissa Weisensee   1994-97
Shlley Kapler   1996-99
Erin Swanson   1998-01
Kailey Reyes   1998-01
Melissa Walsh   1998-01
Carolyn Decker   2004-06, 08
Korie Lebeda   2005-08
Jessica Houts   2006-09
Allie Oelke   2007-10
Heather Thorson   2009-12
Megan Bober   2009-12
Jess Bird   2013-16
Lauren Smith   2013-16
Jaali Winters   2015-18
Norah Sis   2021-24
Kendra Wait   2021-24
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 473-3 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
08/26/11Â Â Â vs. UTSAÂ Â Â 12-14, 13-14Â Â Â 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 70-39 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 19 of its last 27 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, at South Dakota in the 2020 campaign, at Omaha and UConn in 2022 and at No. 9 Minnesota in 2023.
   It's also worth noting that Creighton is 19-5 all-time in five-set home matches at D.J. Sokol Arena.
   Creighton's six victories in five-set matches in 2022 broke the program record of five previously done in 2003, 2011 and 2015. The nine five-set matches in 2022 was also a record.
   Below is a list of Creighton's record in five-set matches on a yearly basis:
Year   Set 5 W-L   Total W-L
1994Â Â Â 0-2Â Â Â 5-20
1995Â Â Â 0-2Â Â Â 11-19
1996Â Â Â 2-6Â Â Â 9-19
1997Â Â Â 3-5Â Â Â 15-13
1998Â Â Â 2-3Â Â Â 7-18
1999Â Â Â 3-3Â Â Â 13-15
2000Â Â Â 3-3Â Â Â 16-12
2001Â Â Â 1-1Â Â Â 14-13
2002Â Â Â 1-3Â Â Â 3-23
2003Â Â Â 5-1Â Â Â 12-18
2004Â Â Â 4-0Â Â Â 18-11
2005Â Â Â 3-1Â Â Â 16-14
2006Â Â Â 4-2Â Â Â 21-10
2007Â Â Â 2-0Â Â Â 21-10
2008Â Â Â 2-3Â Â Â 18-9
2009Â Â Â 1-4Â Â Â 14-17
2010Â Â Â 3-3Â Â Â 21-12
2011Â Â Â 5-2Â Â Â 17-14
2012Â Â Â 4-1Â Â Â 29-4
2013Â Â Â 3-2Â Â Â 23-9
2014Â Â Â 3-2Â Â Â 25-9
2015Â Â Â 5-2Â Â Â 27-9
2016Â Â Â 4-3Â Â Â 29-7
2017Â Â Â 4-1Â Â Â 26-7
2018Â Â Â 3-2Â Â Â 29-5
2019Â Â Â 2-1Â Â Â 25-6
2020Â Â Â 4-2Â Â Â 12-4
2021Â Â Â 1-1Â Â Â 31-4
2022Â Â Â 6-3Â Â Â 27-5
2023Â Â Â 2-3Â Â Â 29-5
2024Â Â Â 0-0Â Â Â 3-0
Total   85-67   566-341
Champions Among Champions
Since the start of the 2012 season, Creighton, Texas and Western Kentucky are the nation's only schools to have won 11 conference regular-season titles. All but three of Creighton's 11 crowns were outright titles, whereas Texas shared one title and WKU shared five.
   Creighton has also won 10 conference tournament titles since 2012, the most in the nation.
Most Conference Titles 2012-2023
Regular-Season   League Tournament
11 (3 shared) Creighton   10 Creighton
11 (1) Texas   9 Dayton
11 (5) Western Kentucky   9 Western Kentucky
10 (1) Fairfield   8 Fairfield
8 (8) Florida A&MÂ Â Â 7 LIU
8 (4) Yale
8 (2) BYUÂ Â Â
8 (1) Colorado State  Â
BIG EAST Preseason Poll
Creighton Volleyball was the unanimous pick to win the BIG EAST in a preseason poll of league coaches.
   Creighton earned 10 first place votes to earn the maximum 100 points. Marquette earned Creighton's first place vote (coaches can't vote for their own teams) as well as nine other second-place votes to finish second in the poll with 91 points.
   St. John's (80) was picked third, just ahead of DePaul (74) and Butler (58). Rounding out the bottom half of the poll were Xavier (49), Seton Hall (40), Villanova (39), Connecticut (33), Georgetown (27) and Providence (14).
   Creighton also had three women among the 12 members on the BIG EAST's preseason all-conference team in Ava Martin as well as unanimous selections Kendra Wait and Norah Sis. Sis was also tabbed the BIG EAST's Preseason Player of the Year for the third straight fall.
   Creighton has finished in the spot predicted of it or better in the preseason poll in 19 of 21 years under Kirsten Bernthal Booth, including 10 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
2020Â Â Â 1st (MW)Â Â Â 1st (MW)Â Â Â - -
2021   1st   T-1st   - -
2022   1st   T-1st   - -
2023   2nd   T-1st   #1
2024   1st   ???   ???
Bouncing Back
The Creighton staff is quick to credit athletic performance coach Brad Schmidt for helping the team get stronger during the off-season and maintaining that strength during the season.
   Need evidence of that? Since Aug. 25, 2018, Creighton is 21-2 in the match following a five-setter.
Home Sweet Home
Creighton is in its 12th season as a member of the BIG EAST since joining the league in the summer of 2013.
   Since then, the Bluejays are 100-4 in home matches against BIG EAST teams (91-3 in the regular-season, 9-1 in the BIG EAST Tournament).
   Since November of 2014, Creighton is 84-1 inside D.J. Sokol Arena against BIG EAST teams, which includes a 76-1 league mark and a 8-0 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 the fall of 2020, Bluejay seniors Abbey Milner, Kendra Wait and Norah Sis are 28-0 in home matches against BIG EAST teams, and 84-8 in sets.
   Creighton has won 34 straight regular-season sets against BIG EAST opponents inside D.J. Sokol Arena, as well as 34 straight matches against BIG EAST opposition at home.
BIG EAST'S Best
Since the reconfigufration 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.
   Creighton owns 10 regular-season titles (3 shared) in that time, while Marquette owns four regular-season (3 shared) crowns.
   As it relates to BIG EAST Tournament titles, Creighton has won nine, Marquette one and St. John's one.
   Below is a look at the record of each BIG EAST team since league realignment in 2013:
BIG EAST VB Standings, 2013 - Sept. 3, 2024
            BIG EAST only   All    matches
Team (NCAA Bids)Â Â Â WÂ Â Â LÂ Â Â WÂ Â Â L
Creighton (11)Â Â Â 170Â Â Â 16Â Â Â 286Â Â Â 70
Marquette (10)Â Â Â 153Â Â Â 30Â Â Â 260Â Â Â 84
Xavier   108   76   169   155
Butler   98   88   171   156
St. John's (1)Â Â Â 94Â Â Â 92Â Â Â 201Â Â Â 148
Villanova (1)Â Â Â 91Â Â Â 95Â Â Â 171Â Â Â 151
Seton Hall (1)Â Â Â 80Â Â Â 105Â Â Â 155Â Â Â 172
DePaul   55   131   131   187
Georgetown   40   138   101   204
Connecticut#Â Â Â 30Â Â Â 32Â Â Â 56Â Â Â 54
Providence*Â Â Â 29Â Â Â 141Â Â Â 105Â Â Â 189
*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.
2-0 Better Than 0-2
Creighton is 393-11 (.973) all-time when leading a match 2-0, including a 336-5 mark (.985) under Kirsten Bernthal Booth. CU is 259-3 (.989) when up 2-0 dating to September of 2009, and 134-1 (.993) 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 94.9 percent of their matches from 2014-23.
   Conversely, the Jays are 17-206 (.076) all-time when trailing a match 0-2, and 15-107 (.123) under Booth. Those 17 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
10/07/22   at UConn   25-15, 25-12, 15-13   Booth
10/14/22   #16 Marquette   25-19, 25-16, 15-8   Booth
Set 1 Result A Strong Indicator
Creighton is 403-36 (.918) overall under Kirsten Bernthal Booth when it wins set one. In that same time span, CU is just 70-153 (.314) under Booth when it drops the first set.
   Per RichKern.com, Division I teams that lost the first set won just 20.3 percent of their matches from 2014-23.
   Since Aug. 29, 2010, Creighton has gone 152-5 in its last 154 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, on Sept. 3, 2022 to No. 16 Kentucky and on Dec. 2, 2022 to Auburn.
   Creighton has gone 135-6 in its last 141 matches at all sites when winning the first set, compared to a 13-19 record in that same span when dropping the opener.
   Creighton has gone 174-4 in its last 178 matches against unranked foes when winning the opening set.
Against NCAA Tournament Qualifiers
This year's team has nine matches scheduled against teams that made the 2023 NCAA Tournament with contests scheduled against Marquette (2x), Nebraska, Kansas, Purdue, Louisville, Northern Iowa, USC and Missouri.
   After going 3-35 against teams coming off NCAA Tournament bids prior to Kirsten Bernthal Booth's arrival, the Jays are 106-108 since, including a 1-0 record this year.
Year   W-L vs. Previous Season NCAA Teams
1994Â Â Â 0-4
1995Â Â Â 0-2
1996Â Â Â 0-2
1997Â Â Â 0-3
1998Â Â Â 0-5
1999Â Â Â 2-4
2000Â Â Â 0-4
2001Â Â Â 1-6
2002Â Â Â 0-5
2003Â Â Â 0-3
2004Â Â Â 2-2
2005Â Â Â 0-6
2006Â Â Â 4-6
2007Â Â Â 4-9
2008Â Â Â 6-8
2009Â Â Â 1-11
2010Â Â Â 4-7
2011Â Â Â 2-6
2012Â Â Â 8-3
2013Â Â Â 6-6
2014Â Â Â 4-5
2015Â Â Â 11-5
2016Â Â Â 10-7
2017Â Â Â 8-6
2018Â Â Â 8-5
2019Â Â Â 5-4
2020Â Â Â 3-1
2021Â Â Â 3-1
2022Â Â Â 5-4
2023Â Â Â 11-3
2024Â Â Â 1-0 so far
TOTALÂ Â Â 109-143
TOTAL Under Booth   106-108
Lucky 13
Kirsten Bernthal Booth is in some select company, as she has directed her team to 13 NCAA Tournaments. That's more than any other coach in Creighton history.
Name   Sport   NCAA's @CU
Kirsten Bernthal Booth   Volleyball   13
Bob Warming   Men's Soccer   11
Greg McDermott   Men's Basketball   9
Dana Altman   Men's Basketball   7
Brent Vigness   Softball   7
Jim Flanery   Women's Basketball   7
Elmar Bolowich   Men's Soccer   6
10 Straight BIG EAST Regular-Season Titles
Regular-season champions from 2014-23, Creighton is the first team in BIG EAST volleyball history to win 10 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 10 or more straight league titles, doubling the five in a row by the men's soccer program (1992-96) in the MVC.
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 473 victories on the Bluejay sideline to rank fifth in school history across all sports.
Coach, Sport   Victories
Brent Vigness, Softball   819
Ed Servais, Baseball   678*
Mary Higgins, Softball   564
Tom Lilly, Men's & Women's Tennis   542*#
Kirsten Bernthal Booth, Volleyball   473*
Jim Flanery, Women's Basketball   427*
Ed Hubbs, Men's & Women's Tennis   347
Dana Altman, Men's Basketball   327
*still active coaching at Creighton
#currently just the women's tennis coach
Against The BIG EAST
Since the BIG EAST was restructured in 2013, Creighton owns a record better than .750 against each of the other teams currently in the BIG EAST.
   The Bluejays own 189 wins against BIG EAST competition (including BIG EAST Championship play) since 2013, 30 more wins than Marquette for most in the league.
   CU still has not lost to three league foes (DePaul, Georgetown, Providence) since joining the BIG EAST, and Marquette (6), Villanova (3), Seton Hall (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   20-1   -   20-1
Connecticut   3-1   1-0   4-1
DePaul   22-0   2-0   24-0
Georgetown   20-0   -   20-0
Marquette   17-5   6-1   23-6
Providence   16-0   -   16-0
Seton Hall   17-3   2-0   19-3
St. John's   18-2   1-1   19-3
Villanova   17-3   3-0   20-3
Xavier   20-1   4-0   24-1
Total   170-16   19-2   189-18
Production Returns
Creighton returns 13-of-18 letterwinners to the court from last season, including four starters.
   From last year's team, only Kiana Schmitt, Ellie Bichelmeyer, Ann Marie Remmes, Ellie Bolton and Morgan Colangelo are not back.
   All told, of the seven categories listed below, Creighton returns 516.2 of a possible 700% back (73.7 percent).
   Below is a breakdown of the production that is back:
Stat   Returners   Departures
Assists   1,457 (93.3%)   105 (6.7%)
Aces   155 (87.1%)   23 (12.9%)
Digs   1486 (79.4%)   385 (20.6%)
Points   1434.0 (67.5%)   691.5 (32.5%)
Kills   1,134 (67.3%)   552 (32.7%)
Matches Started   135 (66.2%)   69 (33.8%)
Blocks   145.0 (55.4%)   116.5 (44.6%)
President Booth
Creighton coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth is the current President of the American Volleyball Coaches Association, having started her service on January 1, 2024.
   She is also part of the 17-member AVCA Board of Directors, which includes elected representatives, appointed voting members for Diversity Development and Legislation, and non-voting members for Education and Awards.
    She will finish out her term as Past President in 2026.
Match #4: #20 USC at #11 Creighton • Thursday, Sept. 5 • 6 p.m. | LIVE VIDEO | LIVE AUDIO | LIVE STATS | CU NOTES | USC NOTES |
Kansas State vs. #20 USC • Friday, Sept. 6 • 4 p.m. | LIVE VIDEO | LIVE STATS | USC NOTES | KSU NOTES |
Match #5: Kansas State at #11 Creighton • Saturday, Sept. 7 • 2 p.m. | LIVE VIDEO | LIVE AUDIO | LIVE STATS | CU NOTES | KSU NOTES |
All matches played at D.J. Sokol Arena in Omaha, Neb.
This Week
No. 11 Creighton (3-0) hosts a second straight tournament to open the season when No. 20 USC (2-0) and Kansas State (1-2) visit Omaha, Neb., for the Creighton Classic.
   Play begins on Thursday night at 6 p.m. when Creighton hosts USC in a nationally-televised battle on FS1.
   On Friday at 4 p.m., USC meets Kansas State in a neutral site contest that will have free admission.
   The event concludes on Saturday at 2 p.m. when Creighton hosts Kansas State.
   D.J. Sokol Arena (2,500) in Omaha, Neb., will host the action.
Weekend Promotions
With Thursday being National Cheese Pizza Day, a limited quantity of cheese pizza will be given away. As part of a Dorm Wars! promotion, the highest-attending dorm will win a pizza party.
   Saturday is National Tailgate Day. Arrive early to take part in tailgate festivities hosted by Creighton Volleyball including corn hole, pickleball and more. Plus, a limited quantity of Creighton Koozies will be distributed.
Broadcast Information
Thursday's Creighton/USC match will be nationally televised on FS1, with Kylen Mills and Anna Connelly on the call.
   Additonally, Jon Schriner and Megan Epperson will call Thursday's Creighton/USC match on the radio on 1180 the Zone (KZOT), as well as at http://GoCreighton.com/listen1180.
   The final two matches of the Creighton Classic will be streamed on Flo Sports, which requires a subscription.
   The video feed for Friday's match between Kansas State and USC will not have announcers, but will have crowd noise and the PA feed.
   Saturday's Creighton/Kansas State match will be announced by Jon Schriner and Kate Elman. That audio will also be simulcast on the radio on 1180 the Zone (KZOT), as well as at http://GoCreighton.com/listen1180.
   The Creighton Volleyball schedule page at GoCreighton.com has direct links to each broadcast, which even more specifics provided at http://GoCreighton.com/flosports. If you sign up via a "@creighton.edu" address, it costs $6.99 per month. If you don't have one of those, click on the video webcast link on the Creighton Volleyball schedule page and it will cost (and automatically renew) at $14.99 per month.
Live Stats Information
Every match this week will have free live stats at http://Creighton.StatBroadcast.com.
   Links will also be on the GoCreighton.com volleyball schedule page.
Scouting #11 Creighton
Creighton is off to a 3-0 start after sweeping NC State, Missouri and Drake en route to the Bluejay Invitational title last weekend.
   The 2023 BIG EAST Player of the Year Kendra Wait (11.22 aps., 3.11 dps., 1.11 kps., 0.89 bps., .421%) opened her senior campaign by collecting MVP honors last weekend.
   She was joined on the All-Tournament Team by classmates Norah Sis (3.44 kps., .328%) and Elise Goetzinger (3.00 kps., 1.00 bps., .444%). Sis is the Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year for the third time, while Goetzinger was a four-year starter at Kentucky before transferring to CU in the spring.
   Additionally, junior Ava Martin (3.00 kps., .275%) was named Preseason All-BIG EAST.
   CU returns four starters from last season's 29-5 squad that reached an 12th straight NCAA Tournament and saw the Bluejays win a 10th straight BIG EAST regular-season title and its ninth BIG EAST Tournament crown in the past decade. CU was a unanimous pick to win the BIG EAST by league coaches in 2024.
    CU averaged 14.89 kills, 1.22 aces, 14.89 digs and 2.67 blocks per set and hit .323 last week.
Scouting #20 USC
USC is 2-0 after winning 6-of-7 sets last weekend at preseason WCC favorite Pepperdine. That impressive showing helped the Women of Troy move from 21st in the preseason poll up to 20th in this week's AVCA Top 25.
   Nebraska transfer Ally Batenhorst (3.86 kps.) and London Wijay (3.71 kps., 3.57 dps.) pace USC on offense, which is directed by Mia Tuaniga (13.00 aps., 0.86 bps., 0.57 saps.).
   Gala Trubint (4.29 dps.) leads USC in digs, while Tyrah Ariail (1.29 bps.) is the top blocker.
   USC averages 14.86 kills, 16.00 digs, 2.21 blocks and 1.00 aces per set on .281 hitting.
   Â
Scouting Kansas State
Kansas State went 1-2 at the Stacey Clark Challenge hosted by Purdue last weekend, falling to No. 8 Purdue (3-1) and UC Davis (3-2) before closing its trip with a 3-0 win vs. UMBC.
   Three-time All-Big 12 pick Aliyah Carter (4.67 kps.) and Izzi Szulczewski (10.83 aps.) were both named Preseason All-Conference. Brenna Schmidt (1.25 bps.) led KSU in blocks last weekend, while Ella Larkin (5.17 dps.) was tops in digs.
   K-State averaged 13.75 kills, 17.00 digs, 2.42 blocks and 1.17 aces per set while hitting .234 last weekend.
   The Wildcats were picked to finish seventh in the 16-team Big 12 this fall after going 16-11 last year. K-State set a program record with five Top 25 victories last season, including a win over national champion Texas.
Creighton Coaches
Creighton is coached by Kirsten Bernthal Booth (Truman State, 1997), who owns a 473-189 record in her 22nd season with the Bluejays.
   She's led Creighton to 10 straight BIG EAST regular-season titles (2014-23), and 11 league crowns in the previous 12 years. Booth guided the Bluejays to their first three Sweet 16's (2015, 2016, 2023) 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 fourth time in 2023.
   The winningest coach in school history, Booth has taken Creighton to its only 13 NCAA Tournament bids in the program's modern history. She's also coached CU into the top-25 each of the last 13 seasons (including 2024), another program first.
   She is also currently serving as President of the AVCA.
   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 Adam Kessenich.
Series History vs. USC
USC leads the all-time series with Creighton by a 6-3 count, but the Bluejays have won the past three meetings. Friday marks the 10-year anniversary of the first meeting between the teams.
   The last meeting came in Omaha on Sept. 2, 2022, a 3-1 Bluejay victory. Current Bluejays Norah Sis, Sky McCune, Kiara Reinhardt and Kendra Wait all started that match for CU, while Ava Martin provided seven kills off the bench.
   Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 3-6 all-time against the Women of Troy, and 2-0 against Brad Keller.
Series History vs. Kansas State
Kansas State has won 8-of-10 all-time meetings against Creighton, but the Bluejays beat the Wildcats in Houston (at Rice) when the squads last squared off in 2022.
   Only two of those match-ups took place in Omaha, where the teams have split two meetings. The last time K-State came to D.J. Sokol Arena (Sept. 20, 2015) marked the first time in 66 tries that Creighton overcame an 0-2 deficit at home to win.
   Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 2-5 against K-State, and has never faced off against Jason Mansfield.
With A Win...
With a win on Thursday vs. USC, Creighton would...
- Extend its program-record home win streak to 17.
- Pick up its fourth straight win over USC after losing the first six meetings against the Women of Troy.
- Earn a Top 25 win for the 10th straight season.
- Start the season 4-0 for the eighth time in program history, and first time since 2022.
- Improve to 205-45 in 250 matches all-time when playing as a ranked team, including a 22-25 mark against another ranked foe.
Small Screen Stars
Thursday is the first of at least eight matches that Creighton will play on television this season, and one of at least three on the FOX networks as both regular-season meetings vs. Marquette will also be shown. Additionally, the BIG EAST Tournament final will be broadcast on FS2, a match that Creighton has played in 10 of its first 11 years in the league.
   Creighton also plays at No. 2 Nebraska next Tuesday on BTN, as well as at No. 4 Louisville next Sunday on ESPN.
   Nebraska Public Media will also broadcast three matches statewide, CU home matches against Xavier (Oct. 18), St. John's (Nov. 1) and Villanova (Nov. 3).
Unblemished
Creighton is one of just 10 teams nationally that did not lose a set on the opening weekend, a list that also includes Illinois, Virginia, No. 23 Baylor, North Carolina, No. 3 Pittsburgh, South Dakota, Tennessee Tech, Texas-Arlington and Wright State.
   In 2021 Creighton won its first 11 sets of the season before dropping back-to-back sets vs. USC, only to respond by winning the fifth set. CU's only other team to win at least nine straight sets to start the season was its 2006 squad. That team won its first 10 sets and won its fourth contest of the season in five sets as well.
   Creighton has won 48-of-52 sets in its past 16 matches dating to midway through last season.
The Streak At Home
Creighton had its first unbeaten home season in program history last year, going a perfect 13-0 in matches and 39-3 in sets.
   With three more wins last weekend, the Bluejays have set a program record with 16 straight home wins, surpassing a 15-match home win streak from Sept. 7-Nov. 30, 2018 that had been the standard.
   Creighton's 16-match home win streak is tied for the fifth-longest active streak in the country entering the week.
   Creighton has also won 41 straight sets at home, which leads the country, a streak that is more than a year old since dropping a 36-34 second set to UNI on Sept. 3, 2023. That streak will be put to the test this weekend as the Bluejays have never swept either USC nor Kansas State in a combined 19 meetings.
Creighton's Longest Home Win Streaks
Wins   Dates   Snapped By
   16   Sept. 1, 2023 - Present   TBD
   15   Sept. 7 - Nov. 30, 2018   #22 Washington, 3-0
   13   Sept. 1, 2012 - Sept. 7, 2013   California, 3-0
   13   Sept. 9, 2016-Sept. 1, 2017   #18 USC, 3-0
Nation's Longest Active Home Win Streaks
Wins   Team   Next Home Match
   28   Stephen F. Austin   9/3 vs. High Point
   25   Nebraska   9/5 vs. The Citadel
   24   Yale   9/13 vs. Villanova
   17   Wisconsin   9/10 vs. Wisconsin-Milwaukee
   16   Creighton   9/5 vs. #20 USC
   16   Pittsburgh   9/3 vs. Buffalo
   16   High Point   9/6 vs. Ohio
Her Kind Of City
Kentucky transfer Elise Goetzinger is a perfect 11-0 in matches played in Omaha in her career.
   Goetzinger started all five of UK's matches en route to the 2020 national title (in the spring of 2021), which were played in CHI Health Center Omaha's convention center and arena. The Wildcats beat UNLV, No. 18 Western Kentucky, No. 9 Purdue, No. 7 Washington and No. 5 Texas en route to the championship.
   In 2022 Goetzinger was named to the All-Tournament Team while helping the Wildcats to the Bluejay Invitational title with wins over UNI, No. 17 Creighton and No. 25 USC.
   During those 11 wins, Goetzinger owns 70 kills and 36 blocks while hitting .442 in 36 sets played.
Honors Roll In
Jaya Johnson and Kendra Wait were recognized by the BIG EAST Conference on Monday. Johnson was named BIG EAST Freshman of the Week while Wait landed BIG EAST Setter of the Week accolades.
   Johnson's long-awaited debut saw the redshirt freshman average 2.22 kills, 1.33 digs and 0.78 blocks per set on .273 hitting to help Creighton to three sweeps over Top 52 RPI foes to win the Bluejay Invitational.
   The Olathe, Kan., product had a team-high 11 kills while hitting .526 in her debut, a 3-0 win over NC State that also included five digs. It made her the first player in program history to debut with 11 or more kills while hitting .500 or better.
   Wait averaged 11.22 assists, 3.11 digs, 1.11 kills and 0.89 blocks per set while hitting .421 to lead Creighton to a 3-0 start. The performance led to Wait being voted MVP of the Bluejay Invitational.
   It marked the second Tournament MVP distinction of Wait's career, her 12th career All-Tournament Team recognition, and her fourth consecutive All-Tournament Team honor at the Bluejay Invitational. While the Setter of the Week award is new this year, Wait is no stranger to league recognition. The 2023 BIG EAST Player of the Year and 2023 BIG EAST Setter of the Year is a three-time All-BIG EAST choice. She'd previously been named BIG EAST Freshman of the Week five times, BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week four times and BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week once.
   Bluejay teammates Elise Goetzinger and Kiara Reinhardt were also named to the BIG EAST's Honor Roll for their performances on the weekend.
Best Starts
Creighton has started 3-0 for the seventh time under Kirsten Bernthal Booth, and eighth time overall in program history. Each of the previous seven times the team started 3-0, it won its fourth match as well.
   CU started 6-0 in 2021, 5-0 in 2006, and opened 4-0 in 2000, 2012, 2013, 2017 and 2022 prior to this fall's 3-0 start so far.  Â
Top 25 History
Creighton is 204-45 all-time when playing as a ranked team, and also 21-25 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, 40 of Creighton's 74 losses have come against ranked teams. In that same period, Creighton is 291-34 against unranked teams. Creighton has won all but three of its past 109 home matches over unranked teams and all but 13 of its last 153 matches at all sites against unranked teams.
   Top 25 teams went 43-1 last week nationwide against unranked foes.
Ranked vs. Ranked (CU is 21-25)
Home: 9-9Â Â Â Away: 7-9Â Â Â Â Neutral: 5-7
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
10/14/22   #21 Creighton   #16 Marquette   3-2
11/19/22   #16 Marquette   #11 Creighton   0-3
11/26/22   #15 Creighton   #14 Marquette   3-2
08/26/23   #18 Creighton   #16 Purdue   3-0
09/06/23   #4 Nebraska   #16 Creighton   1-3
09/16/23   #14 Creighton   #9 Minnesota   3-2
11/05/23   #17 Creighton   #25 Marquette   3-0
12/07/23   #7 Louisville   #17 Creighton   2-3
09/05/24   #20 USC at #11 Creighton   6 p.m.
125 Weeks As A Ranked Team
Creighton is ranked 11th in this week's AVCA poll, the 125th time in program history it's been ranked. That's 41st-most of all programs in NCAA history.
   The No. 11 ranking matches the program's top mark since 2019, as it was also No. 11 for one week each in 2022 and 2023.
   All 125 rankings have occurred since 2012 and under the direction of Kirsten Bernthal Booth.
   The Bluejays are one of 15 schools (along with Baylor, BYU, Florida, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, Louisville, Nebraska, Oregon, Penn State, Pitt, Purdue, Stanford, Texas and Wisconsin) to have been ranked each of the last 47 polls.
   Since the start of the 2017 season, here's which teams have been ranked the most weeks:
Most Weeks Ranked Since 2017
   Rk.   Weeks   Team
   1.   120*   Florida
       120*   Kentucky
       120*   Texas
   4.   111   Nebraska
       111   Penn State
       111   BYU
       111   Purdue
       111   Wisconsin
   9.   109*   Baylor
   10.   105   Creighton
   11.   104*   Pittsburgh
   12.   103   Stanford
       103   Minnesota
   14.   96   Oregon
   15.   91   Washington
   16.   84*   Louisville
* includes 9 weeks in Fall of 2020 when most schools didn't play
Creighton Classic History
Since 2005 Creighton has hosted the Bluejay Invitational in all but season (the COVID-affected 2020 campaign played in the spring of 2021). When CU has multiple home tournaments, it has named that second event the Creighton Classic.
   This week be the fifth time that Creighton has hosted the Creighton Classic. The Jays are 7-4 all-time in the event. CU's lone title came during its lone undefeated Creighton Classic in 2019. The Bluejays have never gone winless in the event.
   Champions, by year, include UAB (2011), No. 16 Illinois (2014), No. 11 Wisconsin (2015) and No. 15 Creighton (2019).
   Between 19 Bluejay Invitationals, (2005-24), two Creighton First Serve Festivals (1996-97), four previous Creighton Classics (2011, 2014, 2015, 2019), one MVC Tournament (2009) and five BIG EAST Tournaments (2013, 2015, 2018, 2020, 2022), Creighton has won 11 of the 31 tournaments (excluding NCAA Tournament action) it has hosted since the program's 1994 restart.
   Those were the 2014 Bluejay Invitational, the 2015 BIG EAST Tournament, the 2017 Bluejay Invitational, the 2018 Bluejay Invitational, the 2018 BIG EAST Tournament, the 2019 Creighton Classic, the 2020 BIG EAST Tournament, the 2021 Bluejay Invitational, the 2022 BIG EAST Tournament, the 2023 Bluejay Invitational and the 2024 Bluejay Invitational which means that CU has won at least one home tournament each of the last eight seasons.
Jays Earn Tourney Titles
Creighton's Bluejay Invitational title on the opening weekend of the fall season marked the 13th straight season that Creighton has won at least one tournament, a streak that dates to 2012.
    During that span, the Bluejays have won 32 tournament titles, not to mention 10 regular-season league crowns.
   Creighton has also now won at least one home tournament each of the last eight seasons.
   Creighton won five different tournaments last season, tying a program record, and outside of the NCAA Tournament has now won each of the seven tournaments it has played in.
Creighton's Tournament Titles Since 2012
Year   Titles Won   Tourney Hosts
2012Â Â Â 3Â Â Â USF, UNC, MVC
2013Â Â Â 1Â Â Â BGSU
2014Â Â Â 1Â Â Â CU, BIG EAST
2015Â Â Â 1Â Â Â BIG EAST
2016Â Â Â 1Â Â Â BIG EAST
2017Â Â Â 4Â Â Â WASH, CU, KU, BIG EAST
2018Â Â Â 3Â Â Â SMU, CU, BIG EAST
2019Â Â Â 2Â Â Â UNI, CU
2020Â Â Â 1Â Â Â BIG EAST
2021Â Â Â 5Â Â Â MIZZ, UK, CU, WSU, BIG EAST
2022Â Â Â 3Â Â Â WYO, UNO, BIG EAST
2023Â Â Â 5Â Â Â Purdue, CU, UNO, MINN, BIG EAST
2024Â Â Â 1Â Â Â CU
Packed House
Creighton announced in July that it had sold out of season tickets, and fans showed up in a big way last weekend.
   The Bluejays averaged 2,377 fans per home match last weekend (10th-best nationally), including a crowd of 2,569 on Friday vs. NC State that was the third-largest volleyball crowd ever inside D.J. Sokol Arena.
Creighton Volleyball's Largest Home Crowds
   Att.   Opponent   Date   CU Result   Facility
   15,797   #2 Nebraska   09/07/22   L 2-3   CHI Health Ctr.
   14,022   #7 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.
   2,653   Auburn   12/02/22   L 2-3   D.J. Sokol Arena
   2,578   #13 Kentucky   09/01/17   W 3-0   D.J. Sokol Arena
   2,569   NC State   08/30/24   W 3-0   D.J. Sokol Arena
   2,568   Minnesota   12/02/23   W 3-0   D.J. Sokol Arena
   2,563   Colgate   12/01/23   W 3-0   D.J. Sokol Arena
   2,552   South Dakota   11/30/18   W 3-0   D.J. Sokol Arena
   2,517   Coastal Carolina   12/01/17   W 3-1   D.J. Sokol Arena
   2,514   #7 Nebraska   08/31/10   L 0-3   D.J. Sokol Arena
   2,509   #22 Washington   12/01/18   L 0-3   D.J. Sokol Arena
   2,504   #9 Marquette   11/22/19   W 3-1   D.J. Sokol Arena
Set For Success
Creighton had little trouble last weekend against three teams with Top 52 RPI's last season.
   The Jays trailed for just one time in the first set all weekend, falling behind 3-2 vs. Missouri.
   The second set was the closest set in all three contests, but CU still prevailed each time. The Bluejays have now won the second set in each of their last 21 contests.
   Creighton outscored its three opponents 75-42 in the third set, with that being the most lopsided set score in each contest. Creighton hit .357 in the third set (44-9-98) and sided out 84.8 percent (39/46) of the time.
A Bunch of Winners
Creighton's 29 victories last season were tied for sixth-most in the nation and its .853 win percentage was tied for ninth-best.
   Additionally, Creighton's 87 victories in the previous three seasons (2020-22) are tied for fourth in the country (behind only Louisville, Pitt and Wisconsin) and its 312 wins in the previous 12 campaigns is sixth-most (behind only WKU, Nebraska, Texas, Penn State and BYU).
   Creighton is one of just 10 teams that did not lose a set on the opening weekend, a list that also includes Illinois, Virginia, No. 23 Baylor, North Carolina, No. 3 Pittsburgh, South Dakota, Tennessee Tech, Texas-Arlington and Wright State.
   Creighton also ranked tied for first nationally in fewest sets lost (22) last year. Here's that list:
Fewest Sets Lost in 2023
Rk.   Sets Lost   Team
1.   22   Creighton
   22   Nebraska
   22   Dayton
4.   23   Wisconsin
   23   Tennessee
   23   Western Michigan
Any Stat Will Do
Since joining the BIG EAST a dozen years ago, Creighton has been dominant when it wins just about any stat category, as seen below:
Statistic   W   L   Pct.
With Better Hitting Pct.   277   8   .972
When Hitting .250+Â Â Â 195Â Â Â 6Â Â Â .970
When Hitting .300+Â Â Â 107Â Â Â 0Â Â Â 1.000
When Serving 10+ Aces   17   2   .895
When Owning More Kills   267   21   .928
When Owning More Aces   198   19   .913
When Owning More Digs   229   20   .921
When Owning More Blocks   210   16   .930
Olympians Made Here
Taryn Kloth made history earlier this summer when the 2018 graduate became the first former Creighton student-athlete to compete in the Olympics.
   The South Dakota native paired with Kristen Nuss to tie for ninth place in Beach Volleyball, winning their first three matches before losing to a team from Canada that went on to win the silver medal.
   Head coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth and associate head coach Angie Oxley Behrens both made the trip to Paris to watch three of Kloth's matches.
   Kloth was a First Team All-BIG EAST choice in 2016 and 2018 and named BIG EAST Tournament MVP in 2017. She ranks fourth in CU history with 1,427 career kills and won four BIG EAST regular-season and tournament titles.
61*
Creighton Volleyball traditionally owns one of the nation's top non-conference schedules, but head coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth might have outdone herself this year.
   All 11 of Creighton's non-conference matches are against teams with a Top 61 RPI last year.
   Each of the top four teams that Creighton plays from that list will be faced outside of Omaha.
2023 RPI   School   2024 CU Result
 1   at Nebraska
 6   at Louisville
13Â Â Â vs. Purdue
15Â Â Â at Kansas
30Â Â Â USC
34   Missouri   W 3-0
35Â Â Â vs. Northern Iowa
43   NC State   W 3-0
52   Drake   W 3-0
60Â Â Â vs. Rice
61Â Â Â Kansas State
Avoiding Losing Streaks
One key to Creighton's extended success over the last dozen years has been its ability to bounce back after a loss.
   The Bluejays have won their last 23 contests immediately following a loss and have not dropped consecutive matches since opening the season 0-2 to begin the 2019 campaign with back-to-back losses to No. 2 Nebraska and No. 20 Baylor in Lincoln, Neb.
   And if that's not enough, EVERY SINGLE OTHER TEAM in the country (all 347 of them) has had a multi-match losing streak since Creighton's last skid.
   Creighton has also not lost back-to-back matches against conference teams since a three-match losing streak in November of 2011.
   By comparison, every other team in the BIG EAST had a multi-match losing streak last season alone.
   Creighton has also won its last 15 matches after a five-set loss, a streak that dates back to early in the 2016 campaign.
No Losers Here
Creighton has been as good as anyone at avoiding losses in recent seasons.
   Creighton, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Texas, Western Kentucky and Wisconsin are the nation's only teams with five losses or less in the 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023 seasons.
   If you go back two years more, the nation's only teams to lose six times or less in the 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023 seasons are Creighton, Pittsburgh and Texas.
   Creighton is one of just two schools nationally who have won 25 matches or more in every season between 2014-23 (not counting the 2020 COVID-19 year). That group consists of BYU and Creighton.
12 Straight NCAA's
Creighton Volleyball has made the NCAA Tournament in each of the previous 12 seasons. They are the first women's team in any sport at Creighton to make 12 straight NCAA Tournament appearances.
   The only other sport in Creighton history to make 12 straight NCAA Tournament appearances is the men's soccer program, which qualified in 17 straight seasons from 1992-2008.
    Creighton is one of seven teams nationally to have appeared in each of the last 12 NCAA Tournaments (2012-23). That group features BYU, Creighton, Florida, Kentucky, Nebraska, Penn State and Texas.
   There are also 13 schools that have appeared in 13 of the last 14 NCAA Tournaments, a group that includes Creighton, Florida State, Hawai'i, Minnesota, Purdue, San Diego, Stanford and Washington. Florida, Kentucky, Nebraska, Penn State, and Texas have appeared in every NCAA Tournament since at least 2010.
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 10-13 against ranked non-conference foes over the previous seven seasons after going 2-43 all-time vs. ranked teams in regular-season non-conference matches.
Non-Conference Records, By Year, Under Booth
Year   Non-Con W-L   vs. Ranked Non-Con   Final W-L
2003Â Â Â 3-8Â Â Â 0-0Â Â Â 12-18
2004Â Â Â 8-2Â Â Â 0-1Â Â Â 18-11
2005Â Â Â 6-5Â Â Â 0-3Â Â Â 16-14
2006Â Â Â 8-3Â Â Â 0-1Â Â Â 21-10
2007Â Â Â 6-5Â Â Â 0-3Â Â Â 21-10
2008Â Â Â 3-5Â Â Â 0-3Â Â Â 18-9
2009Â Â Â 3-8Â Â Â 0-3Â Â Â 14-17
2010Â Â Â 5-5Â Â Â 0-1Â Â Â 21-12
2011Â Â Â 5-7Â Â Â 0-1Â Â Â 17-14
2012Â Â Â 9-2Â Â Â 0-1Â Â Â 29-4
2013Â Â Â 9-3Â Â Â 1-2Â Â Â 23-9
2014Â Â Â 7-6Â Â Â 0-5Â Â Â 25-9
2015Â Â Â 6-7Â Â Â 1-4Â Â Â 27-9
2016Â Â Â 6-6Â Â Â 0-4Â Â Â 29-7
2017Â Â Â 7-4Â Â Â 3-3Â Â Â 26-7
2018Â Â Â 8-4Â Â Â 1-3Â Â Â 29-5
2019Â Â Â 7-3Â Â Â 2-3Â Â Â 25-6
2020Â Â Â 3-2Â Â Â 0-0Â Â Â 12-4
2021Â Â Â 12-1Â Â Â 1-1Â Â Â 31-4
2022Â Â Â 8-3Â Â Â 1-2Â Â Â 27-5
2023Â Â Â 9-2Â Â Â 2-1Â Â Â 29-5
2024Â Â Â 3-0Â Â Â 0-0Â Â Â TBD
Starting At Home?
Creighton started the season with the Bluejay Invitational, the first time since the COVID-affected 2020 season (in the spring of 2021) that the Jays began at home.
   Take away that most unusual campaign and you'll find that Creighton hasn't started a fall season at home since 2010.
   This year marks the first time ever that Creighton has started a season with five straight home matches.
Milestone Watch
Creighton's student-athletes are approaching all sorts of milestones..
   Kendra Wait has 399 career kills and is one shy of 400.
   Sydney Breissinger has 296 career digs, putting her four short of 300. Breissinger also owns 98 career assists, just two away from 100.
   Norah Sis has 1,257 career kills and is tied with Leah McNary for eighth-most in program history.
   Kiara Reinhardt owns 383 career kills, just 17 away from 400.
Preseason Ranking
Creighton was ranked 12th in the AVCA preseason poll on Aug. 19th. It's the 10th time in the past 12 years that the Jays have been ranked in the preseason, and third year in a row.
   The No. 12 slotting was the second-best preseason ranking in program history.
   Over the last 16 seasons, 295-of-400 teams (73.8 percent) of teams have been in both the preseason and final polls, and since 2008 362-of-400 teams (90.5 percent) in the preseason top-25 polls would go on to reach the NCAA Tournament, as all but preseason No. 13 San Diego, No. 14 Ohio State and No. 23 Rice reached the 2023 NCAA Tournament.
   This year marks the 13th 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   27-5   21st
   2023   18th   29-5   15th
   2024   12th   TBD   TBD
Sis Is Killing It
Norah Sis enters Thursday tied with Leah McNary for eighth in Creighton history with 1,257 career kills.
   She has a chance to move into the top four by early October.
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
       Norah Sis   315   1,257   2021-Pr.
   10.   Marysa Wilkinson   499   1,183   2014-17
A Great Start
Ava Martin entered her junior season with 681 kills in her career. The 681 kills was the sixth-most ever by a Bluejay in their first two seasons.
   Martin added 27 more kills last weekend.
Most Kills, After 2 Seasons at Creighton
   Kills   Yr1   Yr2   Name   Year
   994   546   448   Jaali Winters   2015 & 2016
   924   435   489   Norah Sis   2021 & 2022
   769   341   428   Melissa Walsh   1998 & 1999
   733   270   463   Alicia Runge   2009 & 2010 (Jr. & Sr.)
   696   180   516   Leah Ratzlaff   2002 & 2003
   681   264   417   Ava Martin   2022 & 2023
   653   267   386   Jessica Houts   2005 & 2006
   640   225   415   Amanda Cvejdlik   2005 & 2006
Setting The Table
Three-time All-BIG EAST selection Kendra Wait has started all 103 matches she's played in during her career.
   Last Friday she became the fifth Bluejay setter to start four straight season-openers, joining Melissa Weisensee (1994-97), Kailey Reyes (1998-01), Korie Lebeda (2005-08) and Megan Bober (2009-12).
   In addition to Wait, Norah Sis also made her fourth Opening Day start last Friday night.
Five Opening Day Starts
Name   Years
Naomi Hickman   2017-21
Four Opening Day Starts
Name   Years
JoDe Cieloha   1994-97
Melissa Weisensee   1994-97
Shlley Kapler   1996-99
Erin Swanson   1998-01
Kailey Reyes   1998-01
Melissa Walsh   1998-01
Carolyn Decker   2004-06, 08
Korie Lebeda   2005-08
Jessica Houts   2006-09
Allie Oelke   2007-10
Heather Thorson   2009-12
Megan Bober   2009-12
Jess Bird   2013-16
Lauren Smith   2013-16
Jaali Winters   2015-18
Norah Sis   2021-24
Kendra Wait   2021-24
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 473-3 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
08/26/11Â Â Â vs. UTSAÂ Â Â 12-14, 13-14Â Â Â 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 70-39 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 19 of its last 27 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, at South Dakota in the 2020 campaign, at Omaha and UConn in 2022 and at No. 9 Minnesota in 2023.
   It's also worth noting that Creighton is 19-5 all-time in five-set home matches at D.J. Sokol Arena.
   Creighton's six victories in five-set matches in 2022 broke the program record of five previously done in 2003, 2011 and 2015. The nine five-set matches in 2022 was also a record.
   Below is a list of Creighton's record in five-set matches on a yearly basis:
Year   Set 5 W-L   Total W-L
1994Â Â Â 0-2Â Â Â 5-20
1995Â Â Â 0-2Â Â Â 11-19
1996Â Â Â 2-6Â Â Â 9-19
1997Â Â Â 3-5Â Â Â 15-13
1998Â Â Â 2-3Â Â Â 7-18
1999Â Â Â 3-3Â Â Â 13-15
2000Â Â Â 3-3Â Â Â 16-12
2001Â Â Â 1-1Â Â Â 14-13
2002Â Â Â 1-3Â Â Â 3-23
2003Â Â Â 5-1Â Â Â 12-18
2004Â Â Â 4-0Â Â Â 18-11
2005Â Â Â 3-1Â Â Â 16-14
2006Â Â Â 4-2Â Â Â 21-10
2007Â Â Â 2-0Â Â Â 21-10
2008Â Â Â 2-3Â Â Â 18-9
2009Â Â Â 1-4Â Â Â 14-17
2010Â Â Â 3-3Â Â Â 21-12
2011Â Â Â 5-2Â Â Â 17-14
2012Â Â Â 4-1Â Â Â 29-4
2013Â Â Â 3-2Â Â Â 23-9
2014Â Â Â 3-2Â Â Â 25-9
2015Â Â Â 5-2Â Â Â 27-9
2016Â Â Â 4-3Â Â Â 29-7
2017Â Â Â 4-1Â Â Â 26-7
2018Â Â Â 3-2Â Â Â 29-5
2019Â Â Â 2-1Â Â Â 25-6
2020Â Â Â 4-2Â Â Â 12-4
2021Â Â Â 1-1Â Â Â 31-4
2022Â Â Â 6-3Â Â Â 27-5
2023Â Â Â 2-3Â Â Â 29-5
2024Â Â Â 0-0Â Â Â 3-0
Total   85-67   566-341
Champions Among Champions
Since the start of the 2012 season, Creighton, Texas and Western Kentucky are the nation's only schools to have won 11 conference regular-season titles. All but three of Creighton's 11 crowns were outright titles, whereas Texas shared one title and WKU shared five.
   Creighton has also won 10 conference tournament titles since 2012, the most in the nation.
Most Conference Titles 2012-2023
Regular-Season   League Tournament
11 (3 shared) Creighton   10 Creighton
11 (1) Texas   9 Dayton
11 (5) Western Kentucky   9 Western Kentucky
10 (1) Fairfield   8 Fairfield
8 (8) Florida A&MÂ Â Â 7 LIU
8 (4) Yale
8 (2) BYUÂ Â Â
8 (1) Colorado State  Â
BIG EAST Preseason Poll
Creighton Volleyball was the unanimous pick to win the BIG EAST in a preseason poll of league coaches.
   Creighton earned 10 first place votes to earn the maximum 100 points. Marquette earned Creighton's first place vote (coaches can't vote for their own teams) as well as nine other second-place votes to finish second in the poll with 91 points.
   St. John's (80) was picked third, just ahead of DePaul (74) and Butler (58). Rounding out the bottom half of the poll were Xavier (49), Seton Hall (40), Villanova (39), Connecticut (33), Georgetown (27) and Providence (14).
   Creighton also had three women among the 12 members on the BIG EAST's preseason all-conference team in Ava Martin as well as unanimous selections Kendra Wait and Norah Sis. Sis was also tabbed the BIG EAST's Preseason Player of the Year for the third straight fall.
   Creighton has finished in the spot predicted of it or better in the preseason poll in 19 of 21 years under Kirsten Bernthal Booth, including 10 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
2020Â Â Â 1st (MW)Â Â Â 1st (MW)Â Â Â - -
2021   1st   T-1st   - -
2022   1st   T-1st   - -
2023   2nd   T-1st   #1
2024   1st   ???   ???
Bouncing Back
The Creighton staff is quick to credit athletic performance coach Brad Schmidt for helping the team get stronger during the off-season and maintaining that strength during the season.
   Need evidence of that? Since Aug. 25, 2018, Creighton is 21-2 in the match following a five-setter.
Home Sweet Home
Creighton is in its 12th season as a member of the BIG EAST since joining the league in the summer of 2013.
   Since then, the Bluejays are 100-4 in home matches against BIG EAST teams (91-3 in the regular-season, 9-1 in the BIG EAST Tournament).
   Since November of 2014, Creighton is 84-1 inside D.J. Sokol Arena against BIG EAST teams, which includes a 76-1 league mark and a 8-0 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 the fall of 2020, Bluejay seniors Abbey Milner, Kendra Wait and Norah Sis are 28-0 in home matches against BIG EAST teams, and 84-8 in sets.
   Creighton has won 34 straight regular-season sets against BIG EAST opponents inside D.J. Sokol Arena, as well as 34 straight matches against BIG EAST opposition at home.
BIG EAST'S Best
Since the reconfigufration 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.
   Creighton owns 10 regular-season titles (3 shared) in that time, while Marquette owns four regular-season (3 shared) crowns.
   As it relates to BIG EAST Tournament titles, Creighton has won nine, Marquette one and St. John's one.
   Below is a look at the record of each BIG EAST team since league realignment in 2013:
BIG EAST VB Standings, 2013 - Sept. 3, 2024
            BIG EAST only   All    matches
Team (NCAA Bids)Â Â Â WÂ Â Â LÂ Â Â WÂ Â Â L
Creighton (11)Â Â Â 170Â Â Â 16Â Â Â 286Â Â Â 70
Marquette (10)Â Â Â 153Â Â Â 30Â Â Â 260Â Â Â 84
Xavier   108   76   169   155
Butler   98   88   171   156
St. John's (1)Â Â Â 94Â Â Â 92Â Â Â 201Â Â Â 148
Villanova (1)Â Â Â 91Â Â Â 95Â Â Â 171Â Â Â 151
Seton Hall (1)Â Â Â 80Â Â Â 105Â Â Â 155Â Â Â 172
DePaul   55   131   131   187
Georgetown   40   138   101   204
Connecticut#Â Â Â 30Â Â Â 32Â Â Â 56Â Â Â 54
Providence*Â Â Â 29Â Â Â 141Â Â Â 105Â Â Â 189
*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.
2-0 Better Than 0-2
Creighton is 393-11 (.973) all-time when leading a match 2-0, including a 336-5 mark (.985) under Kirsten Bernthal Booth. CU is 259-3 (.989) when up 2-0 dating to September of 2009, and 134-1 (.993) 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 94.9 percent of their matches from 2014-23.
   Conversely, the Jays are 17-206 (.076) all-time when trailing a match 0-2, and 15-107 (.123) under Booth. Those 17 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
10/07/22   at UConn   25-15, 25-12, 15-13   Booth
10/14/22   #16 Marquette   25-19, 25-16, 15-8   Booth
Set 1 Result A Strong Indicator
Creighton is 403-36 (.918) overall under Kirsten Bernthal Booth when it wins set one. In that same time span, CU is just 70-153 (.314) under Booth when it drops the first set.
   Per RichKern.com, Division I teams that lost the first set won just 20.3 percent of their matches from 2014-23.
   Since Aug. 29, 2010, Creighton has gone 152-5 in its last 154 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, on Sept. 3, 2022 to No. 16 Kentucky and on Dec. 2, 2022 to Auburn.
   Creighton has gone 135-6 in its last 141 matches at all sites when winning the first set, compared to a 13-19 record in that same span when dropping the opener.
   Creighton has gone 174-4 in its last 178 matches against unranked foes when winning the opening set.
Against NCAA Tournament Qualifiers
This year's team has nine matches scheduled against teams that made the 2023 NCAA Tournament with contests scheduled against Marquette (2x), Nebraska, Kansas, Purdue, Louisville, Northern Iowa, USC and Missouri.
   After going 3-35 against teams coming off NCAA Tournament bids prior to Kirsten Bernthal Booth's arrival, the Jays are 106-108 since, including a 1-0 record this year.
Year   W-L vs. Previous Season NCAA Teams
1994Â Â Â 0-4
1995Â Â Â 0-2
1996Â Â Â 0-2
1997Â Â Â 0-3
1998Â Â Â 0-5
1999Â Â Â 2-4
2000Â Â Â 0-4
2001Â Â Â 1-6
2002Â Â Â 0-5
2003Â Â Â 0-3
2004Â Â Â 2-2
2005Â Â Â 0-6
2006Â Â Â 4-6
2007Â Â Â 4-9
2008Â Â Â 6-8
2009Â Â Â 1-11
2010Â Â Â 4-7
2011Â Â Â 2-6
2012Â Â Â 8-3
2013Â Â Â 6-6
2014Â Â Â 4-5
2015Â Â Â 11-5
2016Â Â Â 10-7
2017Â Â Â 8-6
2018Â Â Â 8-5
2019Â Â Â 5-4
2020Â Â Â 3-1
2021Â Â Â 3-1
2022Â Â Â 5-4
2023Â Â Â 11-3
2024Â Â Â 1-0 so far
TOTALÂ Â Â 109-143
TOTAL Under Booth   106-108
Lucky 13
Kirsten Bernthal Booth is in some select company, as she has directed her team to 13 NCAA Tournaments. That's more than any other coach in Creighton history.
Name   Sport   NCAA's @CU
Kirsten Bernthal Booth   Volleyball   13
Bob Warming   Men's Soccer   11
Greg McDermott   Men's Basketball   9
Dana Altman   Men's Basketball   7
Brent Vigness   Softball   7
Jim Flanery   Women's Basketball   7
Elmar Bolowich   Men's Soccer   6
10 Straight BIG EAST Regular-Season Titles
Regular-season champions from 2014-23, Creighton is the first team in BIG EAST volleyball history to win 10 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 10 or more straight league titles, doubling the five in a row by the men's soccer program (1992-96) in the MVC.
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 473 victories on the Bluejay sideline to rank fifth in school history across all sports.
Coach, Sport   Victories
Brent Vigness, Softball   819
Ed Servais, Baseball   678*
Mary Higgins, Softball   564
Tom Lilly, Men's & Women's Tennis   542*#
Kirsten Bernthal Booth, Volleyball   473*
Jim Flanery, Women's Basketball   427*
Ed Hubbs, Men's & Women's Tennis   347
Dana Altman, Men's Basketball   327
*still active coaching at Creighton
#currently just the women's tennis coach
Against The BIG EAST
Since the BIG EAST was restructured in 2013, Creighton owns a record better than .750 against each of the other teams currently in the BIG EAST.
   The Bluejays own 189 wins against BIG EAST competition (including BIG EAST Championship play) since 2013, 30 more wins than Marquette for most in the league.
   CU still has not lost to three league foes (DePaul, Georgetown, Providence) since joining the BIG EAST, and Marquette (6), Villanova (3), Seton Hall (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   20-1   -   20-1
Connecticut   3-1   1-0   4-1
DePaul   22-0   2-0   24-0
Georgetown   20-0   -   20-0
Marquette   17-5   6-1   23-6
Providence   16-0   -   16-0
Seton Hall   17-3   2-0   19-3
St. John's   18-2   1-1   19-3
Villanova   17-3   3-0   20-3
Xavier   20-1   4-0   24-1
Total   170-16   19-2   189-18
Production Returns
Creighton returns 13-of-18 letterwinners to the court from last season, including four starters.
   From last year's team, only Kiana Schmitt, Ellie Bichelmeyer, Ann Marie Remmes, Ellie Bolton and Morgan Colangelo are not back.
   All told, of the seven categories listed below, Creighton returns 516.2 of a possible 700% back (73.7 percent).
   Below is a breakdown of the production that is back:
Stat   Returners   Departures
Assists   1,457 (93.3%)   105 (6.7%)
Aces   155 (87.1%)   23 (12.9%)
Digs   1486 (79.4%)   385 (20.6%)
Points   1434.0 (67.5%)   691.5 (32.5%)
Kills   1,134 (67.3%)   552 (32.7%)
Matches Started   135 (66.2%)   69 (33.8%)
Blocks   145.0 (55.4%)   116.5 (44.6%)
President Booth
Creighton coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth is the current President of the American Volleyball Coaches Association, having started her service on January 1, 2024.
   She is also part of the 17-member AVCA Board of Directors, which includes elected representatives, appointed voting members for Diversity Development and Legislation, and non-voting members for Education and Awards.
    She will finish out her term as Past President in 2026.
Players Mentioned
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/ VolleyballCreighton Volleyball vs. Nebraska Press Conference - 9/16/25
Monday, September 15
Creighton Volleyball Highlights vs. UNI - 9/14/25
Sunday, September 14
Creighton Volleyball Press Conference vs. UNI - 9/14/25
Sunday, September 14
#18 Creighton Volleyball Highlights vs. Rice - 9/13/25
Saturday, September 13
