Midterms are here. Not just tests for Creighton students, but midterms for the volleyball conference season. The Bluejays won thrilling 5-set matches against Missouri State and against Wichita State last weekend to improve their conference record to 7-1, and they are in sole possession of second place in the Valley at the halfway mark of the MVC conference slate.
Allie Oelke joined the 1,000/1,000 club
It was also a big weekend for individual players. Allie Oelke established herself in the Creighton record books by joining the 1,000 digs/1,000 kills club. It is an exclusive membership, with only former All-Valley performer Melissa Walsh recording more than 1,000 digs and kills in her career. Oelke said she doesn’t feel any different since achieving the personal milestone. “It doesn’t feel any different, but definitely feels good to have accomplished that. I’m just really fortunate to play so much over these last four years and I feel really lucky.”
Oelke is hardly guiding the Bluejays by herself. One key to Creighton’s success so far this season is the team’s chemistry and its defense. One example is the ongoing position battle between Julianne Mandolfo and Nayka Benitez. These two liberos have made their mark in various positions on the court; Mandolfo has earned MVC Freshman of the Week honors a few times, while Benitez has played superb at the defensive specialist position. These different lines of defense, coupled with Oelke’s digging skills, solidify that aspect of the Bluejays’ efforts.
“I think over the years I’ve been here, we have gotten better on defense,” Oelke said. “The first year we started working on blocking, and that really improved last year with Jessica Houts and Laurel [Sanford]. I think this year we have finally gotten more defense-centered and that has helped our overall game. It has helped us become a better team.”
Head Coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth echoes those sentiments.
“Last year we were so good blocking-wise, but I thought our backcourt defense was suspect and this year I feel like we’ve got front row and back row defense. I think we are a pretty good serving team. When you play good defense and serve well, a lot of times that will lead to victory.”
The Bluejays have won 9 of their last 10 matches and boast an undefeated 6-0 record in true road games this season, the best mark in the nation. But even though the Bluejays have separated themselves for the time being from a majority of the Valley, there is no time to sit back and bask in the success.
“I thought we played well for the most part over the weekend. I think we showed a great amount of toughness,” Booth said. “But, you can’t spend too much time focusing on a couple of wins. You have to move forward. Drake is really good this year and they are always really good against us on their home court.”
You also can’t spend too much time focusing on future opponents. So while the Bluejays may be excited for the chance to meet Northern Iowa again in about a week, they can’t look past the Bulldogs, whom they play in Des Moines Saturday. The coaching staff isn’t taking Drake lightly, and they hope their team isn’t either.
“I haven’t spent any time thinking about anything other than Drake right now,” Booth said. “Hopefully we are doing that by leading by example as far as keeping it as one match at a time. You beat one team at the top of the league and one at the bottom of the league and they all count the same. To do what we want to do this year, you can’t not show up one night or you are going to lose.”
Drake comes into Saturday’s match sitting at 17-5 for the season. But 14 of those wins came in non-conference play, where the Bulldogs went a perfect 14-0. Since the start of Valley play, Drake has struggled to a 3-5 mark. But Booth has reason to be worried about the Bulldogs. Although her teams are 13-2 all-time against Drake, Booth’s Bluejays are 2-2 in the last four meetings at the Knapp Center. Fortunately for Booth and her staff, the players have the message loud and clear, at least according to Oelke.
“In the past, Drake is like a whole different team when it is us coming to their place. It is really a big rival, so we have to focus on this weekend first because you never know what is going to happen and what team is going to show up and play.”
After every weekend of the volleyball season having at least two matches, the single match with Drake comes at a good time for the Bluejays. It is the halfway point of conference season and the players are coming off a week of midterm papers. This light weekend comes at a great time for Booth, who cares for the academic welfare of her student-athletes.
“We gave the team Monday off and it wasn’t based on the fact that there was only one match this weekend, but it was based on the fact that they needed time to study. We have kids leaving early for tests, we have kids leaving early today for projects. When you get kids that are academically focused, they picked Creighton because of academics, so it is a good week to have one match.”
Win or lose this weekend, the Bluejays hit the road next weekend for a critical trip to Bradley and conference leader UNI. And in the back of their minds, the Jays have to be thinking about what wins in their next three matches might mean come NCAA Tournament time. The Valley’s RPI is sixth-highest among leagues nationwide, and seven schools are within the top 70 spots in the RPI rankings. And with the Valley Tournament taking place in the Panthers’ home venue in November, improving their place in the pecking order is extremely important for the Bluejays. In a year when multiple Valley volleyball programs may advance to the NCAA Tournament, it is crucial for Creighton to continue their hot streak away from Sokol Arena.
If you cannot make the trip to Des Moines on Saturday night, you can catch the game on KOIL 1180 AM or through the live internet stream. You can also follow by clicking on the active stat link at game time.
