Nobody is perfect. Everyone has their ups and downs. The Creighton volleyball team was rolling along in conference play last weekend as they headed out on their first MVC road trip. The Jays were hoping to start 5-0 in the league after matches in Carbondale and Evansville. But the Bluejays lost to Southern Illinois Friday night before salvaging a weekend split with a win against the Purple Aces. Creighton, 4-1 in Valley play, will host 5-0 Northern Iowa tonight and Bradley Saturday at D.J. Sokol Arena.
Head coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth thought her team rebounded well on Saturday against Evansville, dominating the Aces in four sets.
“We obviously were pretty disappointed on Friday. SIU is a great team and we knew that going in. I thought Saturday would be a good moment for us to see how we responded and I thought we played a great match on Saturday night. I started to make some changes in game three and it didn’t help us, we were up pretty big in game three too. Even dropping game three I thought we responded. We stepped up our game.”
Despite the bump in the road, Friday night’s match against UNI pits the top two teams in the conference. The Panthers have steamrolled through the conference over the past four seasons. In fact, they have not lost a conference game since the end of MVC play in 2008 against the Bluejays, going 59-0 over that stretch.
“I think Northern Iowa is not going to beat themselves. They are a fundamentally sound team. They just play very good volleyball. For us to beat them we cannot make any unforced errors. A lot of this is in control based on how we perform. Northern Iowa will play a great solid match. We just can’t beat ourselves because I know Northern Iowa won’t beat themselves.”
Senior Brooke Boggs also knows about the challenge put forth by UNI.
“They are always a tough team,” said Boggs. “First, their defense is always really, really good. They have so much parity; you have no clue where they are going to go to. They could have one player step up at any given point. That just makes a team really hard to defend when they have good offense and good defense.”
Booth will look to her veterans like Boggs and senior Megan Bober to help carry them through this match and beyond. Bober is the only Bluejay on the roster that experienced the Bluejays knocking off Northern Iowa, but she was redshirting at the time. She knows how tough it is to play against the Panthers, but also knows what the Bluejays can do.
“They are a really good team and so it is going to be a great match on both sides,” said Bober. “It would be nice to come out with a win and be on top [of the league standings]. I think overall our team camaraderie and great chemistry on the court makes it a really relaxing environment and we like playing for each other.”
The Bluejays are excited for the challenge of stopping the Panthers’ long streak of Valley wins.
“I think it is a game that a lot of teams in the conference look forward to this. They have had this streak for at least three years now and just to have the opportunity to play a team like them that is always just so much fun,” Boggs said.
Creighton is 3-40 against the Panthers all-time. But there could be a an opportunity Friday night, as Northern Iowa has struggled a bit to keep their streak going. Wichita State played the Panthers tough a couple weekends ago, and UNI also struggled at times in non-conference play. This is one of the first times since their streak has started that UNI has not been ranked.
No matter what happens on Friday night, the Bluejays will then need to focus for Saturday’s match against a team on the other end of the spectrum. The Braves are 0-5 heading into this weekend’s play, but the Bluejays need to be ready in order to knock them off. Each game is big whether it is Northern Iowa or Bradley.
“I don’t see a difference,” said Bernthal Booth. “We preach as a staff that each match has equal importance as far as wins and losses. Inevitably they know that it is a team that is really good and there is some excitement there. I would assume they are excited about the match, but the flip side is that Bradley’s match carries just as much weight as the one against Northern Iowa, so we need to get just as amped for Bradley as we would for Northern Iowa.”
A big crowd is expected this weekend with Creighton sports season ticket holders being sent free tickets to Friday’s match against the Panthers. Bernthal Booth appreciates the support for the volleyball program and is excited to see the environment that the fans can create.
“I hope we get a lot of fans. I think Sokol has become a pretty tough place to play in the Valley. I just love what our band, dance team, and the Blue Crew all do. Our fans are great and our student section is getting bigger. I think they can all play a key role in our success. I hope we have a big crowd, I hope they are loud and we put on a good show for them on Friday.”
Notes:
- Both matches this weekend will be on the radio in case you can’t make it to Sokol Arena. They can be heard on 1180 Zone2.
- You can also follow the live stats online or on your mobile device.
- Stop by Billy Blues before the match on Friday against Northern Iowa for a pregame Chili Feed. $5 for adults and $3 for children under 11 and Creighton students.
- The Bradley match on Saturday is a 5:00 p.m. start.
- Kelli Browning still leads the nation in blocks per set at 1.70.
- Melanie Jereb was named the MVC Freshman of the Week for her performance against South Dakota, Southern Illinois, and Evansville. She averaged 2.67 kills, 2.92 digs and a block per set while hitting .304 in the matches.