#BIGEASTvb Minute – “Feeling 22” Creighton Makes It 22 In A Row With NCAA Second Round Upset Over No. 4 Kansas
Box Score
LAWRENCE, Kansas – Creighton volleyball is making their second NCAA Volleyball Regional appearance in as many years as the No. 21 Bluejays upset No. 4 Kansas on their home court, 3-2. The win is the 22nd in a row for the Bluejays, as Creighton advanced to 28-6. It was the first home loss of the season for Kansas.
Creighton will play 12th-seeded Michigan at a location to be determined in the Round of 16 on Friday, Dec. 9.
Kansas took the first set, 25-21, but Creighton came back to tie it with a second set win, 25-20. The spirited Bluejays won set three, 25-17. Kansas never trailed in the fourth set and forced a deciding fifth set with a 25-16 fourth-frame win. The Bluejays hit a match-low .111 as no individual player had more than two kills.
Creighton opened the serving in the final set and took a 2-0 lead behind an attack error and a kill by Marysa Wilkinson. Kansas quickly erased the deficit with Wait once again behind the service line as the Jayhawks took a 3-2 edge.
The back-and-forth battle continued throughout the match-clincher, which featured 16 ties and six lead changes.
Jaali Winters' 21st kill of the match gave Creighton an 8-7 advantage as the teams switched sides.
The Bluejays' took a 14-12 lead, the first two-point cushion since 2-0, following a kill from Wilkinson and a Kansas attack error. Kansas saved match-point and tied it at 14 with the benefit of a ball-handling error. It was one of six match points the Jayhawks saved before Megan Ballenger ended the match with a kill just over the top of the net to give Creighton a 20-18 victory.
Winters led Creighton with 23 kills, while Wilkinson (15) and Taryn Kloth (12) also reached double-figures. Brittany Witt had 21 digs and Lydia Dimke had a double-double with 56 assists and 17 digs. CU had 66 kills, seven aces, four blocks and 79 digs while hitting .250.
Kelsie Payne had 26 kills on .375 hitting to lead Kansas, with Madison Rigdon and Jada Burse each adding 12 kills. Ainise Havili had 53 assists and 18 digs and Wait tallied 27 digs. CU had 64 kills, seven aces, 74 digs and 13 blocks on .244 hitting overall. The Jayhawks had been 22-0 this year when winning the first set, and 8-0 in the fifth set this fall.
For a full recap and quotes from Creighton’s head coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth and players please
click here. Booth and her staff were named BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year.