MATCH NOTES
 
INDIANAPOLIS – Butler's final two home matches of the regular season will be played this weekend against #18 Marquette and DePaul. Friday night's tilt vs. the nationally-ranked Golden Eagles will stream on BEDN. Sunday's 2 PM match vs. DePaul will be Senior Day for Bri Lilly, Taylor Takeda and Maddie Freiwald.
 
Bulldog Bits                                                                                                                       
- Butler needs one more win to reach 800 all-time (1975-2018, 44 Years)
- Butler's match vs. #18 Marquette is their first contest on BEDN this year
- Bri Lilly has more total blocks (143) than the entire DePaul team (94)
- Bri Lilly (1.54) and Melody Davidson (1.30) rank 1-2 the BIG EAST in blocks per set
- Butler leads the BIG EAST in blocks per set (3.03) and total blocks (281.5)
- BU ranks third in the NCAA in blocks per set and fifth in total blocks
- Lilly earned her 3rd double-double of the year at Xavier with 10 kills and 11 blocks
- Lilly has reached a double figure block total in four matches this season
- Elizabeth LaBue has now recorded 20+ digs in four matches this year
- Since joining the BIG EAST, Butler has never lost to DePaul at Hinkle Fieldhouse
 
BIG EAST Standings
1. Creighton 14-0, 22-4
2. Marquette 12-2, 22-5
3. St. John's 10-5, 21-9
4. Villanova 7-7, 14-12
5. Georgetown 7-7, 14-12
6. Xavier 7-7, 9-16
7. Butler 5-9, 8-18
8. Seton Hall 4-11, 9-19
9. DePaul 3-11, 5-20
10. Providence 2-12, 8-17
 
Scouting #18 Marquette                                                                                              
The Golden Eagles (22-5, 12-2) moved back up to their highest ranking in the AVCA Coaches Poll after picking up wins on the road over Villanova and Georgetown. Hope Werch and Martha Konovodoff received BIG EAST volleyball honors this week. Werch averaged 4.71 points, 3.43 kills and 1.86 digs per set while hitting .347 to earn Offensive Player of the Week accolades. Konovodoff averaged 5.43 digs per set to become the BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week. She had a match-high 20 digs and four aces in a win over Villanova. She followed that with 18 digs against the Hoyas. Allie Barber remains the top threat on the Marquette roster. She leads the team with 406 kills, averaging 4.56 kills per set. As a team, Marquette leads the BIG EAST in hitting percentage (.281), assists (13.69), kills (14.71), and service aces (1.88).
 
Scouting DePaul                                                                                                              
The Blue Demons (5-20, 3-11) have not found the win column since Oct. 10 when they knocked off Xavier 3-1. Additional conference wins came against Georgetown and Butler. Emma Price is the team leader in kills with 220 (2.50) and ranks second on the team in blocks (29). The setter position is split between Natalie Hayward and Katie Dolan. Dolan is a dual threat that also leads the team in service aces with 17. DePaul's dig leader is Isabelle Banez (366) and the best blocker at the net is Donna Brown (35).
 
All-Time Series                                                                                               
Marquette leads the all-time series against Butler 12-8. Butler's last win over the Golden Eagles came a year ago on Oct. 21. They won 3-2 in Milwaukee, but would fall to Marquette in the BIG EAST Tournament semi-finals 3-1. Butler leads the all-time series over DePaul 17-9. The Blue Demons posted a 3-2 win over BU earlier this year, marking their first win over the Bulldogs since 2016.
 
Butler at Marquette Recap (Oct. 10)                                                      
Marquette swept Butler earlier this season 25-12, 25-13, 25-22. Allie Barber led all players with 17 kills and the Golden Eagles would hit .398 as a team to notch their 15th win of the year. Brooke Gregory and Bri Lilly would share the team lead in kills with eight each. The BU setter was Maddie Freiwald. She ended the match with 23 assists, four digs and one kill.
 
Butler at DePaul Recap (Oct. 3)                                                                
The Blue Demons came from behind to beat Butler in the first meeting 3-2 (25-22, 12-25, 23-25, 25-21, 15-11). Emma Price led DePaul to victory with 17 kills on 37 attempts (.297). Claire Anderson also contributed with a double-double, recording 15 kills and 12 digs. Butler was led by Brooke Gregory who led the team with 15 kills. Bri Lilly was in the box score with 12 kills and three blocks.
 
All-Time Best Blocker                                                                                    
Bri Lilly has recorded more block assists than any other player in Butler volleyball history. Lilly broke the school record against Villanova on Oct. 6 when she recorded four block assists against the Wildcats. That effort moved her career total to 415, one more than the previous record holder Krystal Hendrix ('03-'06). Lilly now has 454 block assists in her Butler career. She has reached 100 total blocks during all four of her seasons at BU.
 
Lilly Reaches 500 career blocks                                                                 
Bri Lilly became just the fourth player in program history to reach 500 career blocks. The senior middle blocker recorded six blocks in the win over Seton Hall to reach the milestone. She now ranks fourth all-time at Butler with 511 total blocks. Third-place belongs to Chris Essington ('83-86) with 517 blocks and second place is held by Beth Christiansen ('87-'90) who accumulated 519 career blocks.
 
Action at the Net                                                                                                            
Only three teams have ended a match with more total blocks than Butler this season (Pittsburgh, Auburn, Creighton). Butler's highest block total this season came at St. John's (23).
 
Up Next                                                                                                                              
The final road trip of the 2018 season will feature Butler playing at Villanova and Georgetown. The match against the Wildcats will take place on Friday, Nov. 16 at 7 PM. Saturday's tilt at Georgetown will feature a 5 PM start.