Indianapolis – The Butler women's volleyball team defeated Eastern Kentucky in three sets (25-21, 25-19, 25-17) behind a record-setting night by Melody Davidson. The middle blocker had a Butler program record-tying 24 kills in a three-set match.

Set 1: Butler 25-21
The Bulldogs got out to an early 8-3 lead thanks to a 5-0 run that included a kill from Davidson. Eastern Kentucky would make a steady comeback to tie the set at 14, but a quality Butler stretch highlighted by two Davidson kills and a kill and a block by Grace Boggess gave the Bulldogs a 21-16 lead, and they would cruise from there. Davidson (six kills), Mariah Grunze (four) and Brittany Robinson (four) led the Butler offense in the set.

Set 2: Butler 25-19
Davidson collected four of the first five Butler kills, but the Colonels led 13-9 midway through the set then 16-11 after three consecutive Molly Michalak kills. The Bulldogs responded with long runs on the serves of Jillian Ziemba and then Caroline Cleveland, including one ace from each, for a 23-17 Butler lead. Later kills from Davidson and Grunze clinched the set for the Bulldogs. Davidson produced 10 kills in the set as part of her record-setting night.

Set 3: Butler 25-17
Four kills by Davidson and aces from Boggess and Ziemba highlighted an early hot stretch for the Bulldogs to put them up 14-4. Later back-to-back kills by Davidson kept the double-digit lead going at 19-9, and the Bulldogs would cruise from there. Davidson accounted for five straight points on kills for Butler late in the set, ending the frame with eight total kills.

Stat of the Match:
Davidson tied a 30-year old record for Butler with 24 kills in a three-set match. The other Bulldog to reach that many was Jessica Taylor on Sept. 6, 1991 against Green Bay.

Inside the Box Score:
-Davidson added six block assists in addition to the 24 kills for a total of 27 points which is also a season-high.
-Grunze filled the stat sheet with eight kills, nine digs and five total blocks.
-Robinson recorded seven kills, two digs and a block.
-Ziemba tallied a season-high two aces to go along with four digs and an assist.
-The Bulldogs outhit the Colonels by almost 200 points (.298 to .099).

Up Next:
Butler will play three matches in two days this weekend at Hinkle Fieldhouse as the host of the Bulldog Brawl. The scheduled contests include Friday at 10 a.m. against Milwaukee and at 6 p.m. vs. UCLA. Butler will host Western Michigan Saturday at 6 p.m. to conclude the tournament.