INDIANAPOLIS – The Butler volleyball team swept Oakland 3-0 (26-24, 25-20, 25-19) thanks to a balanced offensive attack on Friday night at Hinkle Fieldhouse. The win was the second of the day for the Bulldogs (2-0) at the season-opening Top Dawg Challenge.
Set 1: Butler 26-24
Oakland got out to early 6-1 and 8-3 leads, but a 3-0 Butler run highlighted by a
Rylie Tam kill cut the advantage to 8-6. The Golden Grizzlies led by as many as seven at 20-13 and 22-15, but the Bulldogs responded with a 7-0 spurt on
Brooklyne Darby's serve which included an ace from Darby and kills from
Megan Sheridan and Tam. Butler would take 4 of the last 6 points, clinching the set on
Maddie Renn's kill.
Jaymeson Kinley had seven digs in the set, while four Bulldogs had at least three kills in the first frame: Tam (four), Sheridan,
Mariah Grunze and
Marisa Guisti.
Set 2: Butler 25-20
Kills from Tam and
Autumn Flowers helped the Bulldogs get out to a 5-0 lead early. Oakland would claw back to eventually take the lead at 13-12, but Butler responded with a 6-0 spurt, including kills by Tam, Grunze and
Jenna Splitt. A later 3-0 spurt capped by an ace from Splitt put the Bulldogs up 24-18, and they would clinch the set on a Sheridan kill. Kinley posted 12 digs, while Flowers put down five kills in the second frame to lead Butler.
Set 3: Butler 25-19
Butler used Guisti and Sheridan kills to lead 8-6 early after a 3-0 run, then another three-point spurt including back-to-back aces from Renn put the Bulldogs up 11-7. Butler steadily expanded the lead, culminating with another 3-0 run to clinch the set on a Grunze kill. The Bulldogs had four aces in the final frame (Renn with three, Kinley with one).
Stat of the Match
The Bulldogs had five players with at least seven kills: Grunze (nine), Flowers (eight), Sheridan (eight), Tam (eight) and Guisti (seven).
Inside the Box Score
- Kinley posted 22 digs, three assists and an ace.
- Grunze tallied 10 points on nine kills and two block assists while adding 10 digs and two assists.
- Splitt stuffed the stat sheet with 31 assists, eight digs, three kills, three blocks and an ace.
- Renn went for seven digs, four aces and two assists.
- Tam totaled eight kills and seven digs.
Up Next
The Bulldogs will take on Akron on Saturday night at 6 p.m. at Hinkle Fieldhouse in the finale of the Top Dawg Challenge.
