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Team Celebration
2
Cincinnati UC 6-3,0-0 Big 12
3
Winner Butler Butler 6-5,0-0 Big East
Cincinnati UC
6-3,0-0 Big 12
2
Final
3
Butler Butler
6-5,0-0 Big East
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 5 F
Cincinnati UC 19 21 32 25 14 (2)
Butler Butler 25 25 30 21 16 (3)

Game Recap: Women's Volleyball | | Ethan Polak

ButlerVB Survives Five-Set Thriller Against Cincinnati at the Dayton Beavercreek Invitational

DAYTON, OH. — The Butler volleyball team survived a five-set thriller against Cincinnati (25-19, 25-21, 30-32, 21-25, 16-14) during the final match of the Tru by Hilton Dayton Beavercreek Invitational. The Bulldogs put on an offensive clinic in their final non-conference match of the season finishing with a 6-5 record. Abby Maesch and Mariah Grunze were named to the All-Tournament team. 

Set 1: Butler 25-19
The Bulldogs dominated the Bearcats after taking an early 4-1 lead that they would never give up. Kills by Maesch and Elise Ward would help Butler extend the lead to 14-10, but the Bearcats would then bring the score back to 16-14. The Bulldogs then flipped the switch, widening the gap and then closing out the set on a 4-0 run. Cora Taylor padded the stat sheet with a set-high 13 assists, seven digs, and two blocks. 

Set 2: Butler 25-21
Butler picked up where they left off after consecutive kills by Grunze gave Butler a 5-3 lead. Kills from Ward and Grace Boggess then helped the Bulldogs continue to lengthen their lead to 13-9. The Bearcats would fight back within two points before Butler would use kills from Ward to go 4-0 spurt to make the score 19-13. The Bulldogs would ride kills from Maesch to finish the second set 25-21. Grunze led the team with five kills while Taylor added 15 assists in the set.

Set 3: Cincinnati 32-30
The third set was a different story as the Bearcats would jump out to a 5-3 lead. Butler quickly responded by tying the score back up at 6-6 and the two teams would remain within a point until kills by Grunze helped the Bulldogs take a 21-19 lead. Cincinnati responded with a 3-0 run, but a Boggess block gave Butler a 25-24 lead. Both teams would then enter a deadlock at set point for 13 points until the Bearcats would eventually sneak away with the win. Ward tallied a team-high six kills and a serving ace in the set. 

Set 4: Cincinnati 25-21
The momentum shifted back towards Butler to begin the fourth frame after kills from Maesch and Ward gave them an early 4-1 lead. The Bearcats slowly crept back into the set to tie the score at 13-13 and eventually take the lead at 19-18. Cincinnati then pulled away, closing out the set 25-21. Ward played some outstanding defense during the set collecting a team-high seven digs to go with her three kills.

Set 5: Butler 16-14
The fifth frame started slow as no team took a significant lead until a serving ace by Ward gave Butler a 5-3 lead. Cincinnati then used a 4-0 spurt to flip the score taking a 10-8 lead. Kills by Maesch helped the Bulldogs fight back to regain the lead at 13-12. Butler then overpowered the Bearcats in the final points capped off by an incredible kill from Boggess to secure the victory for the Bulldogs. Maesch hit for a .714 with a set-high five kills and no errors during the set. 

Stat of the Match
Butler was firing on all cylinders, reaching 67 kills as a team in a match for the first time since the 2020-2021 season. Three Bulldogs finished with 15 or more kills in the match, including Abby Maesch (21), Elise Ward (17), and Mariah Grunze (15). 

Inside the Box Score
  • Taylor set new career-highs with 56 assists and six blocks while adding a season-best 18 digs to earn her third double-double this season. 
  • Ward raked in 17 kills and 14 digs in the match to secure her second career double-double
  • Maesch tied her career-high with 21 kills along with four blocks
  • Kinley tallied a team-high 19 digs and two assists
  • Grunze amassed 15 kills and eight digs
  • Boggess set a new career-best with nine blocks to go with eight kills in the match
Up Next 
The Bulldogs will return home for the BIG EAST conference opener inside Hinkle Fieldhouse against Xavier beginning at 6 p.m.
 
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