Butler prepares for a tough weekend against some of the country's top programs. The Bulldogs will host No. 6 Creighton on Friday before heading north to Marquette on Sunday.

Bulldog Bits
-Creighton leads BU all-time with a record of 20-1 with the Bulldogs' lone win coming during the first time the teams faced off in Oct. 2013 
-Marquette holds a 20-3 all-time record over Butler with the last BU win coming in a five-set upset victory in Mar. 2021
-BU is 1-13 in their last 14 matches against opponents ranked in the top 25
-Butler ranks third as a team with an average of 2.24 blocks per set
-Lauren Evans is tied for fourth in the conference with an average of 0.39 serving aces per match while totaling 18 aces this season
-Grace Boggess surpassed the 50 total block mark after collecting seven blocks this weekend to reach 54 blocks on the season
-Boggess ranks sixth in the conference this season with an average of 1.13 blocks per set
-Jaeda Lockhart hit for a combined .407 with 13 kills to just two errors last weekend
-Cora Taylor earned her team-high fifth double-double with 25 assists and 11 digs against Xavier
-Taylor currently ranks fifth in the BIG EAST with an average of 9.17 assists per set in conference matches this season
-Elise Ward is three kills away from 500 career kills
-Abby Maesch needs just eight more digs to reach 200 career digs in a Bulldog uniform

SCOUTING CREIGHTON
The Blue Jays enter the match as the No. 6 team in the country with an impressive 3-0 conference record and an overall record of 12-2. Creighton flew out the gates to begin the season only losing one set in the first five matches. Their first loss then came at No. 5 Nebraska where the Blue Jays were able to force the match to five sets. Creighton swept the next two matches before facing No. 4 Louisville falling once again in five sets. They have since gone back to dominating each match winning the last five matches including wins over No. 6 Purdue and No. 10 Kansas.

The Bulldogs will have to brace for a battle as the Blue Jays currently lead the BIG EAST in four different categories (hitting %, opp hitting %, kills, and assists). The BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year, Norah Sis, has lived up to the hype hitting for 182 kills (3.79 per set) this season. 

SCOUTING MARQUETTE
The Golden Eagles 2024 campaign has been filled with highs and lows. They currently have an overall record of 6-6 and a 2-1 conference record. While they have lost six matches, five of the six matches have come against teams ranked in the Top 25 including No. 1 Pittsburgh, No. 5 Stanford, and No. 8 Wisconsin. Their lone win against a top-ranked team came against No. 24 Dayton in a 3-1 victory. Their last match came against No. 6 Creighton at home on Tuesday where they lost four sets.

Marquette brings the experience against top-ranked programs to Hinkle led by Yadhira Anchante, who holds team-highs in assists and digs. Butler will also need to keep an eye on outside hitter Aubrey Hamilton who leads the team with 126 kills (3.00 per set) this season.

BULLDOGS VS RANKED OPPONENTS
Butler has played in 14 matches against four different ranked opponents since the 2020-21 season, including UCLA, Arizona State, Creighton and Marquette. They hold a record of 1-13 while only claiming seven out of the total 42 sets.

The lone win against a top-ranked opponent came on Mar. 5, 2021 against No. 24 Marquette where the Bulldogs had a thrilling comeback five-set victory.

YOUNG PUPS STEPPING UP
Alaleh Tolliver has thrived after receiving reps at the outside hitter position. In the last two matches, Tolliver has led the team with 19 kills while adding 16 digs. On the defensive side, Lauren Evans has earned more reps at the libero position where she added 19 digs and five assists.

Tolliver currently ranks 10th in the BIG EAST with an average of 3.17 kills per set while Evans is ninth with an average of 3.17 digs per set in conference matches this season.

JAEDA'S JAM
Jaeda Lockhart had a breakout weekend to begin BIG EAST conference play hitting for a combined .407 with 13 kills to just two errors. This included a stat line of five kills and no errors against DePaul on Friday night.

Lockhart tied her career-high for kills with eight against Xavier while hitting for .375 on 16 attacks.

TAYLOR MOVING UP
Cora Taylor collected her team-high fifth double-double of the season last Saturday against Xavier with a line of 25 assists and 11 digs. She would finish the weekend with a combined 55 assists to bring her total to 443 assists this season.

Taylor currently sits fifth in the BIG EAST with an average of 9.17 assists per set in conference matches this season. 

BOGGESS HOT STREAK
Grace Boggess has earned at least one block in every match this season. Her streak has reached 13 matches where she leads the team with 54 total blocks including nine solo blocks.

Boggess ranks sixth in the conference with an average of 1.13 blocks per set.

UPCOMING CAREER MILESTONES
Lauren Evans needs just two serving aces to reach 20 total serving aces on the season. She is also currently on pace to pass the season-high from last season set by Elise Ward with 28 serving aces.

Destiny Cherry is also just six total blocks away from 200 career blocks while Abby Maesch needs just eight digs to reach 200 career digs in a Bulldog uniform.

WATCH: Bulldog fans can purchase tickets to Friday's match on the Butler Athletics website or tune into the live streams on FloSports on Friday and Saturday.

UP NEXT: Butler will return to Hinkle to play a UConn team that held the best record in the non-conference schedule before then facing off against Providence.

The Bulldogs will head home to host two matches at home beginning on Friday, Oct. 11 at 7 PM  ET  against UConn followed by a match on Sunday, Oct. 13 at 1 PM ET against Providence.