INDIANAPOLIS — The Bulldogs will prepare to host their final two home matches of the season inside Hinkle Fieldhouse this weekend. The team will celebrate Alumni Night on Saturday, Nov. 16 against Villanova and Senior Night against St. John's on Sunday, Nov. 17.

Bulldog Bits

• Butler currently ranks eighth in the BIG EAST with a conference record of 4-10 and an overall record 6-20
• The Bulldogs lost both matches last weekend against Marquette and No. 5 Creighton
• BU still ranks sixth in service aces and blocks per set in the BIG EAST
• Cora Taylor sits sixth in the conference with an average of 8.88 assists per set 
• Taylor needs just six digs to reach 700 career digs
• Lauren Evans moved up to seventh in the BIG EAST with an average of .34 service aces per set
• Evans is one of three Bulldogs (Taylor and Elise Ward) who have already collected 20 or more service aces this season.
• Elise Ward earned her 400th career dig last weekend but still remains just one service ace away from 50 career aces. 
• Alaleh Tolliver is also just two kills from 150 kills and 150 digs this season
• Abby Maesch is still just three kills away from 500 kills in a Bulldog uniform.
• Butler leads Villanova all-time with a record of 11-10. However, the Bulldogs have lost two of the last eight matches against the Wildcats
• BU holds a similar all-time record against St. John's at 11-10. The Red Storm though have won the last five matches against the Bulldogs.

SCOUTING VILLANOVA
The Wildcats sit sixth in the BIG EAST standings with a conference record of 7-7 and 14-11 overall. They started off the season slow with a 7-4 non-conference schedule that included wins over Princeton and Temple. Once they got into BIG EAST play, Villanova flew out the gates winning the first four matches. However, since then they have struggled to win three of the last 10 matches. Villanova has struggled on defense this season ranking 10th in the conference with 13.36 digs per set. 

Abby Harrell is the top target on offense for the Wildcats leading the team in kills and ranks 10th in the BIG EAST with 3.18 kills per set. They also have a solid core of middle blockers that includes Ozzie Ozonoh and Campbell McKinnon who have combined for 160 total blocks this season.

SCOUTING ST. JOHN'S
After the Johnnies had a breakout season last year, they have picked up where they left off last season sitting in fifth with an overall record of 18-10 and 7-7 in conference. They have wins over Duke and San Diego as well as losses to No. 3 Penn St. and No. 16 Arizona St. BIG EAST play has been a different story as they started 2-4. They have since bounced back, beating DePaul and Xavier last weekend.

Erin Jones has been dominant on offense, collecting nearly 350 kills this season and ranking fourth in the conference with 3.60 kills per set. As a team, the Red Storm also sit behind the Bulldogs with an average of digs at 13.37 per set. 

PREVIOUS MATCHUP - OCT. 25 VS ST. JOHN'S
St. John's shut down the Bulldog offense in Queens, N.Y. sweeping them in three sets. They held Butler to just 22 total kills in the match. Destiny Cherry and Alaleh Tolliver tied for a team-high five kills in the match with Tolliver also adding five digs.

Cora Taylor led the team with 19 assists and six digs while Elise Ward tied for the match-high two service aces. 

PREVIOUS MATCHUP - OCT. 26 VS VILLANOVA
The Bulldogs were also swept by the Wildcats in their last matchup earlier this season. Butler had a better day on defense outplaying in digs Villanova 42 to 37. Jersey Loyer and Alaleh Tolliver each collected eight digs while Elise with just behind with seven.

Cora Taylor had a unique day leading the team in assists with 26 as well as total blocks with five. 

FRESHMAN MAKING WAVES
The young pups on the team have continued to blossom this season. Most recently, Zoe McDonald has earned starts in the last four matches as a middle blocker and has continued to improve in each match. She totaled 10 kills and 11 blocks during this stretch helping solidify the Bulldogs' defense.

McDonald amassed five kills and seven blocks in the tough matchups against the top two teams in the conference including Marquette and No. 5 Creighton.

DAWGS ON THE RANKINGS
The Bulldogs currently rank sixth in service aces and blocks in the BIG EAST this season. Grace Boggess is the highest-ranked Bulldog in the BIG EAST, ranking sixth with an average of 1.00 blocks per set. Cora Taylor also sits sixth in the conference with an average of 8.88 assists per set while Abby Maesch's average of 3.38 now ranks seventh.

Lauren Evans currently ranks seventh in the BIG EAST with an average of .34 service aces per set. She is one of three Bulldogs who have also already collected 20 or more service aces this season.

UPCOMING CAREER MILESTONES
Elise Ward earned her 400th career dig last weekend but still remains just one service ace away from 50 career aces. Alaleh Tolliver is also just two kills from 150 kills this season while Abby Maesch is still just three kills away from 500 kills in a Bulldog uniform.

Cora Taylor needs just six digs to reach 700 career digs. She is also coming up on reaching 3,000 career assists only needing 88 more.

WATCH: Bulldog fans can tune into the live streams on YouTube for Saturday's match and FloSports for Sunday's match. Both links to the streams can be found on the Butler Athletics website.

UP NEXT: Butler will hit the road for the final matches of the season facing off against Georgetown and Seton Hall.

The Bulldogs will first head to Washington D.C. to play Georgetown on Friday, Nov. 22 before then closing out the season in New Jersey against Seton Hall on Saturday, Nov. 23.

The Bulldogs will host the Wildcats on Saturday, Nov. 16 beginning at 2:30 PM before then playing their final home match of the season against the Red Storm on Sunday, Nov. 17 at 1 PM.