INDIANAPOLIS — The Bulldogs prepare for a tough week against the top two teams in the BIG EAST Conference. Butler will host Marquette on Wednesday night before then heading west to Omaha, Neb. to face No. 5 ranked Creighton.

Bulldog Bits

• Butler currently ranks eighth in the BIG EAST with a conference record of 4-8 and an overall record of 6-18
• Butler finished with a 1-1 record last weekend on the road after sweeping Providence on Friday but then falling in three sets to UConn on Saturday
• Alaleh Tolliver hit for a new career-high .520 with 13 kills and no hitting errors
• Tolliver added 13 digs in the same match to record her fourth career double-double
• Butler jumped to fourth as a team in the conference with an average of 2.03 blocks per set
• Grace Boggess is the highest-ranked Bulldog in the BIG EAST, ranking fourth with an average of 1.04 blocks per set
• Abby Maesch ranks seventh in the BIG EAST with an average of 3.38 kills per set
• Maesch is just three kills away from 500 kills in a Bulldog uniform
• Elise Ward is nine digs away from 400 career digs and one more service ace to earn her 50th career service ace
• Marquette leads the Bulldogs with a 21-3 all-time record
• Creighton enters the match as the fifth-ranked team in the country according to the AVCA Rankings
• BU has only beaten Creighton once holding a 21-1 all-time record, but the last time they took a set from them was in Omaha in 2021

SCOUTING MARQUETTE
The Golden Eagles are currently ranked second in the BIG EAST with an 11-1 conference record and are receiving votes in the latest AVCA poll. Marquette started the season slow with a 6-5 record, but four of those losses came against teams ranked programs including No. 1 Pittsburgh and No. 8 Wisconsin. Since the start of BIG EAST play they have turned their season around earning eight sweeps and only falling in one match to No. 6 Creighton. As a team, Marquette ranks 23rd with 13.80 kills per set and 26th with .262 in the country.

Senior middle blocker Carsen Murray will have to be on the Bulldogs' radar as she currently leads the conference with a hitting percentage of .386 this season. They will also have to keep the ball away from Yadhira Anchante as she currently leads the team in both assists and digs.

SCOUTING CREIGHTON
The Blue Jays lead the BIG EAST and have moved up to fifth in the latest AVCA rankings. Creighton has added another dominant season with an overall record of 21-2 and an undefeated conference record of 12-0. The team has wins over No. 6 Purdue and No. 10 Kansas while their only two losses have come at No. 5 Nebraska and at No. 4 Louisville. The Blue Jays are one of the top programs in the nation holding the second-best hitting percentage in the country at .315.

This will be the toughest test for the Bulldogs all season long as they will have the toughest blocking team in the country. Kiera Reinhardt and Elise Goetzinger hold the top two averages for blocks in the conference at 1.47 per set and 1.17 per set. Reinhardt's mark is the 10th best in the NCAA.

PREVIOUS MATCHUP - OCT. 4 VS CREIGHTON
Creighton shut down the Bulldogs in their first matchup at Hinkle Fieldhouse last month winning in three sets. Cora Taylor and Kaylee Finnegan each finished with double-digit assists after Taylor collected 15 and Finnegan earned 10.

Alaleh Tolliver also led the team with nine kills while hitting for .208 and adding four digs. 

PREVIOUS MATCHUP - OCT. 6 VS MARQUETTE
Marquette swept the Bulldogs in Milwaukee earlier this season. Butler struggled at the start but settled in as the match went on, finishing with fewer hitting errors than the Golden Eagles in the final set.

Abby Maesch had one of her best matches of the season hitting for .289 with a match-high 14 kills and five digs. Destiny Cherry also had a solid performance finishing with a .375 hitting percentage on four kills and two blocks.

TALK ABOUT TOLLIVER
Freshman Alaleh Tolliver had another dominant weekend after a solid performance against Providence last Friday. The Indianapolis native dominated the match hitting for a new career-high .520 with 13 kills and no hitting errors. She would add 13 digs to record her fourth career double-double while also adding two service aces and a block.

Tolliver recently earned the BIG EAST Freshman of the Week honors on Oct. 21 and will look to continue to add to her incredible season this week. 

DAWGS ON THE RANKINGS
Grace Boggess is the highest-ranked Bulldog in the BIG EAST, ranking fourth with an average of 1.04 blocks per set. Cora Taylor moved up to sixth in the conference with an average of 8.91 assists per set while Abby Maesch's average of 3.38 now ranks seventh.

Lauren Evans currently ranks 10th in the BIG EAST with an average of .32 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
Grace Boggess reached 400 career kills last weekend as well as earning her 250th career block. Cora Taylor needs just 16 digs to reach 700 career digs while Abby Maesch is three kills away from 500 kills in a Bulldog uniform.

Elise Ward is nine digs away from 400 career digs. She also just needs one more service ace to earn her 50th career service ace.

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 return to Hinkle Fieldhouse for the final home series of the season hosting Villanova on Nov. 16 before then celebrating Senior Night on Sunday against St. John's. 

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.