Indianapolis IN- After a win earlier in the day, Butler took down Purdue Fort Wayne in 5 Sets in their second match of the Big Dawg Kickoff. Butler is now 2-0 on the young season.  

Bulldog Bites 

• Alaleh Tolliver tallied 24 kills during the match. That is her new career high. 
• Elise Ward tallied 12 kills and 9 digs over the course of the match. 
• Kaylee Finnegan finished the match with 54 assists. That is her new career high.  
• Finnegan also had 8 digs during tonight's match. 
• Lauren Evans led the Dawgs in Digs with 21. That is Evans' new career high in Digs. 
• Evans also had 6 assists during the match. 
• Tolliver tallied 7 digs throughout the match.

Set 1 Butler (25-22)

The match started with Butler taking the first set 25-22. The teams traded points in the early going but a quick spurt by the Dawgs and a couple of Alaleh Tolliver kills later, Butler found themselves up 16-14. Then, Purdue Fort Wayne scored 3 straight and built an 18-17 lead. Butler responded well by grabbing most of the points late in the set and Tolliver knocked her 7th kill of the set clinching the set for the Dawgs 25-22. 

Set 2 Purdue Fort Wayne (25-17)

Early on in the set Purdue Fort Wayne went on a 7-0 run which allowed them to take control of the set. The Dons were up 14-7 about halfway through the set and then built their lead up to 20-10 later on in the set. A kill and service ace from Alaleh Tolliver allowed Butler to fight off two match points before Fort Wayne was able to close it out. 

Set 3 Butler (25-23)  

A service ace from Lauren Evans and a couple of early errors by Purdue Fort Wayne allowed the Dawgs to build an early 7-2 Set 3 lead. A kill and two more aces from Evans allowed the Dawgs to gain a little bit of control towards the back half of the set, they led 18-14. Purdue Fort Wayne responded nicely, they were able to go on a mini run until Tolliver finished off set 3 with her 4th kill of the set giving Butler a 25-23 set 3 win. 

Set 4 Purdue Fort Wayne (26-24)

The 4th set was another close one, Purdue Fort Wayne and Butler battled throughout the set but this time it was the Dons who came out on top. Butler started the set well, building a small lead of 10-8 partly thanks to kills from Zoe McDonald and Sawyer Jones. Butler did not give the lead up until they found themselves down 22-21 late in the set. When it was 23-all, Tolliver found the floor and gave Butler match point but Fort Wayne was able to save match point, and win the next 3 points giving themselves a 26-24 set 4 win, forcing a 5th set. 

Set 5 Butler (15-12)

The 5th set began similarly to how the 4th set ended. It was Purdue Fort Wayne who carried their momentum over to build an early 7-4 set 5 lead. An Alaleh Tolliver kill and a block assist by Sawyer Jones and Ellery Rees tied the decisive set at 10 apiece. Tolliver tallied two more kills and Elise Ward finished the match off in style, with a kill giving Butler the 15-12 5th set win and the match. 

Up Next

Butler is right back in action tomorrow evening as they will take on Middle Tennessee State at 5pm ET at Hinkle.