Indianapolis IN- Saturday evening, Butler cruised past Middle Tennessee State, winning the match in 3 Sets. The Dawgs were able to complete the sweep of the Big Dawg kickoff and move to 3-0 on the season. 

Alaleh Tolliver was awarded MVP of the Big Dawg Kickoff. Tolliver tallied 24 kills last night vs Purdue Fort Wayne and added 5 more tonight giving her 44 for the tournament. Tolliver, Elise Ward, and Zoe McDonald headlined the All-Tournament Team for the Bulldogs.  

Bulldog Bites 

• Elise Ward led the Bulldogs in kills tonight with 13.
• Kaylee Finnegan had 30 assists during the match. Finnegan also had 4 digs tonight.
• Finnegan tallied at least 30 assists in each of the 3 matches this weekend. 
• Lauren Evans led Butler in Digs during the match with 11.
• Alaleh Tolliver picked up 8 digs and 5 kills throughout the course of the match. 

Set 1 Butler (26-24)

The first set of the match was extremely tight, the teams traded points in the early going. The score was tied at 10 until MTSU made a couple of errors that the Bulldogs were able to capitalize on giving them a 16-12 lead about midway through the set. Middle Tennessee State cleaned up their errors and put together a 6-0 run giving the Lighting a 18-16 late set 1 lead. Coach Kyle Shondell called timeout, and the Bulldogs rallied late to regain control and take the first set. Kills by Zoe McDonald and Elise Ward helped propel the Dawgs to victory in the 1st set. 

Set 2 Butler (25-8)

The second was all Bulldogs. Kills by Ward, McDonald, Sawyer Jones, and Carly Slusser, as well as two service aces from Jones helped allow the Dawgs to jump in front and remain in control of the set. A solo block from Slusser capped off a 19-5 start for Butler in the second set. Senior, Rylie Tam put the finishing touches on set two as she hammered a kill giving Butler the 25-8 set 2 win. 

Set 3 Butler (25-22)

More kills from Carly Slusser and Sawyer Jones contributed to the Dawgs 9-6 early advantage they built in set 3. Service aces from Lauren Evans and Aesha Vogt helped the Dawgs build a slightly larger lead as the teams headed towards the middle of the set, Butler led 14-10. The Bulldogs then went on a 5-1 run supported by kills from Alaleh Tolliver and Slusser along with a block assist from Slusser and Elise ward put the Dawgs on the brink of the match, leading 19-11. MTSU did not go away quietly, the Lighting put together a run of their own to get back into the set but the Bulldogs responded and took the set and the match. It was a kill from the Big Dawg Kickoff MVP, Alaleh Tolliver that won the match for Butler and completed a perfect 3-0 weekend for the Dawgs.

Big Dawg Kickoff All-Tournament Team

MVP- Alaleh Tolliver - Butler 
Elise Ward - Butler 
Zoe McDonald - Butler 
Logan Carr - Middle Tennessee State
Caroline Macander - Middle Tennessee State
Ainoah Cruz - Evansville

Up Next

Butler will compete in the Iowa Invitational, in Iowa City Iowa. The Bulldogs will play 3 matches in 3 days starting Thursday, September 4th, where they will take on Iowa. Butler will then take on Loyola-Chicago Friday the 5th at 4pm ET, followed by Butler taking on Illinois State at 12pm ET Saturday the 6th.