Butler University Athletics

INDIANAPOLIS - The Butler Bulldogs defeated the Georgetown Hoyas, 3-1 on Saturday night. With the win, the Bulldogs improve to 8-6 overall and 2-0 in BIG EAST action. The Hoyas slide to 8-4 overall and 0-2 in conference action.
 
Bulldog Bites 

• Ava Hunter posted 24 assists, seven digs, and four kills.
• Sarah Kempf registered 18 assists and four digs. 
• Chase Lemming recorded 12 kills, including four in sets two and four. She also posted five digs, one block, and one assist. 
• Raegan Durbin tallied 10 kills, including four in the first set. She also recorded seven digs, one assist, and one block.
• Elise Ward totaled 10 kills, including three in sets three and four. She also registered four digs. 
• Jersey Loyer marked ten digs and six assists. 

 
On the Record with Head Coach Kyle Shonell
"Georgetown came in hungry for a win, and they do a lot of things that normally don't match up well against us. They had two middle blockers that are top five in the country in hitting efficiency. One of them still had some fun today. The other one, their best middle blocker, one of the best middle blockers in the BIG EAST Conference, had no fun today and we did a phenomenal job with service pressure, making them more one-dimensional, and we did a really good job in the backcourt of digging as many balls as we possibly could, and just keeping them at bay. Offensively for us, it was a tremendous effort across the board. We had I think, seven attackers, if you include Ava Hunter, hitting over .300 which is outlandish. Six true attackers hitting so that's a phenomenal job by Hunter, Kempf and even Loyer. Sometimes Zoe McDonald or Carly Slusser, whoever else, would step in and set a ball. I just loved our resolve. I loved our poise. I loved how hard we played when the scoreboard said we don't have to, and that's my favorite part of the weekend."
 
Set 1 Georgetown (25-21)
Butler opened set one trading points back and forth with Georgetown. It was the Hoyas who'd take a narrow 15-13 edge over the Bulldogs at the halfway mark of set one. Butler continued to fight with Georgetown in the late moments of the frame. However, the Hoyas took set one 25-21. 
 
Set 2 Butler (25-10)
The Bulldogs jumped out to an early 9-3 lead in the second set behind two kills from Lemming and two kills from Maria Nix. Butler continued to dominate the frame as a 7-1 run gave Butler the 10-point advantage at the halfway mark of the set (16-6).  Behind a 5-0 run to finish the set that featured three Georgetown errors, Butler took set two, 25-10.
 
Set 3 Butler (25-18)
The third set saw both teams trade points early until Butler was able to jump out to a narrow 10-6 lead with a service ace from Durbin. Shortly after, the Bulldogs went on a 6-0 run, highlighted by two kills from Zoe McDonald, as the Dawgs held a 17-8 advantage. While Georgetown was able to work their way back into the set, Butler fended off their comeback efforts, securing the set victory, 25-18, on an attack error by the Hoyas. 
 
Set 4 Butler (25-16)
The fourth set began in similar fashion as both sides traded went back and forth early in the frame. A 3-0 run that featured a kill from Slusser and a service ace from Hunter gave Butler its first cushion of the set. Butler then strung together a 9-3 run fueled by two kills from Lemming, which gave BU a commanding 19-10 advantage. The fourth set ended the same as the third, as an attack error on the Hoyas secured the 25-16 set victory and match victory for the Bulldogs. 
 
Up Next 
Butler will travel to South Orange, N.J., to face the Seton Hall Pirates on Friday, Oct. 2. First serve is scheduled for 5 p.m. BU will then make the quick trip into Queens, N.Y. on Saturday, Oct. 3 to take on the St. John's Red Storm. First serve is scheduled for 4 p.m. at Carnesecca Arena.