There was a little revenge in the cards for the women's volleyball team on Saturday, taking on the BIG EAST's 2nd best in Marquette - a team who swept them in Milwaukee just a few weeks ago - with seeding implications on the line.
Had the Jays lost, they would've been tied percentage wise with the Golden Eagles, yet with Marquette holding two victories over their heads they would've eased their way into the top seed.
I imagine that the Jays knew this. The first set was reminiscent of what Creighton had done so well all year long against top competition, blowing Marquette out of the water early and often, eventually winning the set 25-12.
In this set, Creighton seemingly could not miss. As if they were channeling Tiger Woods' short game in his prime, they were placing swings into the far corners of the court with ultimate precision, landing balls within in the fair boundaries with just centimeters separating them from being out. If you don't believe me, here's concrete evidence of this phenomenon:
It truly was a marvel to watch. The Jays were assisted multiple times by Marquette's inability to serve or block, the Golden Eagles donating 4 points to the winning side with serves directly into the net in the first set. Whether they were nervous, unprepared, or just trying to speed up their eventual loss, Marquette was rattled in the first set.
The second set proved to be much more competitive, with the score remaining at one or two points throughout. Marquette ended up with set point at one time, leading 24-23 before senior Marysa Wilkinson put an end to all that nonsense with an earth rocking kill. The Jays ended the set with a kill from Taryn Kloth to put the Jays up by 1, then Marquette's Hope Werch put one into the net on a swing giving the second set to the Jays, 26-24.
2-0.
The third set was sloppy, with 5 of the first 7 points being scored by way of an error coming out of the break. Both teams seemed to regain their composure, the Jays a bit more so as they built a 14-10 lead. From there the offense finally broke free as they outscored the Golden Eagles 11-5 to solidify the sweep and place themselves firmly in first place.
After the match, Coach Booth noted that the DePaul game the following day had a lot more weight to it considering RPI implications; Marquette rated out at #32 while DePaul rated out at #238. Losing to DePaul would be catastrophic, losing to Marquette would've been a minor setback in terms of seeding and hosting in the NCAA tournament.
So, what happened on Sunday?
They completely obliterated DePaul. I mean, that's probably putting it mildly. They romped and stomped and blew through the completely overmated Blue Demons.
The first set began with a 6-1 lead before DePaul head coach Nadia Edwards had seen enough. In that first set the Jays were hitting close to a 1.000 clip while the Blue Demon defense fell on their hands and attempted to stop the thrashing tide that the Jays embodied.
The first set ended 25-11. The second set, 25-14. The third? 25-16.
DePaul swing 97 times. They achieved a kill 26 times. They committed an error on 17 swings. That brings us to a grand total of .093 hitting percentage.
It was the 'Senior Day' for Marysa Wilkinson, Lydia Dimke, Brittany Lawrence, and Kenzie Crawford. It will, hopefully, not be the final time they have homecourt advantage at DJ Sokol Arena, but when the balance of Creighton's furthered season is in the hands of the NCAA, crazy things can happen!
