Match Stats
- Creighton def. Xavier 3-0 (25-19, 25-15, 27-25)
- Creighton wins Big East Tournament title
- Indianapolis, Indiana
- Attendance: 389
The Creighton Blue Jays, who already ran through the Big East regular season with a perfect 18-0 record, swept away the Big East conference tournament on Friday and Saturday in Indianapolis. First, they beat Seton Hall 3-0 on Friday in the tournament semi-finals, and then they topped Xavier by the same margin on Saturday afternoon.
That gives Creighton the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
In the championship game, Creighton sophomore Jaali Winters recorded a double-double and a game-high 16 kills and was ultimately named the Big East Tournament Most Outstanding Player.
Lauren Smith, also on the All-Tournament Team, came with with 12 kills at an efficient .588 hitting percentage – indicative of the overall .410 clip for Creighton in the game.
Xavier got double-digit kills from both Abbey Bessler and Kristen Massa, who both also hit over .300. Bessler wound up on the All-Tournament Team, as did Sofia Peterson, in spite of a -.118 hitting percentage in the championship game.
This was Creighton’s third-straight regular season/tournament double.
BIG EAST All-Tournament Team
Danielle Schroeder, Seton Hall
Meghan Niemann, Marquette
Abbey Bessler, Xavier
Sofia Peterson, Xavier
Lydia Dimke, Creighton
Lauren Smith, Creighton
Jaali Winters, Creighton
Most Outstanding Player: Jaali Winters, Creighton
Videos
VIDEO: Jaali Winters (MVP), Lauren Smith and Lydia Dimke pick up their All-Tournament Team hardware. https://t.co/iGXFEHv1Rh
— Creighton Volleyball (@CreightonVB) November 26, 2016
Press Releases
Courtesy Creighton Athletics:
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — The Creighton Volleyball team completed an unbeaten run through the BIG EAST Conference with a 3-0 win over third-seeded Xavier in the title match of the 2016 BIG EAST Championship, presented by Jeep.
Scores of Creighton’s win were 25-19, 25-15, 27-25.
Creighton has now won 20 straight matches and will enter its fifth straight NCAA Tournament with a 26-6 overall record.
The Bluejays overcame an 18-14 deficit in the third set to seal the victory.
Jaali Winters was named Tournament MVP, and was joined on the All-Tournament Team by Lauren Smith and Lydia Dimke. Winters had a double-double in the championship match, finishing with 16 kills and 11 digs on .353 hitting. Smith had 12 kills on .588 in the final, while Dimke added 43 assists and nine digs while setting CU to .410 hitting in the final. CU finished with 54 kills, six aces, 49 digs and four blocks in the victory.
Xavier was paced by 13 kills by Abbey Bessler, while Kristen Massa had 10 kills. The Musketeers had 39 kills, one ace, 37 digs and three blocks on .220 hitting.
The NCAA Tournament bracket will be announced on Sunday night at 8 pm Central on ESPNU. Creighton will host a viewing party open to the media and public at the Old Mattress Factory Grill and Bar.
BIG EAST All-Tournament Team
Danielle Schroeder, Seton Hall
Meghan Niemann, Marquette
Abbey Bessler, Xavier
Sofia Peterson, Xavier
Lydia Dimke, Creighton
Lauren Smith, Creighton
Jaali Winters, Creighton
Most Outstanding Player: Jaali Winters, Creighton
Courtesy Xavier Athletics:
INDIANAPOLIS – Seniors Abbey Bessler and Sofia Peterson were tabbed to the BIG EAST All-Tournament Team on Saturday evening. No. 3 seed Xavier was defeated by top-seed No. 21 Creighton in the championship match.
Bessler led the Musketeers with 3.57 kills per set over two matches with a .308 hitting percentage. The senior outside hitter added 2.14 digs per set, four service aces and two blocks.
The Hebron, Ky., native had 12 kills in the four-set win over No. 2 seed Marquette in the semifinals before adding 13 against Creighton.
Peterson hit .268 and added 2.29 kills per set, totaling 16 kills. The senior right side hitter added three digs and one block.
The Melbourne, Fla., native hit .542 with 14 kills against No. 2 seed Marquette.
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