2017 Big East Tournament
- November 24-25
- Day 1
- Milwaukee, Wisconsin
The first day of the Big East Tournament has ended with Creighton and Marquette looking to square off in the finals that will take place on Saturday afternoon.
This is the fourth year that Creighton has advanced to the finals of the Big East Tournament and are looking for their fourth straight conference title. While Creighton has a ton of recent experience in the tournament final, Marquette is making it for just the third time, with their last appearance was in 2013 when they took down the Bluejays in four sets to claim the conference championship.
Creighton def. Villanova 3-0, (25-20, 25-22, 25-19)
Creighton is set to play in their seventh conference title match and fourth consecutive. They are looking to take the title and build up another Cinderella run in the NCAA Tournament, as they advanced on to the Sweet 16 in 2016.
It was an easy three-set win for the Bluejays, as they breezed through Villanova to move onto the finals. They took large leads over the Wildcats that gave them cushion to make a few errors without it becoming costly, as Villanova fought back to make things tighter in the end.
Jaali Winters led the Bluejays squad to the three-set sweep over Villanova with 11 kills and 14 digs for a double-double while Taryn Kloth contributed another 14 kills on an impressive .483 hitting clip. Also picking up double-digit digs was Alexa Roumeliotis with 11.
For Villanova, Allie Loitz put down 11 kills while Allison Fitzgerald picked up 11 digs.
Marquette def. Butler 3-1, (25-15, 24-26, 25-17, 25-20)
Marquette fought through a tough Butler squad to advance to their first Big East final since 2013. All but the second set were easy sets for the Gold Eagles, as they eased through Butler by wide margins to claim the victory.
In the win, two Golden Eagles recorded double-doubles – Hope Werch with 13 kills and 18 digs while Anna Haak added 20 kills and 20 digs. Both players recorded impressive hitting percentages, as Werch hit for .320 alongside Haak’s .450. Also recording double-digit kills were Allie Barber (16) and Jenna Rosenthal (10). In the backcourt, Martha Konovodoff picked up 16 digs while Manon Geoffroy added 11.
For Butler, Anna Logan put down a team-best 17 kills and 16 digs for a double-double while Taylor Takeda picked up 14 digs.
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