#12 Creighton Volleyball Rally Past Marquette in Five Sets

OMAHA, Neb. -- Ava Martin tied a D.J. Sokol Arena record with 30 kills and teammates Jaya Johnson and Abbey Hayes both had career-highs with 13 kills as No. 12 Creighton Volleyball overcame a 2-1 deficit to defeat Marquette in five sets on Saturday.

Scores in favor of Creighton (19-5, 12-0 BIG EAST) were 25-11, 20-25, 21-25, 25-17, 15-10 as the Bluejays improved to 8-0 all-time in five-set matches against Marquette (13-9, 7-5 BIG EAST).

Creighton hit .370 for the match, its 200th straight victory when hitting .300 or better, including .412 in the fourth set and .571 in the fifth frame after falling behind 2-1 in the match.

Martin had 30 kills and 10 digs on .464 hitting, including five kills in the fifth set. Hayes had her first double-double with 13 kills and 13 digs and Johnson notched 13 kills on .379 hitting. Also in double-figures with a dozen kills was Kiara Reinhardt. CU's third player with a double-double was Annalea Maeder with a season-high 59 assists to go with 13 digs. The Bluejays had 72 kills, 67 digs, six blocks and seven aces on .370 hitting.

Natalie Ring led MU with 23 kills and Elena Radeff and Hattie Bray each owned 10 kills for the Golden Eagles. Marquette finished with 57 kills, 53 digs, five aces and four blocks on .256 hitting.

Creighton dominated the opening set, winning 25-11, behind .407 hitting on offense and holding the Golden Eagles to -.065 hitting. The Bluejays turned their 5-4 lead into a 9-4 margin on Saige Damrow's serve and quickly stretched that to 19-7 after a 5-0 serving run off Maeder's left arm. Martin started her night with six kills in the opener.

Marquette snapped CU's streak of 24 straight set wins with a 25-21 win in set two. Marquette overcame a 14-12 deficit with seven consecutive points and held off the Jays on an ace by Isabela Haggard. Ring owned seven kills in the frame as MU hit .455.

Marquette built a 2-1 lead with a 25-21 win in the third set, breaking free from a 16-16 deadlock with three straight points and winning the set on a kill from Ring. Emma Parks and Ring both had six kills for an MU offense that hit .412 to offset a Martin onslaught of nine kills.

Creighton extended the match with a 25-17 win in the fourth set, never trailing. An ace from Martin began a 4-0 run that put the Jays in front 5-1 and a huge combo block by Reinhardt and Johnson of Ring gave CU a 16-9 edge. The Jays remained in control down the stretch, getting consecutive Reinhardt kills to close out the set. 

The rivals traded leads twice early in the fifth set before CU went in front 4-3 on an MU service error. The Jays doubled up MU at 6-3 following kills by Hayes and Martin, and CU led 8-5 as the teams switched sides after another kill by Hayes. MU got within one point at both 10-9 and 11-10, but CU closed out the match with four straight points, including a clincher on an ace from Sydney Breissinger to finish off CU's 52nd straight home win over a BIG EAST opponent. Martin had five kills in the fifth set while Hayes and Johnson each provided three spikes.

Creighton is back in action on Friday at 7:30 p.m. when it hosts Villanova to open its final homestand of the season.