Photo by Heather Iwinski

The Butler men’s soccer team will continue its three-game homestand when it takes on Northern Kentucky Friday.

The Bulldogs (1-0-3) got their first win on Aug. 28, beating cross-town foe Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis 2-0.

Northern Kentucky is a NCAA Division I team for the first time this season. It is a member of the Atlantic Sun Conference.

The Norse are 0-4 on the season with losses to Green Bay, Milwaukee, Radford and High Point.

Opponents have outscored NKU 10-1 this season.

Last year, as a Division II program, the Norse finished the season with a 14-5 record. They advanced to the Midwest Regional Championship game for the fourth time in five years.

Butler has played NKU twice in its history. The first time was in 1989, and the second in 1990. The Bulldogs won both matchups, 2-0 and 3-0, respectively.

The Butler volleyball team used an unconventional line-up to grind out a 3-2 win against Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis last night.

The Bulldogs were without a starter and other players were playing out of position, but they used 19 team blocks to bring home the win.

Collegian file photo

Sophomore Erica Stahl led the team with nine blocks, while junior Claire Randich finished with seven blocks.

Junior Maggie Harbison finished with a match-high 21 kills. Junior Morgan Peterson led with 53 assists and sophomore Brooke Ruffolo had 17 digs for the Bulldogs.

The team finished the weekend 2-1 at the Pittsburgh Panther Invitational.

Butler (4-2) opened the tournament with a 3-0 sweep of Howard.

The Bulldogs dominated Howard University in its first match, winning 25-13, 25-22 and 25-14.

Junior Maggie Harbison led the way with seven kills, while sophomore Belle Obert and senior Rachel Barber, both had six kills.

Leading the Bulldogs in digs was Peterson with six. Sophomore Kelly Kyle and Barber also contributed with five digs apiece.

Bulter continued its dominance by defeating Coastal Carolina (0-5) 3-2 on Saturday afternoon.

The Bulldogs started the match down 16-10 in the first set. Butler tried to rally but fell short as the Chanticleers closed out the set 25-22.

However, Butler quickly recovered and controlled the second set. The score was 14-0 before Coastal Carolina scored its first point.

Butler went on to win the set 25-8.

The Bulldogs won the third set by a score of 25-17 to take a 2-1 advantage.

The Chanticleers would recover in the fourth set and win by a score of 25-23, setting up a winner-takes-all fifth set.

Butler reversed its play in the first set, dominating the beginning stages of the fifth. With the Bulldogs up 7-1, the Chanticleers would not go away.

Coastal Carolina rallied and made the score 9-7, but Butler pulled away and ended up winning the set and match 15-12 and 3-2, respectively.

Pittsburgh (4-2) swept the Bulldogs 3-0 in the last match of the weekend.

In the first set, Butler lost in a close 25-17 battle.

The second set was summarized by the Bulldogs’ inability to hold leads. Butler had leads of 11-7, 15-10 and 23-18, but Pittsburgh was able to claw its way back each time.

Butler ended up losing the set 26-24 to find itself in a 2-0 hole.

In the third set, the teams traded points throughout. In the latter part of the set, the Bulldogs were able to stave off several match points.

In the end, the Panthers were too much and won the set 28-26 to complete the sweep.

Leading the Bulldogs was Kyle with 13 digs, Barber with 12 kills and Randich with four blocks.

Peterson also added six digs and Harbison contributed 10 kills, with both being elected to the All-Tournament Team.

The Bulldogs will host Western Illinois, Stephen F. Austin and Indiana in the Butler Classic starting Friday.

The Butler women’s cross country team placed second at the Illini Challenge last Friday while the men finished fourth.

It was the season—opening meet for both teams.

The women were led by freshman Olivia Pratt, who won the women’s four-kilometer race with a time of 14:18.

Competing in her first-ever collegiate race, Pratt said that she was looking forward to wearing a Butler uniform for the first time.

“I was really glad to go out there and run a really good time for me,” Pratt said. “I was excited to put a Butler uniform on and start my college running career.”

Loyola won the women’s competition with 38 points, and the Bulldogs finished the meet with a 49-point outing that was good enough for second in the eight-team field.

The second Bulldog to cross the line was senior Kaitlyn Love who finished in fifth place with a time of 14:55. Fellow senior Lauren McKillop rounded out the top-ten finishers with a time of 15:11.

Host Illinois won the men’s competition, with 26 points.

The Butler men were led by sophomore Kodi Mullins, who placed 11th in the men’s six-kilometer race with a time of 19:04.

Junior Billy Klimczak finished 19th with a time of 19:35.

The teams are back in action at the Indiana Intercollegiate Meet in Terre Haute on Sept. 14.

Published Sept. 5, 2012

This Saturday, Butler’s football team will be taking part in its first game under lights since the early-1940s.

This is an important step for Butler from an athletic standpoint.

With the university’s jump to the Atlantic 10 Conference last summer, school officials would probably like to prove that they can host athletic events under a variety of circumstances (despite the fact the football team will not be part of the A-10).

Saturday’s game could help the flexibility of the football team’s scheduling in the future as well.

However, moving some football games and, before them, some men’s and women’s soccer matches to an under-the-lights setting could also pose a potential problem for the university.

Butler attempted its first athletic triple-header last September. The football team and both soccer squads had contests in the Butler Bowl on the same day.

The triple-header was likely a new and, at times, exhausting expeience for some members of Butler’s athletics department. Running one athletic event in a given day requires a number of different operations and activities to take place in very short amounts of time.

Doing those same activities three times over the course of eight to 10 hours would likely be draining.

Accordingly, the athletics department has not scheduled three events in the Bowl on a single day this academic year.

However, two separate weekends this month will see a great amount of athletic activity in short periods of time.

The first of these is this weekend, and that schedule reads as follows:

Friday, Sept. 7
Volleyball—Butler Classic, starts 11 a.m.
Men’s soccer—Butler vs. Northern Kentucky, 7 p.m.

Saturday, Sept. 8
Football—Butler vs. Franklin, 6 p.m.
Volleyball—Butler Classic, starts 6 p.m.

Sunday, Sept. 9
Men’s soccer—Butler vs. Central Arkansas, 1 p.m.

With no rest for the weary, Butler also has the following schedule assembled for Saturday, Sept. 29:

Football—Butler vs. Dayton, 1 p.m.
Women’s soccer—Butler vs. Saint Louis, 7 p.m.
Volleyball—Butler vs. Duquesne, 7 p.m.

It is great that Butler is finding opportunities for fans to take in multiple sporting events in a given day, but I see two major issues with this sort of scheduling.

The first lies in overextending and straining the athletics department staff.

I cannot speak for those within the department. I cannot say those individuals were exhausted at the conclusion of the triple-header last year, that they were unable to rise from their respective beds the next morning.

One might think that taking care of the operations and behind-the-scenes work for three athletic events in a single day—especially with one being the school’s first athletic contest under lighting since World War II—might be a bit stressful, though.

So this year, the staff gets to run that gauntlet twice in four weeks.

It may prove to be even more difficult this time around. Some teams have contests scheduled over each other.

Starting the finale of volleyball’s Butler Classic and the first night football game in more than 70 years at the same time cannot possibly benefit an athletics department staff that will have dealt with earlier volleyball and men’s soccer action less than 24 hours prior.

Slotting the women’s soccer and volleyball teams into the same starting time just hours after the conclusion of a football game is potentially problematic as well.

And then there are the fans that, on the surface, benefit from receiving the opportunity to view multiple sporting events in a given day.

There is clearly an issue with attendance at Butler’s fall athletic events. Figures are not high, and the stands of the Bowl and Hinkle Fieldhouse are nowhere near full during such events.

That is why it is difficult for me to understand how scheduling events on top of each other will fix this. Fans cannot be in two places at the same time.

Also, if a day is filled with events, the casual observer will probably only attend the first on the list. It is simply overwhelming to attend three athletic contests in one day.

Overwhelming is the key word in this discussion. If stacked scheduling is some sort of initiation into the A-10, the Butler community will have to live with being overwhelmed.

Otherwise, the school should realize that it might be taking on more than it can handle.

With rain coming down in sheets at the Butler Bowl, the Butler women’s soccer team battled Tennessee-Martin to a scoreless draw on Sunday.

The Bulldogs (3-2-1) and Skyhawks (1-3-1) had to gear up not only for a battle against each other, but also against the remnants of Hurricane Isaac.

Photo by Heather Iwinski

The back-and-forth affair had its fair share of close calls.

For Butler, the closest of these came in the 59th minute when freshman midfielder Sophia Maccagnone sent a shot off the crossbar. The near miss was one of her four shots.

“I was able to get those chances mainly because my teammates were making them possible,” Maccagnone said. “They were opening space for me and making runs that caused UT Martin to spread out.”

After 110 minutes, neither team was able to dent the twine, despite a combined 33 shots between the squads.

“In weather like today, it’s very important for me to concentrate on catching the ball and being ready to react if the ball slips from my hands,” freshman goalkeeper Mackenzie Hopkins said.

The Bulldogs tallied 16 shots, but only two of them were on net.

Hopkins recorded five saves in the tie.

Last Wednesday, the Bulldogs grabbed their third victory of the season, downing Purdue 1-0.

The win was Butler’s first against the Boilermakers (4-2-0) in school history.

“It doesn’t matter which league each team plays in,” Hopkins said. “It matters which team is better on that day.”

The game’s only goal was scored when Maccagnone was able to step up and bury a penalty kick, helping Butler to its first road victory of the season.

“I did feel a lot of pressure,” Maccagnone said. “There wasn’t that much time left on the clock, and you never know if that could be our last opportunity to score.

“I knew my team had confidence in me, so I wanted to make sure I didn’t disappoint my teammates.”

The Bulldogs will head north Sunday to take on the University of Michigan.

The Butler football team fell short of a comeback in its season opener against Western Illinois.

The Bulldogs trailed 23-0 late in the third quarter before the offense showed its first signs of life in the season.

Junior running back Trae Heeter scored on a 5-yard run with four minutes remaining in the quarter to make the score 23-7. The Bulldogs snuck an onside kick past the Leathernecks (1-0) but were unable to capitalize.
Redshirt junior Sean Grady intercepted a pass that set up the team’s next scoring drive.

Grady said it was a big spark for the Bulldogs (0-1).

“We hadn’t been able to get a turnover all game, and as a defense we really look to put the offense in a good situation by turnovers,” Grady said.

On the ensuing drive, former quarterback Tom Judge made a circus catch for the Bulldogs (0-1) to get the drive moving.

On the next play, redshirt junior quarterback Matt Lancaster connected on another long screen to Heeter before running the ball into the end zone on the final play of the drive.

On the 2-point conversion attempt, Butler ran a reverse pass from Judge to make it a one-possession game, 23-15.

“The defense helped the offense, and the offense capitalized,” coach Jeff Voris said.

By getting the 2-point conversion, Voris said they felt completing the comeback was doable.

With two minutes remaining the Bulldogs were able to use their timeouts to get the ball back on their own 1-yard line.

Butler used four complete passes and three first downs to get the ball to the Western Illinois 7-yard line. The game clock was malfunctioning during the drive, and the officials kept the time on the field.

“You never know what’s going to happen with the clock,and the officials,” Lancaster said. “It’s just a matter of going out there and competing and worrying about ourselves.”

Lancaster completed a pass to Heeter, who attempted to get out of bounds but was brought down at the 4-yard line. The game clock ran out, and the Bulldogs’ 95-yard drive came up short.

“It was a little adversity thrown at us, and we needed to respond to it a little bit differently to get it done,” Voris said.

The Bulldogs will be playing under the lights for the first time since 1941 on Saturday.

Voris said he knows the atmosphere will be special, but his team is preparing the same way as it always does.

“We understand it’s a big game,” Voris said. “It’s a game that people are going to want to attend just because of the uniqueness of the lights.”

The Butler football team trailed Western Illinois 23-0 late in the third quarter before the offense showed its first sign of life in the season opener.

Trae Heeter scored on a 5-yard run with 4:00 remaining in the quarter to make the score 23-7. The Bulldogs tried to get  an onside kick past the Leathernecks (1-0) but were unable to capitalize.

Defensive back Sean Grady made an important interception that would set up the team’s next score.

On the ensuing drive former quarterback Tom Judge made a circus catch for the Bulldogs (0-1) to get the drive moving. On the next play, red-shirt junior quarterback Matt Lancaster connected on another long screen to Heeter before running the ball into the end zone himself on the next play.

On the 2-point-conversion  Butler ran a reverse pass from Judge and cut the deficit to 23-15 with just over 7:00 remaining.

The Bulldogs were able to use their timeouts to get the ball back with 2:00 remaining  on their own 1-yard line.

Butler used four complete passes and three first downs to get the ball to the Western Illinois 7-yard line.

The game clock was malfunctioning during the drive and time was being kept by the officials on the field.

Lancaster completed a pass to Heeter who attempted to get out of bounds but was brought down at the 4-yard line. The game clock ran out and the Bulldogs 95-yard drive came up just short.

Butler’s next game will be Saturday, Sept. 8 at 6:00 at the Butler Bowl. The home-opener is against Franklin College.

The DePaul Invitational ended on a strong note for the Butler volleyball team, which defeated the host school in comeback fashion to complete a two-win weekend.

The Bulldogs (2-1) finished with a 2-1 record in the four-team event. Eastern Illinois posted the same record in the tournament.

Butler’s season-opening match saw Indiana State pull out a 3-1 victory on Friday.

The first set was close, with the Sycamores (1-2) squeaking out a 25-23 victory. However, the Bulldogs fought back to win the second set by a score of 25-17.

Butler fell into a 9-2 hole early in the third set and could not rally, losing 25-20. The roles were reversed in the fourth set, with the Bulldogs holding a 15-8 lead, only to fall 25-21.

Leading Butler was junior middle back Maggie Harbison with 13 kills and junior setter Morgan Peterson with seven blocks. The Bulldogs also received contributions from sophomore libero Jadyn Yarling, who had eleven digs.

Butler grabbed its first win of the season by sweeping Eastern Illinois Saturday afternoon.

The Bulldogs opened the match with a 25-19 first-set victory over the Panthers (2-1).

In the second set, Eastern Illinois was in position to nab a victory on five separate occasions, only to be thwarted by Butler each time.

The Bulldogs eventually found themselves up 25-24 with a set point of their own, but were unable to capitalize. The teams then traded points until Butler was finally able to put the set away, winning 32-30.

In the third set, the Bulldogs made quick work of the Panthers, grabbing a 25-17 win and a match sweep.

Sophomore outside hitter Belle Obert led the Bulldogs with a double-double, consisting of 12 kills and 11 digs. Peterson scored 15 digs, and junior middle back Claire Randich tallied seven blocks.

In the final match of the weekend, Butler started off on the right foot against the Blue Demons (1-2), winning the first set 25-17.

DePaul rallied to take the next two sets, pushing the Bulldogs into a must-win situation.

Butler came roaring back in the fourth set, which was highlighted by an eight-point streak for the Bulldogs.

After some back-and-forth play to open the fifth and final set, the Bulldogs recorded three straight points off an ace and two kills and went on to win the set 15-10.

Obert closed the event with her second double-double in three matches, tallying 16 kills and 10 digs against the Blue Demons.

The Bulldogs also received key contributions from Harbison, who had 10 kills and 17 digs.

Peterson was named the Most Valuable Player and earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team with Obert and sophomore middle back Erica Stahl.

The Bulldogs will be in Pittsburgh this weekend for the Pittsburgh Panther Invitational.

The Butler women’s soccer team looked to continue its winning streak with two non-conference games last weekend.

The Bulldogs (2-2) had their first away match against Eastern Michigan (1-1-1) that ended in a 1-0 loss.

“Our first away game was especially difficult because EMU has a grass field. It definitely threw off the pace of our play and it took a lot of adaptions on our part,” freshman forward Addison Schaar said.

Both teams had a scoreless first half, despite combining for a total of 15 shots in the first half.

The Eagle’s freshman forward Sarah Deakin scored the only goal of the match in the 65th minute.

“We’re using this loss as motivation to come out and beat Purdue this Wednesday, as well as giving us something to improve on during training,” said Schaar.

Three players scored their first goal of the season for the Bulldogs (2-2), propelling them to a 3-0 win over the Sycamores (1-2) last Friday.

With eight minutes remaining in the first half, Butler tallied its first goal, a long-distance strike by freshman midfielder Sophia Maccagnone.

The second half, much like the first, was dominated by physical play. The two squads combined for 24 fouls in the match.

“Going into the game we knew how the game was going to be so we just went right back at them with being physical,” sophomore forward Stephanie Kaylor said.

In the 57th minute, a well-placed corner kick by Kaylor was deposited in the back of the net off the head of sophomore defenseman Kelly Mahoney, giving the Bulldogs a 2-0 advantage.

Photo by Jaclyn McConnell

“I know that if I put the ball in a certain spot just beyond the keeper, one of my teammates will put it in the back of the net,” Kaylor said.

Moments later sophomore forward Elise Kotsakis delivered on a penalty kick, putting the game out of Indiana State’s reach.

The Sycamores were unable to record a shot attempt in the second half.

Butler will continue its non-conference schedule with a match at Purdue tonight starting at 7 p.m.

The Butler men’s soccer team picked up its first win of the season with a 2-0 victory over Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis last night at the Butler Bowl.

Scoring for the Bulldogs were sophomore Brandon Fricke and senior Tyler Pollock.

Both teams came out strong to start the game and continued to take their chances at goal with no luck until Fricke broke the tie at the 55th minute of the match.

Fricke scored the goal off a free kick on a pass from Zach Steinberger and then rocketed the ball from 20 yards out past Jaguar goalkeeper Eduardo Cortes into the bottom left corner of the net. It was his first goal of the season and the second of his career.

The Bulldogs added another goal in the 77^th minute when senior Tyler Pollock took a cross from freshman Jeff Adkins and laid the ball into the corner of the net from 15 yards out.

“I thought tonight we started off real well. We had a great game plan and we really wanted impose our attacking philosophy on the game.” coach Paul Snape said about last night’s contest, “I think we created some great chances and we were patient and it worked for us tonight.”

Junior Austin Oldham had a team-high four shots, including two shots on goal for the Bulldogs.

Adkins added three shots for the Bulldogs in the match.

Junior goalkeeper Jon Dawson continued his presence in the goal for Butler as he earned his second shutout of the season, while racking up three saves in the second half.

The victory came after two consecutive draws in the VCU Nike Classic last weekend.

Butler ended its season opener against College of William & Mary in a draw after 110 minutes of play. Both teams combined for 33 shots in the match and 12 of those attempts were on goal.

“I believe a big trip like this one to Virginia really helped us feel like we are a big program,” Dawson said. “A draw wasn’t really the goal we had in mind going into the tournament, but we’ll take it and it will help us get better throughout the course of this season.”

Butler moved on to their second game of the weekend as it took on Bucknell last Sunday.

The Bulldogs scored their first goal early and continued that advantage through the first half and through the first 13 minutes of play in the second period.

Dawson shined again in the second match saving two of three shots on goal while junior Austin Oldham led the Bulldogs with eight shots, including four shots on goal, in the weekend’s two matches.

The Bison tied the match in the 58^th minute when a throw-in by Mayowa Alli ended in a ricochet shot off a Butler defender and into the Bulldogs’ goal.

The match ended in a 1-1 draw.

The Bulldogs will continue their three-match homestand against Northern Kentucky on Friday, Sept. 7. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at the Butler Bowl.