It was a freshman who led the Butler women’s basketball team to a win on Saturday’s Senior Day, but senior guards Devin Brierly and Kaley May were still in the spotlight.

Freshman guard Hannah Douglas had a season-high 31 points in the effort as the Bulldogs (13-16, 9-9) defeated Wright State 81-66.

Douglas was 12-for-20 shooting on the day, including four 3-point baskets.

Still, the day was really about the two Butler seniors, who participated in their final regular season game.

Photo by Reid Bruner

“We really just wanted today to be special for Devin and Kaley,” coach Beth Couture said.

May scored the first and last baskets of the game for Butler on her way to a career-high eight points.

“It was definitely an emotional day, being the last game on Hinkle’s floor,” May said. “[The first basket] got the team excited, and it was just a good moment for the entire team.”

Brierly had a solid afternoon as well, adding 14 points, seven assists and five rebounds.

The Bulldogs, following the ejection of Wright State coach Mike Bradbury after receiving his second technical foul and throwing his suit jacket into the crowd, led 35-30 at halftime.

“That could have been a big momentum shift, but we’ve handled a lot of adversity this season,” May said. “Coach just calmed us down, and we came together as a team like we have all season.”

Butler kept its composure in the second half, even as the Raiders (19-11, 12-6) kept the game close.

Leading 69-62 with just over four minutes left to play, the Bulldogs went on a 12-4 run, which was capped by a 3-pointer from May.

“I couldn’t have scripted it any better in my mind,” May said. “It was kind of like a storybook ending for me.”

The win followed a 57-52 loss to Detroit in Hinkle Fieldhouse last Thursday.

The Bulldogs were led by freshman forward Haley Howard, who scored a career-high 23 points.

Sophomore guard Jenna Cobb added 11 points, seven rebounds and four steals.

Butler begins Horizon League tournament play tonight against Illinois-Chicago in quarterfinal round of the tournament.

The Bulldogs earned the No. 5 seed, while the Flames (17-12, 10-8) hold the No. 4 seed.

Photo by Maria Porter

The first night game of the season for the Butler men’s soccer team came with another first for the season: a shutout.

There was no winner or loser in this shutout, however, as the Bulldogs (5-4-2, 1-1-1) continued their scoring struggles in a 0-0 double overtime tie against Illinois-Chicago at the Butler Bowl on Saturday.

The Flames (6-2-3, 1-0-1) recorded their second shutout of the season while Butler’s defense had arguably its best match of the season, notching the Bulldogs their first shutout of the campaign.

Constant pressure from Butler led to numerous scoring opportunities, which were often followed by counterattacks from UIC.

“To UIC’s credit, I thought they were a much better defensive team than they were an offensive team,” junior Blake Leyden said. “When we were able to get behind defenders and put the ball into the box, we were pretty successful in getting chances.”

The two squads played an even match statistically. The first half saw both teams record eight shots, three shots on net and two corner kicks.

All three of Butler sophomore goalkeeper Jon Dawson’s saves came in the first half.

Momentum shifted to the Bulldogs in the second half as they produced five more shots than the Flames (7-2). This did not break the scoreless tie though, and the match went to overtime.

Neither team scored in two 10-minute overtime periods, and the match ended in a 0-0 tie.

Butler was the controlling team in overtime, recording the only two shots on net as well as the only two corner kicks. In the end, there was never a breakthrough for either side.

Sophomore forward Austin Oldham led Butler with five shots while Leyden and fellow junior forward Tyler Pollock each tallied three shots.

UIC senior forward Eric Frazier paced the Flames’ offense with five shots, and freshman forward Jesus Torres recorded three shots.

Dawson came away with his first tie of the season and his second career shutout for the Bulldogs. UIC redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Piotr Kikolski, who has earned a decision in all of the Flames’ matches this season, grabbed his third tie of the season.

“We’ve really started to click,” Dawson said.  “I think the IUPUI game was an awakening where we realized that we need to play every game.”

The Bulldogs will look to break their scoring drought against Indiana tonight at the Butler Bowl. The match is scheduled to start at 7 pm.