Sophomore Kelly Kyle might have been born with a hearing impairment so severe that she is legally considered deaf, but that hasn’t stopped the Butler volleyball player from chasing after one of the biggest dreams of all U.S. athletes: playing for a national team.

This summer, Kyle will become part of a 12-woman roster representing the U.S. at the Deaflympics in Bulgaria. She will spend July 26 through Aug. 4 in Sophia, Bulgaria’s capital, in an attempt to win a world title on the volleyball court.

Kyle said she’s honored to be part of a team representing the U.S. and is looking forward to this summer when she will meet and train with her new teammates before traveling across an ocean for the first time.

The 2011 North Montgomery High School graduate will join thousands of other legally deaf athletes at the Deaflympics.

“I think one of the hardest things will be not being able to use the hearing aids,” Kyle said. “And I don’t know any sign language. Volleyball is such a communication sport, so it’ll be a learning experience.”

She said she will no doubt be learning the language before taking off for Bulgaria in July, adding that it’s even more important in this case because almost everyone she’ll be dealing with at the games— including teammates and coaches—will be fully deaf.

Kyle will also be meeting her new teammates for the first time in late May at the U.S. Open in Louisville, Ky.

“It’s exciting,” Kyle said, “to represent the country in any way, shape or form, and to represent my hometown and Butler. It’s really exciting.
“And to go to a new place with a totally different language and being around so many deaf people, it’s going to be very interesting.”

Jodi Webster, Kyle’s high school coach at North Montgomery high school said  determination, as well as Kyle’s humility and persistence, are some of her defining characteristics.

“It’s been such a great joy watching her grow up,” Webster said. “It’s really an amazing thing. Kelly never feels sorry for herself—she just strives for success. “We’re all really proud of her.”

Butler head coach Sharon Clark also expressed her happiness for the upcoming event and the contributions Kyle has made so far in her first two seasons at Butler.

“She’s very self-sufficient,” Clark said. “There are things we have to be conscious about. But she’s a very well-rounded player. To come in day in and day out and always have a smile on her face and know that she’s just such a joyful person, it makes you work harder.

“And it’s ironic because, despite what she’s gone through in life, that in and of itself is a great thing.”

With Butler University’s intention to join the new Big East official, people both inside and outside the Butler community have begun speculating how it will affect the men’s basketball team.

Less immediate attention has been placed on how the change could affect Butler’s 17 other athletic teams.

Based on recent history, those teams could experience varying levels of success in their first Big East seasons.

Butler’s athletic programs stepped up to the plate, and many had or are still having successful seasons in the Atlantic 10 Conference.

Butler men’s soccer coach Paul Snape had his team in the hunt for an A-10 tournament berth on the final day of the season.

Snape said Butler’s time in the A-10 helped his team prepare for “elite” competition in the new Big East.

“The boys have to make sure they’re ready to go,” Snape said. “Nothing less than 100 percent is going to win us a game.

“If you lack focus or make a mistake, (Big East teams) punish you because they’re just quicker, stronger and faster than what you’ve played against before.”

Snape’s squad will have to face the national runner-up team from Georgetown and national semifinalist Creighton on a regular basis next season. St. John’s men’s soccer team was the national runner-up in 2003 as well.

“Long term, I think (the move) is fantastic,” Snape said. “But in the short term, we’ve got a few challenges we’ve got to deal with, and (we have to) make sure we’re fully prepared for playing in one of the elite conferences in the country.”

In women’s soccer, the new Big East will harbor the top two seeds from the most recent Big East conference tournament.

Butler’s men’s and women’s cross country teams have been national players in recent years. The women’s team made the NCAA final meet in 2012 by placing fourth in its regional meet.

Matt Roe, coach for both of Butler’s cross country teams, said his teams always aim to be competitive on a national level, but winning a conference championship will be harder for his teams than ever before.

“If you know anything about the Big East on the track and in cross country, you know it’s arguably the toughest conference in the country,” Roe said. “Obviously, the bar is even higher than it had been in the Atlantic 10 and the Horizon League.”

Women’s cross country in the new Big East will be especially competitive.

Villanova University took home the women’s national title in 2009, and Georgetown’s squad took the title the following two seasons. Providence College fielded the national runner-up in 2012.

“Ultimately, our goal is to compete against these teams, as it has been for a long time,” Roe said.

The Butler volleyball team reeled off five consecutive wins to close its only A-10 season and earn the No. 6 seed in the A-10 tournament.

But coach Sharon Clark said the team’s inclusion in the Big East is a big competitive step from both the Horizon League and the A-10.

“We’ve got several programs throughout that are all going to be in the same conference that are top 100 programs (in the nation),” Clark said. “I think the Big East presents an opportunity for us to showcase our university and athletic program on a much higher level.”

Clark’s team will compete against a Marquette squad that went 27-7 last season and a Creighton team that went 26-3 and made it to the second round of the NCAA tournament.

Both of Butler’s track and field teams will experience tough competition from Villanova, Georgetown and Providence.

Butler will compete against five other teams in women’s swimming. Creighton, Marquette, St. John’s and DePaul do not have women’s swim programs.

Creighton, St. John’s and Villanova sent their women’s basketball teams to the ongoing NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Tournament.

As for spring sports, DePaul offers relatively strong men’s and women’s tennis teams. St. John’s had the highest-seeded men’s team of the Catholic 7 in the 2012 conference tournament schools, while DePaul had the strongest-seeded women’s squad of the new Big East group.

Butler’s men’s golf team will have good competition in the form of teams from Villanova, St. John’s and Georgetown.

There are only six women’s golf teams in the new Big East, including Butler’s team. Seton Hall’s team was the best of those from all the new Big East schools in the 2012 conference tournament.

Butler’s baseball and softball teams started their A-10 seasons a combined 5-0. The softball team will face decent competition in the Big East while the baseball team will have to deal with last season’s Big East conference champ St. John’s and an NCAA tournament team in Creighton.

In the A-10, Butler’s teams travelled to new locations for in-conference games. Snape said getting his team familiar with more new environments offered by the Big East will be a key to success.

“What will change is making sure the boys understand the strengths and weaknesses of each conference and making sure they understand the environments,” Snape said.

“Our focus in these next four, five months is to gain as much information about the cities, about the colleges, about the facilities so we can educate our players on what to expect.”

Snape said his team’s schedule and when the Bulldogs will be on the road is another concern.

“We’re going to play up in the Northeast in October and early November, (which is) certainly different than if you played there at the end of September because of the weather,” Snape said.

From a recruiting perspective, Snape, Roe and Clark all said the Big East move should benefit their teams.

Clark said she is glad Butler is playing in Chicago and Milwaukee again, as many of her team’s players have come from the Chicagoland area.

Roe said the move can be beneficial to Butler’s cross country and track and field teams outside the U.S.

“Georgetown, Providence and Villanova are national brands in our sport,” Roe said, “and to be aligned with them is going to help us on a national and international recruiting page.”

Snape said he hopes Butler’s move to the Big East can help it’s men’s soccer team recruit players who might otherwise consider more well-known conferences.

“We can actually go further (while recruiting) and maybe hit the East Coast,” Snape said. “If we can (also) have a prominent image in (Chicago), maybe we can compete for players with the Big Ten. Maybe they’ll look and say, ‘Hey, I can go get a soccer experience playing at Butler in that Big East.’”

Clark said many people may not realize how difficult it is for fall sports to turn around and prepare for a new conference in such a short period of time.

“It’s almost April right now, so in four or five months we’re going to be doing a completely different thing than we just did for eight months, which for me is different than the last 13 years,” Clark said.

Clark said she is also concerned about the level of funding her team has in comparison to some of the other teams the Bulldogs will be facing.

However, she said her student-athletes are “resilient” and will “rise to the occasion” when preparing for another new conference.

“Any coach, any player that’s truly a competitor wants to compete against the best all the time,” Clark said. “I’m very excited for where we’re headed.”

The Butler volleyball and football teams have experienced great success this year, thanks in part to contributions from three transfer athletes.

Volleyball players Morgan Peterson and Erica Stahl and quarterback Matt Lancaster have helped lead their teams to conference tournament berths and a share of the conference title, respectively.

MORGAN PETERSON

Peterson, a transfer from Middle Tennessee State University, is in her first season as a member of the Butler volleyball team.

Early in the year, she was named most valuable player at the DePaul Invitational and made the All-Tournament team at the Pittsburgh Invitational.

“The one intangible that Morgan brings to the team is her competitiveness,” Clark said. “It’s pro level in terms of how competitive of a player she is, and that’s been a great addition for us.”

Peterson has also made strides in her offensive play. Her hitting percentage ranks fourth in the Atlantic 10 Conference.

As a junior, Peterson is one of the older players on the team. Peterson said she has experienced a major role change since coming to Butler.

“Here at Butler, I’m pretty much the oldest except for Rachel (Barber) so I have more experience and I am leading the other people instead of following,” Peterson said.

ERICA STAHL

Stahl transferred from University of Cincinnati last year.

The junior was recruited by Clark out of high school but chose Cincinnati over Butler. In an earlier interview, Stahl said she chose to come to Butler because of her respect for Clark and the rest of the coaching staff.

Stahl has had a dominant seson, especially in blocking. Her strong play has led to a team-high 153 blocks. This mark puts her second in the A-10 and 13th nationally.

“I’m here mostly just to keep the ball off the floor on our side and help out our defenders as much as possible,” Stahl said.

Similar to Peterson, Clark said Stahl is a fierce competitor.

“The thing that I think Erica will continue to get better at is being more of an offensive threat,” Clark said. “She’ll be a great blocker, but she will be able to raise the level of her hitting and make her more dominant.
“I think that (Stahl and Peterson) are both top all-conference players, and they will be next year.”

Peterson and Stahl have helped lead the volleyball team to a berth in the A-10 tournament.

The tournament will take place at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, where the Bulldogs will face Virginia Commonwealth Friday evening.

MATT LANCASTER

Junior Lancaster transferred from Illinois State University, where he played 16 games in two seasons of football.

He had a full ride scholarship to play at ISU but said it was not the right atmosphere and decided it was time for a change.

Butler was one of Lancaster’s options when he was in high school. Upon leaving ISU, he contacted head coach Jeff Voris, and two days later Voris said he was interested in having Lancaster on the team.

Lancaster redshirted last year when he transferred to Butler. He has one more year of eligibility remaining.

Lancaster led the team to at least a share of the Pioneer Football League title, compiling a 7-1 conference record and 8-3 overall mark. Coach Jeff Voris said Lancaster has been a big help to the program.

“He’s been a great teammate and a heck of a football player,” Voris said. “He has all the intangible qualities that you look for in a quarterback.”

Lancaster recorded several strong statistics this season. He completed over 60 percent of his passes for more than 2,700 yards. He has thrown 21 touchdowns to only three interceptions.

Voris said Lancaster’s work ethic has been a key to his success.

“What he brings to the team is a guy who loves football and (he) has a work ethic that’s unmatched,” Voris said. “He constantly works at his game and week-to-week gets better.”

Voris also lauded Lancaster’s enthusiasm and leadership.

“He’s enthusiastic about practice and games, and no question he’s been a big addition to our program,” Voris said.

Lancaster was effective running the ball, too. His 408 rushing yards is second only to starting running back Trae Heeter. Lancaster averaged over 37 yards per game and tallied eight touchdowns on the ground.

“I’ve always been kind of a dual-threat quarterback,” Lancaster said. “I think coach liked that part of me, and I like running the ball too.”

Lancaster was a part of many major plays throughout the season.

He threw three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter to cap a dramatic comeback against Morehead State.

He also commanded a 95-yard game-winning drive against Jacksonville and scored the winning touchdown on a fourth-and-goal with two seconds left.

“It was surreal,” Lancaster said. “To go 95 yards in the hail and on fourth-and-goal, to have coach call my number, it shows a lot about him.”

With the win over Jacksonville, the Bulldogs clinched at least a share of the Pioneer Football League title.

Despite losing to Drake last weekend, Lancaster said he will always remember the successes of the team this year.

“I hated losing and everything, but when we’re out of school 20 to 25 years, what we are going to remember is that we won a championship, and no one can take that away from us,” Lancaster said.

The Butler volleyball team is making its first appearance in the Atlantic 10 conference tournament.

The Bulldogs (17-11, 7-7) defeated Saint Louis (10-19, 4-10) three sets to none Saturday night.

The Butler win, combined with a Duquesne victory over George Washington, put the team in sixth place in the A-10. It also gave the Bulldogs the last spot in the post-season tournament.

“I am super happy for my players” coach Sharon Clark said. “They have worked hard all season long, they really put it together and we are peaking at the right time, so I’m thrilled.”

Butler will play Virginia Commonwealth (24-5, 10-4) Friday in the first round of the tournament, hosted by Duquesne University, in Pittsburgh. The Rams swept the Bulldogs in their last meeting in mid-October.

The win against Saint Louis was the Bulldogs’ fifth straight overall, and Butler has won all but one set during its run. Clark said the team will be confident heading into the conference tournament.

“We’re going to get back to work and do the same things we’ve been doing,” Clark said. “Every one of those games is giving us momentum going into the conference tournament.

“We’re in it to win it, and we are going in wanting to win it all.”

The first set against the Billikens last Saturday was evenly-matched in the beginning, with the Billikens holding a small lead. Butler recorded a three-point run to take a 13-12 lead and force a SLU timeout.

Butler was up 19-15 and appeared to be in control until the Billikens came back to tie the set at 21. Down 23-22, Butler was able to win two straight points to make it set point.

Saint Louis fought off two set points, but junior Claire Randich was able to put away the first set on the Bulldog’s third set point.

Butler dominated the beginning of the second set as it jumped out to a quick 7-2 lead.

The Bulldogs continued their dominance out of a timeout, taking five of the next seven points to force another Billikens’ timeout. Following the break, Butler went on another four-point run and would dominate the rest of the set, winning 25-14 to take a 2-0 lead.

Butler led in the early stages of the third set, but Saint Louis was able to pull within one. The Bulldogs would not give up, and they took four of the five next points to take a 14-10 lead.

Butler dominated the rest of the set, taking 11 of 17 points to complete the sweep and earn themselves the conference tournament berth.

“I think that we have a confidence right now that we are rolling off of, and working in practice every single day, and those things are starting to pay off for us,” Clark said.

Leading the Bulldogs was senior Rachel Barber, who had 14 kills. Sophomore Erica Stahl had five blocks, and sophomore Brooke Ruffolo had 21 digs.

The match was the last of Barber’s college career. She is the only senior on the team.

The match Friday against VCU is set to begin at 4:30 p.m.

The Butler Volleyball team (15-11, 5-7) defeated La Salle (4-24, 0-12) in straight sets for its third straight win.

The first set was even in the beginning stages. Butler took a 11-10 lead to force a La Salle timeout, and then took four of the next five to take a 15-11 lead. The Bulldogs went on a four point run later in the set to bring the score to 20-14, and force and Explorer timeout. The Bulldogs closed out the set off a kill by Morgan Peterson.

The Bulldogs nearly held the Explorers to single digits as Butler dominated the entire second set to take a 2-0 lead heading into halftime.

Butler was down 2-5 early in the second set, but the Bulldogs fought back to tie it at five. Later, Butler took seven straight capped by two aces by Stephanie Kranda, and La Salle called a timeout. Butler again went on a run, taking six of seven to force another Explorer timeout. The Bulldogs then outscored La Salle five to three to finish the set and complete the sweep.

“I think serving tonight was great for us” said Sharon Clark, head coach of the Bulldogs. “We did a terrific job of serving really aggressively and the girls did a good job and stuck to it.”

Leading the Bulldogs was Morgan Peterson, who had nine kills, Erica Stahl added six blocks, and Brooke Ruffolo tallied eight digs.

Vs. Temple

The Butler Volleyball team (16-11, 6-7) defeated Temple (17-10, 7-6) three sets to one for their fourth straight win.

Butler started off the first set hot, taking an early 10-5 lead to force a Temple timeout. The Bulldogs continued their dominance out of the timeout, taking nine of 14 to force another Temple timeout. Butler finished out the set with a three point run, capped by an ace by Brooke Ruffolo.

Butler again took an early 9-4 lead before the Owls called a timeout. Butler held a comfortable lead for the rest of the set, and took a 2-0 lead into halftime following a kill by Claire Randich.

In the third set, it was the Owls who took an early 10-5 lead, and later a 13-6 lead to force a Butler timeout. Temple extended their lead to 20-13, and the Butler then called a timeout. The Bulldogs came out of the timeout with a three-point run, and the Owls called a timeout. Butler could not continue their run, as the Owls took the third set 25-20.

Butler dominated the entire fourth set, and held Temple to only eight points. The Bulldogs took 11 of the last 15 points in the set.

Leading the Bulldogs was Maggie Harbison who had 16 kills, Brooke Ruffolo had 19 digs, and Claire Randich and Erica Stahl each added seven blocks.

Butler will have their season finale against Saint Louis on Saturday at 5:00. Butler lost a tough match in St. Louis in early October.

“Our goal is to finish on a win, to finish the conference with two,” Clark said.

vs. Fordham

The Butler Volleyball team (13-11, 3-7) defeated Fordham (13-16, 5-5) in straight sets on Friday evening in The Bronx at Rose Hill Gymnasium.

The Bulldogs were in the lead or tied for then entire first set except for one point. The Rams would threat, but Butler responded every time to hold the lead. Fordham was able to stave off one set point. But a kill by Claire Randich on the next point put the Bulldogs up 1-0.

In the second set, Fordham led for the beginning stages of the set. The Bulldogs were able to tie it at ten. Later in the set, Fordham took six of eight to force a Butler timeout with the Rams on top 20-19.

Both teams traded points and Fordham was the first to get set point in their favor. Butler won the next point to continue the set. Fordham then got three more set points, and the Bulldogs fought off all of them. Butler then had a set point of their own, but Fordham responded with a kill to extend the set.

The Rams won then next point to give themselves their fifth set point, but Butler again denied them of a victory. The Bulldogs also were unsuccessful on their next set point. But the third time was the charm for Butler. Kelly Kyle knocked in a kill to win a dramatic second set 33-31.

Sophomore Belle Obert said that the key to winning the second set was their confidence and contributions from the bench.

“There wasn’t any point in that set that we thought about losing it, we knew we were going to win it” said Obert. [The bench] really showed the depth of our team. All in all it was just a fun set to play.”

“After winning [the second set] the message was that we can control our own destiny in this match” said Sharon Clark, head coach. “We worked to keep the momentum that came with winning a very tough competitive set 2.”

The third set stared out with a three point run by Fordham. Butler then responded with a six point run to force a Fordham timeout. The score was very close for the majority of the set, no team led by more than two until Butler took two straight to make the score 22-19, and force a Fordham timeout.

Fordham took two of the next three to force a Butler timeout with the Bulldogs up 23-22. The Rams tied the set at 23 on the next point. Butler then took the next two off a kill by Kyle and an error by Fordham to complete the sweep.

Leading the Bulldogs was Randich who had nine kills. Randich, along with Morgan Peterson had five blocks and Belle Obert tallied 11 digs.

vs. Rhode Island

The Butler Volleyball team (14-11, 4-7) defeated Rhode Island (9-15, 5-6) in straight sets Saturday evening in Kingston.

The only lead Rhode Island had for the entire match was when they led 2-1 early in the first set. The Bulldogs led 22-12 late in the set, but the Rams were able to take six of the next seven to force a Butler timeout. Butler then closed out the set three points later off a kill by Claire Randich.

The Bulldogs dominated the entire second set, winning handily 25-13. The third set was won in similar fashion, as the Bulldogs won 25-15 to complete the sweep. Butler held the Rams to a .021 hitting percentage for the match, and held double digit leads in every set. Obert attested their successes this weekend to their blocking.

“Our blocking is consistently a key to our success” said Obert. “When we block a lot of balls, we win and that was the case with this weekend.”

“Our strength all year has been blocking” agreed Clark. “The difference was how well we played the serve and pass game. We were just dominant at both of those skills.”

Leading the Bulldogs was Rachel Barber who had eight kills, Erica Stahl added six blocks, and Belle Obert had eight digs.

This was the Bulldogs’ longest, and final road trip of the year. Butler will play their last three games of the season at home. This weekend, the Bulldogs will take host two teams from Philadelphia. On Friday, Butler plays La Salle and on Sunday, they will play Temple. La Salle is 0-11 in A-10 play, and 4-23 overall while Temple is 6-5 in the A-10 and 16-9 overall.

“We had 2 great wins on the road and now get to finish the rest of the regular season at home” said Clark.

The Butler volleyball team is preparing for its third Atlantic 10 Conference road trip after dropping a pair of matches over the weekend.
The Bulldogs (12-11, 2-7) won a set in their match against league-leading No. 18 Dayton (17-4, 9-0) on Sunday, but the Flyers (17-4, 9-0) captured a 3-1 victory.
The opening-set was a back-and-forth affair that saw Dayton come away with a 26-24 win.
The Bulldogs led through most of the second set and eventually put the Flyers away for their only victory of the match.
Butler kept things close in the third set, but could not down Dayton a second time. This scene repeated itself in the fourth set, which the Flyers won to end the match.
Butler coach Sharon Clark said she was still proud of the Bulldogs’ effort despite the result.
“We really kept playing and played tough, but (the Flyers) dug more balls than we did and were able to terminate when they needed to, and that was the difference” said Clark.
“We stuck to our game plan” junior middle back Maggie Harbison said. “Although we didn’t win, we found great successes and took a huge step forward.”
Leading the Bulldogs was sophomore outside hitter Belle Obert with 17 kills. Sophomore middle back Erica Stahl added eight blocks, and sophomore libero Brooke Ruffolo tallied 21 digs.
On Friday, Butler fell in straight sets to Xavier.(15-9, 7-2)
The Musketeers (15-9, 7-2) jumped out to a big lead to open the contest, grabbing a 13-3 advantage in the opening set.
The hole would prove to be too much for the Bulldogs to dig out of, as they lost the first set 25-18.
In the second set, Butler and Xavier were close in the early stages. Eventually, the Musketeers gained the upper hand and came away with a 25-20 set victory.
The Bulldogs refused to go away in what proved to be the final set, although they eventually lost 25-23 to give Xavier the match.
Junior middle back Claire Randich provided 11 kills and three blocks for Butler. Junior setter Morgan Peterson also recorded three blocks, and Ruffolo added 17 digs.
The Bulldogs will head east for their next two matches, against Fordham (13-14, 5-3) Friday and Rhode Island (7-14, 3-5) Saturday.

The Butler Volleyball team (11-8, 1-4) fell to Saint Louis (6-13, 1-4) on Saturday evening three sets to one.

The Bulldogs had to play behind during the entire set except for when they won the first point. Butler was down by as many as six when the score was14-20. The Bulldogs were able to then take five of the next six to bring the score to within two. However, the Billikens were able to close out the set, winning 25-22.

In the second set, the Bulldogs were able to get off to a fast start, and were up 8-3 to force a SLU timeout. The Billikens fought back bring the score to 9-8, but the Bulldogs would not surrender. Butler then took five of the next six to force another SLU timeout.

Butler would maintain a comfortable lead for most of the set. However, SLU had a late-set run, bringing the Bulldog lead to only two. The Bulldogs came out of their timeout on fire, and would take the next two to close out the set, 25-21.

Butler got off to another great start in the third set, up 8-3 at one point. The Billikens would rally, and tie the score up at 11. The middle stages of the set were even, as both teams exchanged leads several times. With the score all tied up at 21, SLU won the next two points to force a Butler timeout.

The Bulldogs were unable to rally, as SLU would take two out of the next three to close out the set 25-22, and lead in 2-1 in sets.

The Bulldgos got off to a slow start in the third set, and were down 1-6. Butler was not able to rally, and lost the set 22-19, and the match three sets to one.

Sharon Clark, head coach of the Bulldogs, said prior to the match that was going to be difficult to beat SLU at home.

“I think that they play very tough at home. Going five [sets] with [Duquesne and George Washington] kind of shows that they have played well at home” said Clark.

Leading the Bulldogs was Maggie Harbison, who had 14 kills. Erica Stahl added six blocks, and Brooke Ruffolo had 24 digs.

Harbison said that the team passed well, but their serving and blocking could have been better

“We missed about 5 or 6 serves in the second set, which cost us the set” said Harbison.

“We didn’t serve as aggressively as we would have probably liked and as a result, we had a lot of service errors” agreed Claire Randich.

Butler had trouble closing out sets during the match. In the first set, Butler was down by two points twice 19-21 and 21-23, but were unable to rally. In the third set, the Bulldogs had a 20-19 lead, but SLU took six of the next eight to win the set 25-22. Randich, who did not practice all week with an injury, said it was a tough match to lose.

“It’s frustrating to see us lose to St. Louis because I thought our team played well all match” said Randich. “I think the difference was that they put away some balls at crucial points, and we didn’t execute as well as we would have liked to.”

“We did struggle closing out the match” said Harbison. “I think that we need to get the ball to our strongest and most consistent hitters at that time.”

The Bulldogs will play SLU again at home in the final regular season game on November 10. “I’m thankful that we have the opportunity to see that team again on our own home court. I know that we will handle things differently next time” said Randich.

The Bulldogs will play at Charlotte on Thursday. Charlotte is coming off a 13-14 overall, 7-8 in-conference record. This year, the 49ers are 8-8 overall, and are 0-4 in-conference.

The Butler volleyball team is preparing to take on its next conference opponent, Saint Louis, after going 1-1 on the weekend and earning its first-ever Atlantic 10 conference win.

The Billikens (5-13, 0-4) are coming off a 15-12 record last year and a loss in the second round of the A-10 tournament to Xavier.

Saint Louis took back-to-back five-set losses against Duquesne and George Washington on Friday and Saturday, respectively.

Butler (11-7, 1-3) fell to Duquesne (15-5, 4-0) three sets to one on Saturday night.

The Bulldogs won the first set by a score of 25-23, using multiple-point runs throughout the match to pull out the win.

The second set was similar to the first, except it was the Dukes who had success toward the end of the set.

With Butler leading 21-17, Duquesne would go on to take eight of the next 10 points to close out the set and send the teams into the third set tied.

In that set, the Bulldogs got into an 11-4 deficit, and were never able to recover. The Dukes won the third set 25-17 to put the Bulldogs on the brink of defeat.

With the score 15-15 in the fourth set, the Dukes rallied and went on a four point streak.

A few points later Butler senior Rachel Barber seemed to have a kill that was tipped by a Duquesne player. The officials ruled that it wasn’t tipped, to the dismay of the Bulldogs, and the Dukes then followed with an ace to force a Butler timeout.

Duquesne would eventually close out the set 25-19.

Junior Maggie Harbison led the Bulldogs with 15 kills, sophomore Brooke Ruffolo tallied 15 digs and junior Morgan Peterson and sophomore Erica Stahl each had four blocks.

The Bulldogs defeated George Washington (4-12, 1-2) three sets to none in Butler’s first home conference match of the season last Friday.

The Bulldogs came out strong and dominated the first set, winning by a score of 25-16.

Both teams traded for the lead several times in the second set. With Butler leading 21-20, Harbison served an ace to force a George Washington timeout.

The Colonials would bring the game to within one point again, but the Bulldogs took three of the next four points to close the set 25-22.

“It’s always great momentum to go in 2-0,” coach Sharon Clark said. “We worked on being aggressive throughout the match, and we had a few errors with that, but I’ll take that as long as we stay aggressive.”

In the third set, the Bulldogs started quickly. With Butler leading 21-16, George Washington would rally to cut the lead to one and force a Butler timeout.

Sophomore Belle Obert hit two kills to set up match point, and the Bulldogs got the win with a block by sophomores Stephanie Kranda and Stahl.

Clark said earning a victory in the second set was huge.

Clark also said that the crowd played a factor in the team’s victory.

“(The crowd) always helps,” Clark said. “The energy, the excitement about playing at home, that first conference match, we kind of ran with that, and that was great for us.”

Obert led the Bulldogs with 16 kills, junior Claire Randich had nine blocks, and Ruffolo had 18 digs.

The volleyball team was the first squad to represent Butler in the Atlantic 10 Conference when they faced Dayton last Friday.

The Bulldogs (10-6, 0-2) lost three sets to one. Despite the loss, several players thought the match was a great experience.

“I thought we really came out to play,” sophomore Kelly Kyle said. “(Dayton) has one of the best environments. They had a huge crowd. It was definitely fun to play in.”

The Flyers (9-4, 1-0) play in the  Frericks Center, the third largest volleyball-only facility in college volleyball, according to Dayton’s website.

“It was really fun,” junior Maggie Harbison said. “It’s a small gym and they have a huge fan base, so it was a blast.”

The atmosphere of the A-10 is a new experience for the team.

“It was a lot different than the Horizon League,” sophomore Belle Obert said. “It was a crazy game with the huge crowd and the whole game experience was a lot more fun and exciting.”

Coach Sharon Clark said she had eagerly been anticipating finally being able to play A-10 competition because it was what was best for the program.

“For me, our biggest thing is, what’s the next step for the program,” Clark said.

The Flyers are the three-time defending A-10 volleyball champions and are coming off a 14-1 campaign last season.

“That makes it exciting for us to know that the bar is being raised and we’re going to work to step up to it and meet that challenge,”  Clark said. “Our goal is to go out there and compete at the highest level we can.”

Following the 3-0 loss at Dayton, the Bulldogs continued their A-10 play against Xavier Saturday afternoon. Butler fell three sets to none.

The Musketeers (9-7, 2-0), like Dayton, have ranked in the top three in the A-10 for the last three seasons.

“The competition (in the A-10) is very stiff,” Clark said. “Overall, it’s a much stronger conference for us.”

The new conference brings new competition and new challenges.

“It’s bigger competition,” Harbison said. “I think there’s a lot bigger hitters and height, and it’s a faster pace.”

Harbison said that playing Dayton and Xavier was hard, but it will make the team tougher for future games.  The Bulldogs get to play Dayton and Xavier again when they visit Hinkle Fieldhouse in mid-October.

Butler will be playing many new teams, and with that comes travelling to new places.

Clark said this will be one of the biggest differences between the A-10 and the Horizon League.

“The biggest differences for us are the simple things, like traveling into cities we’ve never been in,” Clark said. “We’re also excited about showing people everywhere we go how great Butler is and what we’ve been all this time.”

Agreeing with Clark, Obert said she is looking forward to going through it all with her teammates.

“We’re trying not to just take in the volleyball, but also the whole experience of traveling and being with the team and coaches,” Obert said.