Volleyball Set to Face #5 Seed DePaul in First Round of 2023 BIG EAST Tournament

Wednesday, November 22

Milwaukee, Wisc.

6:30 p.m. ET

Xavier University

DePaul

Tickets

Volleyball Set to Face #5 Seed DePaul in First Round of 2023 BIG EAST Tournament

11.21.23 | Volleyball

WATCH LIVE STATS TICKETS GAME NOTES

Xavier heads to the BIG EAST Tournament for the second consecutive season as the #4 seed

By: Dianna Lewis, Xavier Athletic Communications

MILWAUKEE, Wisc. - Xavier volleyball is set to face the #5 seed, DePaul, in the first round of the 2023 BIG EAST Tournament on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. ET.

The Musketeers will face the Blue Demons for the second time in the 2023 schedule.

Xavier journeys to the BIG EAST Tournament for the second consecutive season, and the sixth overall, since the program joined the BIG EAST in 2013.

GAME INFORMATION

#4 Xavier vs #5 DePaul
Nov. 22 | 6:30 p.m. ET | Milwaukee, Wisc. | Al McGuire Center
Live Stats - bit.ly/XUMUStats
Watch - bit.ly/49OuOvC
Tickets - bit.ly/40Q5xgG

ABOUT DEPAUL

2023 Record: 16-13 (9-9 BIG EAST)
2022 Record: 10-20 (6-12 BIG EAST)
2022 Postseason: N/A
Series History: 21-10 (since 1981)
Last Meeting: Oct. 20, 2023; DePaul win 3-1
Head Coach: Marie Zidek (6th)

PREVIOUS MEETING

• Four Musketeers tallied 10 or more kills against the Blue Demons - Emma Grace and Sarah Stevens posted 10, Anna Taylor tallied 13, a season-high, and Brooklyn Cink boasted 14, the team-high.

• Carrigan O'Reilly and Emma Grace both recorded double-doubles in the match - O'Reilly tallied 49 assists with 10 digs and Grace registered 10 digs with her 10 kills.

• Stevie Wolf boasted a season-high 28 digs in the four-sets, averaging 7.0 digs per set.

• Lucia Corsaro boasted 25 perfect receptions with Grace tallying 20 and Cink recording 18.

• Cink, O'Reilly, Stevens, Taylor, and Delaney Hogan all posted two or more total blocks against DePaul.

BIG EAST STANDINGS

Place	Team	BIG EAST	OVERALL
1.	Creighton	16-2	25-4
2.	Marquette	16-2	20-9
3.	St. John's	13-5	21-9
4.	Xavier	11-7	18-11
5.	DePaul	9-9	16-13
6.	Villanova	8-10	17-13
7.	Seton Hall	8-10	14-15
8.	Butler	7-11	13-16
9.	Georgetown	5-13	14-16
10.	Providence	3-15	9-21
11.	UConn	3-15	9-22

WEEKLY AWARDS

• Stevie Wolf was selected as the BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week for second time this season, and in her career, on Nov. 13. Wolf led the BIG EAST in digs with 45, averaging 6.43 per set and tacked on an additional nine assists in the sweep of Providence and the 3-1 victory over UConn. The senior libero has accumulated over 1,300 career digs.

• Carrigan O'Reilly was tabbed to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll for the fourth time this season on Nov. 13. The graduate setter contributed across the board with 10 kills, 15 digs, five total blocks, two service aces, and 74 total assists, averaging 10.57 assists per set, and collecting her 47th career double-double in the sweep of Providence and 3-1 victory over UConn.

• Delaney Hogan was tabbed to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll for the fourth time this season on Nov. 6. The senior middle blocker registered 24 kills and seven total blocks on a .442 clip in the 2-0 weekend for the Musketeers, topping Georgetown in straight sets and reverse sweeping Villanova.

• Delaney Hogan earned her third BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll selection of the 2023 season on Oct. 30. The senior middle blocker collected 20 kills and six total blocks across seven sets in a 1-1 week for the Musketeers, falling to St. John's and defeating Seton Hall in four sets.

• Carrigan O'Reilly earned her third BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll selection of the 2023 season on Oct. 16. The graduate setter accumulated 10 kills, 10 digs, 67 assists, three total blocks, two service aces, and averaged 11.12 assists per set in the straight sets victories over UConn and Providence.

• Delaney Hogan was tabbed to the Oct. 9 BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll for her performances against St. John's and Seton Hall. The senior middle blocker registered 19 kills, a .430 hitting percentage, 10 block assists, and one service aces in the seven sets.

• Carrigan O'Reilly was tabbed to the Oct. 2 BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll for her performances at Villanova and Georgetown. The graduate setter collected 14 kills, 55 assists, 22 digs, a .433 hitting percentage, five total blocks, a double-double, and her fifth career triple-double. O'Reilly earned the selection for the 15th time in her career.

• Emma Grace was named the BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week on Sept. 25 for her performance in the opening week of conference play. The redshirt sophomore outside hitter and defensive specialist registered 21 kills seven service aces, 14 digs, three block solos, two block assists, and 43 perfect receptions against No. 11 Creighton and Butler. Grace was instrumental in the program's historical win over No. 11 Creighton, boasting a career-high five service aces in the match. She earns the Offensive Player of the Week honor for the first time in her career.

• Stevie Wolf was tabbed the BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 25 for her performance in the opening week of conference play. The senior libero tallied 41 digs, three service aces, 45 perfect receptions and averaged 5.13 digs/set in the two matches. Wolf led the defense in the program's historical win over No. 11 Creighton with her 25 digs and 29 receptions. She earns the Defensive Player of the Week honor for the first time in her career.

• Sarah Stevens was tabbed to the Sept. 18 BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll for her performance in the final weekend of nonconference action. The redshirt junior middle blocker registered 20 kills, six block assists, one block solo, and a .555 hitting percentage against Northern Kentucky and Kennesaw State. Stevens earned the selection for the first time in her career.

• Carrigan O'Reilly was tabbed to the Sept. 18 BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll for her performance in the final weekend of nonconference action. The graduate setter tallied 76 assists in the seven sets averaging 10.86 assists/set and collected an additional 13 digs, three block assists, and eight kills. She led the team to average 14.33 kills/set against Northern Kentucky and 13.75 kills/set against Kennesaw State.

• Delaney Hogan was tabbed to the Sept. 11 BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll for her performance in the Xavier Tournament where the middle blocker accumulated 37 kills, only two errors, five block assists, one block solo, and a .603 hitting percentage in the three matches. In the match against Bellarmine, Hogan hit for .867, tying the BIG EAST Overall Individual Single Match Record for hitting percentage.

• Emma Grace was tabbed to the Aug. 28 BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll for her performance in the Cincinnati Tournament where the outside hitter accumulated 46 kills, 26 digs, four service aces, and a .389 hitting percentage across 11 sets.

BIG EAST PRESEASON POLL

BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year: Norah Sis, Creighton, Jr., OH

Preseason All-BIG EAST:
Jaymeson Kinley, R.S. Sr, Butler, DS
Ava Martin, So., Creighton, OH
Norah Sis, Jr., Creighton*, OH
Kendra Wait, Jr., Creighton*, S
Jill Pressly, Sr., OH, DePaul
Yadhira Anchante, Jr., Marquette*, S
Hattie Bray, Jr., Marquette, MB
Aubrey Hamilton, Sr., Marquette, OH
Carsen Murray, Sr., Marquette*, MB
Giorgia Walther, Jr., St. John's, OH
Brooklyn Cink, Gr., Xavier, OH
Carrigan O'Reilly, Gr., Xavier, S/RS
*Unanimous selection

Preseason Coaches Poll
Points (First place votes)
1. Marquette 97 (7)
2. Creighton 94 (4)
3. Xavier 78
4. St. John's 64
5. UConn 63
6. DePaul 59
7. Villanova 46
8. Butler 40
9. Seton Hall 30
10. Providence 18
11. Georgetown 16

SCHEDULE NOTES

• The Musketeers faced Purdue Fort Wayne in an exhibition match on Aug. 19 in Fort Wayne.

• Xavier will play 11 nonconference matches between four tournaments, with five games at home and six on the road. The Musketeers participate in two road tournaments, the Cincinnati Tournament and the Colorado Tournament, then return home to host two tournaments in the Cintas Center.

• The Musketeers swept the opening weekend of play in the Cincinnati Tournament with wins over Indiana State, rival Cincinnati, and first time opponent Alabama State.

• Xavier fell to Colorado, Northern Colorado, and Charlotte in the Colorado Classic.

• The Musketeers posted a 2-1 record in the Xavier Tournament with wins over Buffalo and Bellarmine while taking Missouri to five sets.

• Xavier opened the home slate of nonconference games on Sept. 8 with a 3-2 win over Buffalo.

• The Musketeers sealed nonconference action with a 2-0 weekend at home, highlighted by a 3-1 win over Northern Kentucky and a straight sets win over first time opponent Kennesaw State.

• Xavier opened BIG EAST action at Butler on Sept. 20 with a straight sets win and is set to close the regular season at Creighton on Nov. 17 at 7 pm.

• In a historical match, the Musketeers defeated No. 11 Creighton at home in a five-set thriller. With the victory, the program collects the first win over Creighton in it's history, the first ranked win since 2007 (#14 Cal Poly, 3-2), and the highest ranked win in program history.

• Xavier defeated UConn in straight sets on October 13 to earn the program's first victory over the Huskies.

• The Musketeers are 2-0 against Seton Hall in the 2023 schedule, the second win being highlighted by a 25-5 set four with an 11 point scoring run.

• For the fourth consecutive season, Xavier wrapped play with Georgetown 2-0, recording a reverse sweep and a straight sets victory.

• The Musketeers wrap the 2023 season at 2-0 with four BIG EAST team - Seton Hall, Georgetown, UConn, and Providence.

• In the five-set victory over Villanova on Nov. 5, five Musketeers recorded 10 or more kills and five Musketeers recorded 10 or more digs, the highest number of individual's meeting the 10+ threshold in the respective categories in any match in the 2023 season.

• Xavier will face foes from 11 different conferences in the 2023 schedule (BIG EAST, MAC, The Valley, SWAC, Pac-12, Big Sky, Big XII, AAC, SEC, ASUN, Horizon League), meeting Alabama State, Northern Colorado, and Kennesaw State for the first time in program history.

• The Musketeers will face four teams that played in the NCAA Tournament last season including Northern Colorado, Colorado, Marquette, and Creighton. Xavier also takes on Buffalo, St. John's and Alabama State, who each participated in the 2022 NIVC Tournament. Of the 21 opponents the Musketeers will face, 10 saw action in their respective conference tournament.

ABOUT THE MUSKETEERS

• The Musketeers were picked to finish third in the league as voted on the 2023 BIG EAST Preseason Poll by the coaches. Both Carrigan O'Reilly and Brooklyn Cink were tabbed to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. O'Reilly earned the selection for the third consecutive season.

• In 2022, the Musketeers achieved a 21-12 (11-7 BIG EAST) record, a trip to the BIG EAST Conference Tournament, and a postseason bid to the NIVC where they advanced to the quarterfinals but ended the season in a five set match with Boston College. The Musketeers are looking towards another successful season.

• Xavier returns 11 letterwinners, three of who were tabbed to the 2022 All-BIG EAST Team - Carrigan O'Reilly, Brooklyn Cink, and Delaney Hogan.

• To cap off the 2023 roster, the Musketeers added six freshman - Jamison Gordon, Elouise Czajkowski, Quinci Thomas, Kasey Quenichet, Margo Kemp, and Annie Eschenbach.

• The 2023 roster consists of two graduate students, four seniors, four juniors, one sophomore, and six freshmen.

• Following the conclusion of the 2022 regular season, Head Coach Christy Pfeffenberger and her staff were named the BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year. Returning this year alongside Pfeffenberger is Associate Head Coach Ed Tolentino for his eighth season and Assistant Coach Andre Foster for his second.

• In July, Coach Pfeffenberger announced the hiring of former student-athlete, Angel Robinson, as the program's new graduate assistant. As an athlete at Xavier, Robinson accumulated 155 kills, 61 block assists, 11 block solos, and 199.5 points. Robinson is one of 20 2023 AVCA Diversity Award winners.

UP NEXT

Xavier will face DePaul in the first round of the BIG EAST Tournament with the potential to face #1 Seed Creighton on Friday evening.