St. John’s Takes Down Butler, 3-0, to Claim Fourth BIG EAST Sweep

Saturday, October 7

Indianapolis, Ind. (Hinkle Fieldhouse)

5 p.m.

St. John's University

13-5,5-1Big East

Butler

8-9,2-4Big East

St. John's (NY)

Butler

St. John’s Takes Down Butler, 3-0, to Claim Fourth BIG EAST Sweep

10/7/2023 7:54:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

The Red Storm is off to its best BIG EAST start since 2008

INDIANAPOLIS – Double-doubles from Erin Jones and Lucrezia Lodi powered the St. John's volleyball team to a straight-set sweep over Butler on Saturday evening inside historic Hinkle Fieldhouse.

With the win, the Johnnies (13-5, 5-1 BIG EAST) are now off to their best start in conference competition since 2008 when they only suffered two conference losses, going 12-2.

The scores of the sweep were 29-27, 25-13 and 25-21. The Red Storm have now swept four out of its six conference opponents so far this season.

"We rallied around each other to play at a high level in a hostile road environment," said Head Coach Joanne Persico. "This win is a testament to our resilience, teamwork and unwavering determination. This is a special squad and we are honored to be a part of."

Jones and Lodi each notched double-doubles in the sweep. Jones' sixth of the season consisted of 11 kills and 12 assists while Lodi's second of the season featured a team-high 12 kills and 13 digs.

Rashanny Solano Smith collected 24 digs at a whopping eight per set. She also tacked on five helpers and a kill.

Wiktoria Kowalczyk added a match-high 22 assists and four aces to go along with two digs.

Magda Stambrowska contributed a team-high four total blocks in addition to three kills. Giorgia Walther provided nine kills and a dig.

Jaymeson Kinley paced Butler (8-9, 2-4 BIG EAST) in digs with 15 while tacking on six assists. Abby Maesch led the Bulldogs in kills, racking up nine to go along with two digs and an ace. Cora Taylor added 19 assists for her team.

A heavily contested first game saw 13 ties and five lead changes. The squads went back and forth scoring points to open the set, leading to a 9-9 tie. The Bulldogs went on to score back-to-back points, taking an 11-9 lead and forcing a St. John's timeout. The Johnnies then put together a 6-3 stretch to retie the frame at 16-all, midway through the set. Tied up at 23 late, St. John's used a Walther slam to take its first set point, 24-22. The squad surrendered three straight set point opportunities, before the Bulldogs earned their first at 27-26. The Johnnies evened the game again, 27-27, off a Walther kill and took their fourth set point of the frame, 28-27, off a Ludovica Zola slam. The Johnnies closed out a barn burner set, 29-27, off an Eleonora Tosi and Zola block assist to take a 1-0 lead in the match.

Solano Smith recorded an impressive nine digs in the second game for the Johnnies. Butler jumped out to a 7-4 lead to kick off the second frame, but St. John's answered right back, scoring six straight points off Kowalczyk serves to take an 11-7 advantage. The Red Storm put together yet another large scoring run, hammering down eight straight points off kills from Jones, Stambrowska and Walther to increase its lead to 10, 19-9. The Johnnies ran away with the rest of the set, closing it out on a 6-4 run to take the game, 25-13.

The Bulldogs opened the third frame by growing an 11-6 advantage over St. John's after scoring seven unanswered points. Despite their five-point deficit, the Johnnies were unbothered, using a 9-1 run of their own that featured six combined slams between Lodi, Tosi and Jones to take a three-point lead, 15-12. The Bulldogs answered almost every St. John's point as they cut their lead down to three, 20-17, late in the third frame. Despite pressure from Butler, the Red Storm was able to hold them off, closing out the set with a Zola ace and taking it, 25-21.

St. John's will return to Carnesecca Arena on Friday, Oct. 13, when it hosts DePaul. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m.