Creighton Volleyball Believes It Can Reach Final Four

Creighton coach Brian Rosen said his team has believed it could reach the Final Four for months.

“Maybe the outside world didn’t think that we would be in this position right now, but I know our team did. It is awesome when you believe something that is possible,” Rosen said Friday. “We love that we woke up this morning to some snow, which really made us feel like we were back at home in Omaha. Just really excited to be competing another day with this team and hoping to take some people to Kansas City next week.”

Creighton will play host Kentucky Saturday at 5 p.m. in the NCAA Tournament Lexington Region final. The winner of the Elite Eight matchup will advance to the Final Four, something Creighton has never done and UK has only done once.

“They are just one of the cleanest teams in the country. They stay really poised and play with a lot of energy,” the Creighton coach said about UK. “We have played Eva Hudson the last two years at a former school (Purdue) so we are very familiar with how fiery she can get. She will stare you down through the net and she will turn and bring so much energy to her team. If she gets going, they get going.”

In seven sets against Creighton the last two seasons, Hudson had 29 kills and 11 attack errors in 89 swings to hit .202. She also had 16 digs, one ace and one block. Creighton won six of the seven sets.

“Obviously, Brooklyn (DeLeye) is great. Their middles can score, their right side can score. I know they have a freshman setter (Kassie O’Brien), but she is doing a great job running the offense. Coach (Craig) Skinner has always got his team incredibly well prepared. They just play really clean and that is why they have been able to have the record they have right now.

“I think we are the two teams that have pushed Nebraska to five sets at least, so they play great volleyball and are very consistent. They don’t have a lot of highs and lows. They stay who they are all the way through.”

Middle Lizzie Carr actually led Kentucky in its regional semifinal win over Cal Poly with 11 kills and six blocks. Like Carr, she played against Creighton at Purdue before transferring to UK.  Carr did not play for Purdue in  last year’s 3-1 Creighton win, but did have two blocks and hit -.500  in Creighton’s 2023 sweep over Purdue.

“They can find her where the pass it. That is really hard for us blocking wise, but she is a great player and is really tall and hits really high. I think just slowing her down is going to be really important,” Creighton’s Eloise Brandewie said Friday. “I think their passion and their fire is something that I noticed. They are going to be playing at home and just focusing on our side of the net and maintaining and focusing on what we can control will be very important.”

Middle blocker Jaya Johnson knows UK has a lot of weapons.

“One thing that I noticed was that their outsides have really good floor-to-floor shots, kind of like how (Creighton teammate) Ava Martin does. That is something they are really good at,” Johnson said. “I am just excited to play Brooklyn DeLeye again. Me and her are from the same area so I grew up playing her and I think it will be really fun to go head-to-head with her.”Freshman outside hitter Abbey Hayes knows Creighton has to slow down Hudson and DeLeye.

“We know they are going to get their kills and they have their dogs. So just finding a way to take them out of the offense and also just focusing on our side,” Hayes said. “We know that if we are Creighton good we can beat anyone in the country. Really just focusing on us and limiting our errors and just playing Creighton good.”

Rosen is in his first year as head coach and knows making the Final Four would be a dream come true for him and his team.

“We have been trying to get to this Final Four level for quite some time. To be in this stage in year one is pretty special. To be able to get to a Final Four this year would mean a lot to me and all the people that came before us,” the Creighton coach said. “The amount of alums that have reached out to me and are pushing for us and telling us to go make history and those kinds of things.

“It’d mean a lot to us to our players, coaches, Creighton community. So yeah, making a Final Four and it being in Kansas City where our fans could easily travel to would be pretty awesome.”

Brandewie and her teammates like being overlooked knowing almost everyone expects No. 2 Kentucky to win this home match.

“I love how this team plays with a chip on their shoulder every single game and we train from preseason to Big East play to now,” she said. “We are so intentional in the gym and trust each other. It is a lot different than other programs and it is great to be a part of.”

Creighton has won 23 straight matches and would have the nation’s second longest win streak behind Nebraska if it can snap UK’s 25-match win streak.

“I would hope and expect that all the sets tomorrow will be incredibly competitive and down to the wire,” Rosen said Friday. “Who scores when it matters at the end? I would also love a few sets where we win it running away, those are fun too.”