Marquette opens BIG EAST play with sweep of DePaul

Box Score (PDF)

MILWAUKEE – The No. 25 Marquette University women's volleyball team opened BIG EAST Conference play with a sweep over DePaul, 25-19, 25-13, 25-19, at the Al McGuire Center on Friday evening.

The Golden Eagles (5-2) hit .330 (40-10-91) in the match, led by six kills on 10 errorless swings from sophomore middle Claire Nuessmeier. Nuessmeier also added seven blocks on the evening. Senior Hope Werch landed nine kills and hit .316, while Hannah Vanden Berg and Kaitlyn Lines posted eight and seven kills, respectively.

Marquette hit .343 in a 25-19 opening set victory as Vanden Berg, Werch and Savannah Rennie each notched four kills. Taylor Wolf recorded nine assists in the frame along with a service ace.

The Golden Eagles hit .526 in the second set to cruise to a 25-13 win. MU needed just 11 kills in the frame, of which four were provided by Lines. The Blue Demons (0-1) recorded nine attack errors in the second and hit into the MU block five times.

MU broke free from a 12-12 tie in the third set with a 5-0 run capped by a Rennie service ace. DePaul would respond to pull the set within three, 22-19, before the Golden Eagles recorded the final three points to close the sweep.

Marquette has met DePaul on more occasions than any other BIG EAST opponent (61) and second only to Milwaukee in number of meetings in program history. The Golden Eagles hold a 32-29 edge in the all-time series against the Blue Demons following 18 consecutive wins, with their last loss in the series coming on Nov. 1, 2008. Theis is 13-0 in his Marquette career and has not lost a set to DePaul since Oct. 15, 2016, a five-set win in Chicago.

The Golden Eagles resume action at the Al McGuire Center on Saturday at 3 p.m. Central time against DePaul. The match will air live on GoMarquette.com with Patrick Reed and Michelle Griffin-Wenzel on the call.

Keep up with the Marquette University women's volleyball program through social media by following on Twitter (@MarquetteVB) and Instagram (@MarquetteVB) and 'liking' on Facebook (/MarquetteVolleyball).