No. 18 Creighton fell in four sets to No. 4 Louisville on Friday night for the 2025 volleyball home opener. On family weekend, a sold-out crowd of packed D.J. Sokol Arena for the largest regular-season attendance in program history. Among them were generations of Bluejay fans, including former head coach Kirsten Bernthal Booth and her family, who saw Creighton go toe-to-toe with one of the best programs in the country.
“I loved their fight all match,” Head Coach Brian Rosen said. “Grit is our word: I thought they showed a ton of it from the start. We brought energy, the crowd was incredible, and we were able to feed off them through the highs and lows.”
Creighton struck first, controlling the opening set 25-19 behind blocks from senior middle blocker Kiara Reinhardt and steady swings from senior outside hitter Ava Martin. An ace from Destiny Ndam-Simpson and a Louisville net violation sealed the early lead, sending the crowd into a frenzy.
The second set was a marathon that stretched nearly 50 minutes. The Jays built a 19-14 lead and fought off multiple set points before Louisville finally closed, 31-29.
“We hung in there for so long, and it was a confidence-booster. Yes, it was physically taxing because we went to so many points, but mentally it gave us a lot,” Reinhardt said.
Creighton again built a cushion in the third set– a six-point lead behind kills from Ava Martin and Eloise Brandewie– but the Cardinals chipped away and eventually won on a CU service error, 25-22. Louisville, behind 18 kills from sophomore outside hitter Payton Petersen, finished strong in the fourth set to take the match. Senior outside hitter Ava Martin acknowledged the Jays lost some of their spark as the match wore on.
“We play the best when we’re playing with joy,” she said. “During sets one and two, the crowd was super involved and we played with a lot of joy. After that, it died down a little bit. We need to get back to playing our game and not getting too tense when we’re behind.”
Reinhardt led Creighton with 16 kills on .560 hitting and five blocks. Martin added 14 kills and eight digs, setter Anna Maeder spread the offense with 49 assists and 11 digs, and libero Saige Damrow anchored the defense with a match-high 18 digs. Creighton actually out-hit Louisville. .279 to .258, had more kills, digs, and more blocks, but just couldn’t finish tight sets.
For Rosen, those margins highlight both what was lost and what can still be built.
“Volleyball is a game of runs and a game of momentum,” he said. “We’ve got to find ways to make that one play that ends a run. We’re a really good serving team, so when we give our team opportunities to serve, we’re in a great spot.”
The Jays, 3-4, return Saturday against Rice before finishing their weekend against Northern Iowa on Sunday. After Friday’s battle, Martin sees this stretch as a chance to prove something.
“I think these next two games are gonna be a really good opportunity for us to go on runs, focusing on stamina,” she said. “We’ve shown we can compete, and we can get right back at it and continue to work.”
