In only the first tournament of the year for the 2018-2019 Butler Bulldogs Mens Volleyball team expectations were already high. Coming off a season where the Dawgs were crowned silver bracket champions in only their first trip to nationals, all eyes were on what the squad could achieve this year. With an influx of fresh new faces mixed with a solid backbone of experience and chemistry the Dawgs cruised through their first tournament, never dropping a set. The Butler A team led by freshman setter Justin Bridges, Senior opposite Jackson Nagle, and fifth year libero Robert Smith seemed to be operating in mid-season form as the team went on to be crowned tournament champions. The Butler B team led by Freshman outside Alex Reinke, Sophomore Outside Brandon Gansell, and freshman setter Billy Psarros put up tremendous fights against all teams and finished fourth.
The dawgs would like to thank all the fans and teams for traveling to beautiful Butler University for this inaugural tournament. Also a huge shoutout goes to Bailey squared (Bailey Finocchio and Bailey Berelsman) from the Butler Club Sports department for helping our tournament run smoothly. The dawgs will be back in action November 3rd and 4th as they travel to Peoria, Illinois for a tournament at Bradley University. Match highlights for the Halloween showcase are featured below, and scores can be found on the schedule page.
Match Recaps:
Indiana State- Dawgs started off hot, not succumbing to previous problems in choking away the first match. Big play from Jackson Nagle and Johnny McDonald made sure the Dawgs beat their rivals ISU.
Southern Illinois-Edwardsville- Butler became fighters in the second set battling back from some tough offense from SIU-E thanks to the stellar passing of Robert Smith. With some additional great serving from Lukas Harkins the Dawgs eventually outlasted the Cougars and picking up the #1 seed for tournament play
Indiana State- ISU came back powerful and on a winning streak to get another shot at the Dawgs. It just wasn’t enough for them as Butler wold not be defeated today. Strong play out of setters Justin Fields and Trevor Tokarek made sure the Sycamores were sent packing back to Terre Haute
Ferris State- After going to three sets in their semi-final game the Ferris State Bulldogs came into this game exhausted and defeated. All it took was a few kills from Sam squared Sam Burton and Sam Smith, and some big blocks from John Lacheta in the middle to wear the Ferris State squad out. The fake Bulldogs were eventually sent packing back to Michigan in straight sets. Dawgs win their first tournament of the year without dropping a set.
Go Dawgs! #UnloadTheQuiver
