VB Secures Big East Championship With Sweep of St. John’s
MILWAUKEE – The Marquette University volleyball team (19-7, 14-2 BIG EAST) defeated St. John’s (19-10, 9-7 BIG EAST) in straight sets Saturday evening at the Al McGuire Center. With the win, MU secured at least a share of the 2026 BIG EAST Championship, their fifth in program history.
Carson Tyler led with 17 kills, hitting .400 while adding three service aces and five digs. Emma Parks provided 11 kills without an error on 25 swings for a .440 hitting percentage and added a career-high six blocks. Tani Juric contributed five kills and two blocks, while Molly Welge added three kills and four blocks. Luanna Markus directed the offense with 35 assists, adding four blocks and three digs. Defensively, libero Emi Juric recorded a team-high 18 digs, while Julia Stanev contributed six blocks. Marquette hit .311 as a team and held St. John’s to .165, finishing with advantages in kills (39-40), hitting percentage (.311-.165), assists (38-36), digs (40-50) and blocks (12-3).
The Golden Eagles scored the first six points, highlighted by a Carson Tyler service ace and several St. John’s attacking errors, forcing an early Red Storm timeout. Tyler added three kills during the opening surge, while Julia Stanev and Tani Juric contributed at the net. Marquette continued to build its advantage, extending the lead to 10-3 behind kills from Emma Parks and Molly Welge and a block by Parks and Welge. The Golden Eagles maintained a comfortable cushion throughout the frame, reaching a 20-10 advantage before closing out the set. Tyler added key kills late, while Juric contributed two kills down the stretch. Marquette secured the 25-15 victory on a block by Parks and Stanev.
The teams traded points early before the Golden Eagles used a 4-0 run to take a 13-10 lead, highlighted by kills from Carson Tyler and Emma Parks and a block by Parks and Molly Welge. St. John’s rallied to tie the set at 13-13, but Marquette responded with consecutive blocks from Julia Stanev and Luanna Markus to regain momentum and build a 16-13 advantage. The Golden Eagles continued to apply pressure, extending their lead to 20-15 behind additional blocks from Stanev and Markus and a Tyler kill. The Red Storm made a late push, trimming the deficit to 24-22, but Parks delivered the set-clinching kill from Markus to secure the 25-22 win.
In set three, the Golden Eagles used late a 5-0 run to turn a 20-18 deficit into a 23-20 advantage, fueled by strong serving from Emi Juric and key defensive plays at the net. Tani Juric delivered a solo block to tie the set at 20-20, while Emma Parks and Molly Welge combined for another block to put Marquette ahead. Parks then added a kill to extend the lead to 23-20. St. John’s answered with three consecutive points to pull within 24-23, but Parks delivered the match-clinching kill from Luanna Markus to secure the 25-23 victory and complete the sweep and clinch the regular-season title.
NOTES
- With the win, MU clinched a share of the regular-season BIG EAST Championship. MU will hold the No. 2-seed in the BIG EAST Tournament if Creighton defeats Villanova on Sunday and can clinch an outright title and the No. 1-seed if Creighton loses to the Wildcats.
- The title is Marquette’s first BIG EAST Championship since the 2023 season, and their fifth overall.
- Emma Parks set a new career-high of six blocks against St. John’s
- Emi Juric recorded 18 digs for the second-straight night, her ninth time in the past 11 matches with 15+ digs
- Carson Tyler finished the BIG EAST season with 44 aces, the most in a BIG EAST season in program and conference history.
UP NEXT
Marquette will head to the BIG EAST Tournament next Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 21-22, in Omaha, Neb.
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
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