In a match like this, placing the pacey Jays against the #2 team in the preseason BIG EAST coach’s poll, to start conference play was something of a dream. The schizophrenic Bulldogs of Butler, who’d tied against top-5 ranked Akron and walloped #15 Western Michigan, had a tough task ahead against the top-25 Jays.
The beginning of this match started with a methodical effort from the Jays, using a softly paced offensive effort, steadily trying the right side of the Butler defense, only to end up short on shots by Joel Rystrand and Sven Koenig, both of which went wide of the net.