Ball State University Athletics
Women's Volleyball Drops Road Match to IPFW
September 20, 2005 | Women's Volleyball
Ft. Wayne, Ind. - - The Ball State (6-4) women's volleyball team suffered a 1-3 (21-30, 28-30, 30-19, 15-30) setback to IPFW (10-1) Tuesday evening at the Hilliard Gates Sports Center.
In the contest, senior Rachel Refenes (Milwaukee, Wis./Milwaukee Lutheran H.S.) paced the Cardinals with 12 kills and five total blocks. Junior Kelly Cochran (LaPorte, Ind./Michigan City Marquette H.S.) threw in her sixth double-double of the season with 13 digs and 11 kills.
In the opening set, the teams played to an 11-11 tie before a 14-4 run gave the Mastodons a 25-15 advantage. The Cardinals would claw within seven points on three occasions before dropping the game 30-21.
In the second stanza, the Cardinals jumped ahead 6-2 early, only to see IPFW tie the game at 7-7. The Mastodons would take their first lead of the contest at the 18-17. BSU would tie the score at 21-21 and 24-24, but three straight points would turn the tide in favor of the hosts as they went on to win the game 30-28.
In the third game, the teams played to a 7-7 tie before a six-point service run from senior Sarah Obras (Pendleton, Ind./Pendleton Heights H.S.) gave BSU a lead it would not relinquish the rest of the set. BSU's largest lead of the frame came at game-point, when Refenes lofted a kill past the IPFW defense making the score 30-19.
With Ball State leading 14-13 in the fourth game, a kill from IPFW's Fabiana Souza knotted the score at 14-14 and changed the pace of the contest. After the kill, Souza would serve 14-straight points, making the score 28-14, before ending her run with a service error. IPFW would then score the final two points to win the game 30-15.
Junior Kirby Gibson (Lafayette, Ind./Jefferson H.S.) would finish the contest with a match-best .625 (5-0-8) attack percentage for the Cardinals, while sophomores
Obras would finish the evening with nine kills and 13 digs, while junior libero Amanda McCormick (Muncie, Ind./Burris H.S.) logged a match-high 24 digs.
Also factoring in the match for the Cardinals were seniors Kristin Westhof (Fruitport, Mich./Fruitport H.S.) and Stephanie Bacan (Remsen, Iowa/St. Mary's H.S.) plus sophomore Lauren Robbins (Ennis, Texas/Ennis H.S.).
For the match, the Cardinals posted a .142 (48-27-148) attack percentage, compared to a .188 (59-29-160) mark for the Mastodons. While both teams finished the contest with 66 digs and five aces, IPFW held a 9-8 advantage in blocks
IPFW's Nicole Howell paced all players with 20 kills in the match.
The Ball State women's volleyball team looks to shake off Tuesday's loss when it opens Mid-American Conference play at Worthen Arena this weekend, where the team has won 13-straight matches. BSU hosts Miami Friday night and Bowling Green Saturday, with both contests starting at
