Ball State University Athletics
Women's Volleyball Falls to Bowling Green in MAC Tournament Quarterfinals
November 17, 2006 | Women's Volleyball
Toledo, Ohio - - The No. 6 seed Ball State women's volleyball team saw its 2006 season come to an end Friday afternoon, falling to No. 3 seed Bowling Green 0-3 (11-30, 26-30, 16-30) in 2006 Mid-American Conference Tournament quarterfinal action. With the loss, BSU ends its season with a 12-18 overall record, while Bowling Green improved to 25-5 with the win.
Senior libero Amanda McCormick (Muncie, Ind./Burris H.S.) paced the Cardinals with 22 digs, ending the year with a BSU and Mid-American Conference single-season record 852 digs. The total also ranks second in NCAA Division I annals behind only Minnesota's Paula Gentil who posted 924 digs in 2004.
McCormick also finishes the season with a NCAA-record 7.68 digs-per-game average, shattering the previous record of 7.02 set in 2004 by Oral Roberts' Becky Dreher.
McCormick ends her two-year career with the Cardinals ranked third in BSU history with 1,579 digs. Prior to joining the Cardinals, McCormick tallied 718 digs in two seasons at Nebraska (2003-04) to give her a career total of 2,297. According to the NCAA Division I Record Book, McCormick's 2,297 career digs place her fourth in NCAA history.
Three other BSU seniors finished their careers in Friday's match, as Stephanie Bacan (Remsen, Iowa/St. Mary's H.S.),
Cochran finished her career as one of only three players in BSU history to record 1,200 kills and 1,200 digs in a career at Ball State. One of only five student-athletes in school annals to enter the 1,000/1,000 Club, Cochran tallied 10 digs and five kills in Friday's MAC Tournament quarterfinal contest to raise her career totals to 1,246 kills and 1,309 digs in her four seasons with BSU (2003-06). Cochran's career totals rank seventh and fourth, respectively, in those categories in BSU history.
Cochran also finishes her career ranked ninth in school history after playing in 446 career games. Over her career, Cochran has played in all 125 matches for BSU, while seeing action in 446 of a possible 465 games.
Bacan finishes her career with 635 digs, including 10 in today's contest. In 300 career games, Bacan also tallied 68 service aces and 66 kills. Bacan begane her career at Ball State in 2002 as an outside attacker, but was injured in her very first match and forced to switch to a defensive specialist. Over her career, Bacan has a 2.12 digs-per-game average, including a career-best 2.47 mark this season.
Gibson would score two blocks in the match to end her career ranked 16th on BSU's career charts with 263 total blocks. Her 217 career block assists rank 17th on BSU's all-time list, while her 0.70 blocks-per-game average is 20th among players with at least 200 total blocks.
After scoring the first point in this afternoon's match, the Cardinals fell behind by 10 points at the 13-3 mark. A kill from BSU junior Angie Parrell (Black Earth, Wis./Wisconsin Heights H.S.) would cut the gap to nine points at 13-4. However, BSU would get no closer, losing the set 30-11.
The teams would battle to a 7-7 tie in the second frame, before a six-point BSU run put the Cardinals ahead 13-7. BSU junior
Ball State would maintain its six-point edge at 15-9, before an 8-1 Bowling Green run gave the Falcons a 17-16 lead in the game. BGSU would pull ahead by two points at 19-17, before a service error and May kill tied the set at 19-19.
Bowling Green's Stephanie Swiger would break the tie with one of her match-high 16 kills, helping give the Falcons an edge they would not relinquish. BGSU would build a 27-22 lead before eventually winning the game 30-26.
After the 10-minute break, Bowling Green would pull out to a 6-0 advantage in the third and final game. BSU would manage to draw within three points at the 9-6 mark on kills from Gibson and freshman Cassie Conner (Willow Springs, Ill./Lyons Township H.S.). However, BSU would get no closer, eventually losing the set 30-16.
May would collect a team-high nine kills in the match, while adding three digs and three total blocks. In addition to her two blocks, Gibson scored eight kills and a dig.
In addition to her team-high 22 digs, McCormick finished the match with three assists, an ace and a kill. Breivogel tallied three kills and three digs in the loss.
Parrell finished the match with a team-high 20 assists, while scoring two kills, two digs, an ace and a block assist. Conner tallied six digs, four assists and one kill in the match.
Also factoring in the contest for the Cardinals were freshmen:
For the match, Bowling Green out-hit the Cardinals .265 (49-14-132) to .042 (33-27-142) in the match, while holding a 72-61 edge in digs, an 8-5 lead in blocks and a 4-2 advantage in aces.
In addition to Swiger's match-high 16 kills, Bowling Green's Chelsey Meek paced all players with 24 digs in the match.
