Ball State University Athletics
Women's Volleyball Blanks Zips for Second-Straight Win
November 02, 2006 | Women's Volleyball
Muncie, Ind. - - The Ball State (8-17, 5-8 Mid-American Conference) women's volleyball team extended its winning-streak to two matches with a 3-0 (30-27, 30-22, 30-27) sweep of visiting Akron (7-20, 1-12 MAC) Thursday evening at Worthen Arena.
In the victory, freshman opposite side attacker
Defensively, senior libero Amanda McCormick (Muncie, Ind./Burris H.S.) turned in another big night, recording 38 digs which is a career-high for her in a three-game match. In addition, the total ranks fourth in the NCAA Division I record books for digs in a three-game match.
With the 38 digs, McCormick raised her NCAA-leading digs-per-game average to 7.52 on the year. The current NCAA record for is held by Oral Roberts' Becky Dreher at 7.02. The BSU and Mid-American Conference single-season mark is 6.32 set by McCormick last season.
Also playing a huge role in tonight's contest were freshman outside attacker Julie Breivogel (Boonville, Ind./Boonville H.S.) with a team-high 14 kills and junior middle/outside attacker
In the scorebook, the first set was the closest of the night with 10 ties and six overall lead changes. After Akron took the lead at the 27-26 mark, senior outside attacker
Senior opposite/middle attacker Kirby Gibson (Lafayette, Ind./Jefferson H.S.) would follow with the go-ahead kill, while a Zips' attack error lead to senior defensive specialist Stephanie Bacan's (Remsen, Iowa/St. Mary's H.S.) game-winning service ace at 30-27.
After playing to a 10-10 tie in the second stanza, a service ace from freshman outside attacker Ana Gabriela Pedrosa (Belo Horizonte,
In the third game, Akron would pull ahead 3-1, only to have BSU rally off 11 of the next 13 points to build a 12-5 advantage. The Zips would manage to fight back and draw within one point on six occasions with the last coming at 28-27. However, kills from BSU's Kakatolis and Gibson would end the frame at 30-27.
In addition to her rally-sparking kill in the opening stanza, Cochran would finish the night with four markers to bring her career total to 1,186. She is now 14 kills shy of becoming just the third player in school history to record 1,200 career kills and 1,200 career digs, having already amassed 1,249 digs - - including five tonight.
Bacan and Pedrosa would each collect three service aces in the victory, with Bacan adding eight digs and Pedrosa scoring three.
In addition to her team-best 14 kills, Breivogel would score three digs and a block assists, while May added two block assists, two aces and a dig to her statistical line and Gibson scored five kills, three blocks and a dig.
Conner and junior Angie Parrell (Black Earth, Wis./Wisconsin Heights H.S.) split time as the team's setter, dishing out 21 and 20 assists respectively. Conner would add a pair of kills, two blocks and a dig, while Parrell posted three digs.
Also factoring in the win for BSU were freshmen
For the match, Ball State held a slim .164 (48-24-146) to .141 (41-21-134) attacking edge, while logging 10 aces to Akron's three. The Zips won the battle at the net, out-blocking the Cardinals 8-to-7, plus held a 66-to-65 lead in digs.
Akron's Brionna Patterson paced all players with 18 kills in the contest, while four Zips logged double-figure digs, paced by 14 each from Colleen Dryja and Megan Rodriguez.
The Cardinals return to the court Saturday afternoon when they visit Toledo for a
