Ball State University Athletics
Volleyball Opens MAC Tournament Play Tuesday At NIU
November 12, 2007 | Women's Volleyball
The Week Ahead: The Ball State Women's volleyball team opens play in the 2007 Mid-American Conference Tournament Tuesday at Northern Illinois in a 7 p.m. (CT) matchup . . . BSU enters the event as the No. 9 seed after finishing its MAC slate with a 4-12 record, while NIU is the No. 8 seed after going 7-9 in league action.
Ball State Versus Northern Illinois: The Huskies hold a slim 23-21 advantage in the all-time series versus the Cardinals after scoring a pair of wins over BSU this season . . . Last Friday, NIU swept the Cardinals 3-0 (30-18, 30-23, 30-19) to secure a home match versus BSU in the first round of the MAC Tournament . . . Earlier in the year, the Huskies scored a 3-2 (27-30, 23-30, 30-18, 30-26, 15-9) win over the Cardinals at Worthen Arena Oct. 16 . . . Overall, Ball State has lost the last four meetings between the two clubs . . . BSU has also lost its last five matches in DeKalb, with its last road win in the series coming Sept. 25, 2002 . . . BSU is 5-14 all-time in DeKalb.
BSU Versus NIU Part 2: Ball State is 1-2 versus Northern Illinois in MAC Tournament action, including a 0-1 record in championship matches . . . The Cardinals rallied to defeated the Huskies 3-2 (30-25, 29-31, 34-36, 30-28, 15-13) in the 2004 MAC Tournament Quarterfinals after trailing two-games-to-one and 25-20 in the fourth frame for its lone tournament win over NIU in the all-time series
Ball State vs. Northern Illinois In MAC Tournament
Date Round Results
11/19/04 Quarterfinals W, 3-2 (30-25, 29-31, 34-36, 30-28, 15-13)
11/24/01 Finals L, 0-3 (21-30, 17-30, 24-30)
11/27/98 Semifinals L, 1-3 (9-15, 11-15, 16-14, 9-15)
Breaking Down This Years Meetings: In the two meetings with the Huskies this season, senior Brittany May paces the Cardinals with 28 kills, while sophomore Julie Breivogel is second at 24 . . . Freshman Alyssa Rio has collected 44 digs in the two meetings for a 5.50 digs-per-game average, while Angie Parrell has tallied 23 . . . Junior Christine Kennedy, sophomore Elaina Kakatolis and freshman Alexis Shonkwiler have each collected eight block assists versus NIU . . . Irene Johnson paces the Huskies' attack with 29 kills, while Meagan Schoenrock has 27 . . . Maddie Hughes has tallied 33 digs against the Cardinals, while Mandi Caputo has 30 . . . Jessica Schultz paces the NIU block with 11 total blocks in the two matches, while Johnson has logged 10 . . . Overall, BSU averages 12.50 kpg, 12.12 apg, 17.62 dpg and 2.06 bpg in the two contests, while NIU averages 12.38 kpg, 11.50 apg, 16.62 dpg and 2.94 bpg.
Scouting Ball State: BSU enters the week with a 5-24 (4-12 MAC) record after going 0-2 last week . . . Sophomore Julie Breivogel paces the BSU offense with a 2.77 kills-per-game average, while senior Brittany May ranks second at 2.69 . . . Freshman Alyssa Rio leads the BSU defense with a 5.53 digs-per-game average, while junior Christine Kennedy is BSU's top blocker, averaging 1.00 blocks per game . . . Senior Angie Parrell and sophomore Cassie Conner both see time at setter, averaging 9.24 and 5.53 assists per game, respectively . . . As a team, BSU averages 12.06 kpg, 11.19 apg, 17.31 dpg and 2.38 bpg . . . BSU's opponents average 13.58 kpg, 12.44 apg, 17.18 dpg and 2.34 bpg.
Scouting Northern Illinois: The Huskies enter the week with an 13-17 (7-9 MAC) record after snapping a six-match losing streak with wins over Ball State (3-0; 30-18, 30-23, 30-19) and Toledo (3-0; 30-22, 30-16, 30-25) last week . . . Meagan Schoenrock currently tops the NIU offense with a 3.71 kills-per-game average, while Dani D'Ambrose ranks second at 3.57 . . . Maddie Hughes is Northern Illinois' top defender, averaging 4.99 digs per game, while Jessica Schultz is the team's leading blocker with a 0.94 blocks-per-game average . . . Mandi Caputo is the team's setter, averaging 12.20 assists per game . . . As a team, NIU averages 15.04 kpg, 13.89 apg, 19.26 dpg and 2.10 bpg . . . The Huskies' opponents average 16.12 kpg, 15.05 apg, 18.65 dpg and 2.47 bpg.
BSU in the MAC Tournament: The 2007 Mid-American Conference Tournament marks the 17th-straight MAC Tournament appearance for the Cardinals . . . BSU opens tournament play Tuesday at Northern Illinois, marking the first time in program history BSU has not hosted or earned a bye for its first MAC Tournament match since the field expanded from four to eight teams in 1997 . . . Starting in 2003, all league teams became eligible for the tournament . . . From 1987-1996, only the top four league teams participated in the tournament.
Last Year at the MAC Tournament: Ball State entered the 2006 MAC Tournament as the No. 6 seed and opened the event with a 3-2 (26-30, 30-27, 30-28, 25-30, 15-9) win over No. 11 Buffalo in first round action at Worthen Arena . . . In quarterfinal action, the Cardinals could not get past No. 3 seed Bowling Green, falling to the Falcons 3-0 (30-11, 30-26, 30-16) to finish the 2006 event with a 1-1 record.
MAC Tournament Record: After going 1-1 in the 2006 event, Ball State is a combined 26-12 (.684) all-time in MAC Tournament matches . . . Both BSU's 26 wins and 38 matches played are league records . . . Overall, Ball State is 2-0 in first round matches, 9-1 in quarterfinal matches, 9-8 in semifinal matches and 6-3 in championship matches. . . . Ball State has more tournament wins (26) than nine schools have matches played . . . Western Michigan, Miami and Bowling Green are the only schools to play in more tournament matches than BSU has wins, at 32, 31 and 27, respectively.
BSU Holds the Edge in MAC All-Tournament Selections: Prior to the 2006 MAC Tournament, the Cardinals had placed at least one player on the squad every year since 1991, 15-straight years . . . Since the inception of the all-tournament team in 1989, BSU has received the most selections, being honored 24 times among 16 players . . . In addition, Ball State holds the edge in tournament Most Valuable Players with six.
Rio Racking Up The Digs: Freshman libero Alyssa Rio continues to be one of the league's top defenders, ranking fourth in the MAC with a 5.53 digs-per-game average . . . In BSU's two matches last week, Rio tallied a team-best 27 digs over eight games for a 4.50 digs-per-game average . . . For the season, Rio has logged double-digit digs in 27 of BSU's 29 matches, with 30-or-more digs in three contests.
In the AVCA Rankings: Entering the week, freshman libero Alyssa Rio's career-high 41 digs versus Southeast Missouri State (Aug. 25) tie as the 15th-highest individual total in a five-game match this season, according to the American Volleyball Coaches Association's 2007 Division I 30-Dig Club list . . . Additionally, Rio's 34 digs in BSU's match versus Siena (Sept. 1) tie as the 19th-highest individual total in a four-game match this season.
Seniors Need Strong Finish: Unless the Cardinals advance to the third round of the NCAA Tournament, Ball State's 2007 senior class - - Angie Parrell and Brittany May - - will finish their playing careers with an overall losing record . . . Entering the 2007 MAC Tournament, their four-year playing record stands at 58-62 (35-29 MAC) . . . BSU would have to win four matches in the MAC Tournament and at least two NCAA Tournament matches for Parrell and May to earn winning records in their career . . . The 1990 seniors were the last class to go out with a losing record at 48-49 (15-17 MAC).
The Worthen Arena Advantage: Since Worthen Arena became the home of the Ball State women's volleyball team in 1992, the Cardinals have posted a 176-40 (.815) record in the building, including a 134-19 (.876) mark against teams from the Mid-American Conference . . . Among league schools, Miami has the most wins in the arena with five (5-11), followed by Ohio (3-8), Western Michigan (3-14), Northern Illinois (2-9), Bowling Green (2-12), Central Michigan (2-12), Eastern Michigan (1-17) and Kent State (1-10) . . . Akron (0-11), Buffalo (0-8) and Toledo (0-15) have never won in Worthen Arena . . . Marshall was 0-7 at Worthen Arena when it was a member of the conference from 1997 to 2004.
BSU Suffers First Losing Season at Worthen: Despite topping Toledo in its final regular season home match to improve to 3-10 at home, the Cardinals will end the year with its first losing mark in Worthen Arena . . . The following are BSU's year-by-year home results since 1992, the first year volleyball was played in Worthen Arena: 1992 (10-3), 1993 (14-1), 1994 (13-2), 1995 (11-2), 1996 (10-2), 1997 (9-1), 1998 (12-3), 1999 (17-1), 2000 (14-0), 2001 (11-0), 2002 (14-3), 2003 (8-4), 2004 (12-1), 2005 (11-1), 2006 (7-6), 2007 (3-10).
Women's Volleyball On WCRD 91.3 FM: WCRD 91.3 FM will be the radio home of BSU women's volleyball . . . The student-run station will cover all 13 home matches in 2007, as well as select road contests . . . WCRD is also the home of "Serving It Up" with Dave Boos, a weekly volleyball report which airs Monday nights from 6 to 7 p.m. beginning Sept. 3 . . . All WCRD broadcasts can be accessed FREE on the Official Home of Ball State Athletics, www.ballstatesports.com.
