Volleyball?s Road Woes Continue At IUPUI

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - - The Ball State women's volleyball team's road woes continued Tuesday evening, as the team suffered a 3-0 (30-23, 30-20, 30-21) setback at IUPUI.

With the loss, the Cardinals fall to 1-8 overall, while the Jaguars improve to 7-5.

The one bright spot on the day for the Cardinals was the play of freshman libero Alyssa Rio (Wayne, Ill./St. Francis H.S.), who recorded a match-high 19 digs.

Rio, who has logged double-figure digs in all nine matches for the Cardinals this season, continues to lead the Mid-American Conference with a 6.41 digs-per-game average.

“Alyssa Rio came out and played a really good match for us tonight,” said BSU head coach Dave Boos. “As a team, however, this match was a humongous wake up call for us.”

Aside from the defensive play of Rio, the Cardinals struggled for much of the match. Offensively, BSU finishing the contest with a season-low -.047 (27-33-127) attack percentage, with not a single player hitting positive for the night.

Statistically, sophomore opposite side attacker Elaina Kakatolis (Arcanum, Ohio/Franklin Monroe H.S.) was BSU's top attacker, smashing seven kills and hitting .000 (7-7-24).

In the opening set, the Cardinals started off with a service ace from senior setter Angie Parrell (Black Earth, Wis./Wisconsin Heights H.S.) and played to a 6-3 advantage, with the sixth point coming on an ace from sophomore defensive specialist Rachel Alcorn (New Castle, Ind./Chrysler H.S.). Unfortunately from there, it was all IUPUI, as the Jaguars went on a 7-1 run and went on to win the game 30-23.

The second game saw IUPUI open with a 5-1 run and never look back, winning the set 30-20.

In the third game, the Cardinals and Jaguars battled to a 9-9 tie before a BSU service error put the hosts ahead for good. After pulling ahead 22-11, IUPUI went on to win the game 30-21.

IUPUI's Ashley Johnson was the top attacker for the night, collecting eight kills while adding four total blocks. Chelsea Bastin tallied a team-best 14 digs for the Jaguars, while Devika Bellamy added 11.

The Jaguars finished the match with a .168 (39-19-119) attack percentage, compared to BSU's -.047 mark. IUPUI also held a 52-50 lead in digs and a 10-8 edge in total blocks. Both teams finished the match with six aces.

Ball State will look to end its eight-match losing streak Friday afternoon, when it opens play in the Hawkeye-Holiday Inn Challenge at 4:30 p.m. (CT) versus the College of Charleston.

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Players Mentioned

Rachel Alcorn

Elaina Kakatolis

Angie Parrell

Alyssa Rio

Players Mentioned

Rachel Alcorn

Elaina Kakatolis

Angie Parrell

Alyssa Rio