Ball State University Athletics
Ball State University
11-3, 1-1MAC
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Western Michigan
11-4, 2-0MAC
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ball State | 22 | 28 | 18 | 0 |
| Western Michigan | 25 | 30 | 25 | 3 |
Women's Volleyball Swept At Western Michigan
September 26, 2010 | Women's Volleyball
KALAMAZOO, MICH. - - Despite four players collecting double-figure digs, the Ball State women's volleyball team could not stop a strong Western Michigan squad, suffering a 3-0 (25-22, 30-28, 25-18) setback at WMU's University Arena Saturday evening.
With the loss, the Cardinals drop to 11-3 (1-1 Mid-American Conference) on the season. The Broncos pick up their fifth-straight victory and improve to 11-4 (2-0 MAC) on the year. All of WMU's losses have come to teams ranked in the top 26 in the nation as of the latest AVCA Division I Coaches Top 25 Poll (No. 4 Nebraska, No. 8 Illinois, No. 19 Dayton and Ohio State which is the first team outside the top 25 with 70 points).
"We battled as hard as we could for the first two games tonight," said Ball State head coach Steve Shondell. "I felt like we played Western Michigan dead even for the first two sets. We had a chance to put the second set away, but just could not stop their middle in the end, losing 30-28. Losing the second set took the wind out of our sails and we came out flat in the third game, falling behind 9-1. While we were able to fight back, we just dug ourselves too big of a hole to climb out of."
For the second-straight night, junior middle blocker Kelsey Brandl (Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North H.S.) led the Ball State offense with a match-high 16 kills. She also added a .375 (16-4-32) attack percentage, three digs, an ace and a block assists.
Freshman outside hitter Kylee Baker (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield North H.S.) added nine kills and 12 digs in the contest, while senior libero Alyssa Rio (Wayne, Ill./St. Francis H.S.) collected a match-best 27 digs.
Senior outside hitter Hannah Sullivan (New Albany, Ind./New Albany H.S.) and freshman defensive specialist Catie Fredrich (Menomonee Falls, Wis./Menomonee Falls H.S.) were BSU's other two players with double-figure digs with 15 and 12, respectively.
Despite the four Cardinals with double-figure digs, Western Michigan finished the night with a .253 (48-11-146) hitting mark, compared to a .157 (48-23-159) rate of success for BSU. Ball State did hold a 78 to 75 lead in digs and a three to two advantage in aces. WMU out-blocked the Cardinals seven to one.
Jessica Brown paced the Broncos' offense with 15 kills, while hitting .467 (15-1-30). Lena Oliver was one of four Western Michigan players with double figure digs, with a team-high 20.
The teams opened the contest playing to a 6-6 tie, before a kill from Baker and a Fredrich service ace gave the Cardinals an 8-6 edge. The lead remained two at 9-7 after another Baker kill, but a 7-1 run from the Broncos, which included two kills from Brown, forced a Ball State timeout at 14-11.
Western Michigan pushed its lead to five points, at 18-13, off a kill from Ashley Turnage, only to have two errors and kills from Brittany McGinnis (Fraser, Mich./Fraser H.S.) and Jennifer Boyd (Evans City, Pa./Seneca Valley H.S.) bring BSU back within two at 19-17. Ball State remained within two at the 21-19 mark, but could get no closer, as the teams traded the final seven points giving WMU the 25-22 opening-set victory.
Ball State scored the first two points of the second frame, only to see WMU rally off the next four. However, BSU used kills from Whitney Heeres (Flushing, Mich./Flushing Senior H.S.) and Brandl to tally the next two points and even the frame at four. With the score knotted at nine, a back-row kill from Baker followed by a Brandl smash to the hardwood helped BSU regain its two-point lead at 11-9.
Western Michigan battled back to tie the score at 13, and went on to force a Ball State timeout after taking a two-point edge of its own at 17-15. While a kill from Turnage helped WMU extend its lead to three after the break, the Cardinals capitalized on two Heeres kills, a Boyd marker and a pair of Broncos miscues to tie the score at 20.
After the teams traded the next six points, moving the score to 23-23, a kill from Baker gave the Cardinals the first set point at 24-23. A BSU attack error tied the score at 24-24, and from there the teams battled to a 28-28 deadlock with BSU having two set points and WMU one. Unfortunately, it was the Broncos who pushed through in the end, using kills from Brown and Ali Gossen to win the frame 30-28.
Western Michigan scored nine of the first 10 points in the third game, and never looked back, winning the set 25-18. Ball State would get as close as five down the stretch, after a kill from McGinnis made the score 19-14, but WMU rattled off the next three points and went on to win the set 25-18 on a kill from Doyle.
The Ball State women's volleyball team opened the home portion of its 2010 Mid-American Conference schedule next weekend, when it hosts Central Michigan (Friday) and Eastern Michigan (Saturday). Both contests are set for 7 p.m. first serves at Worthen Arena.
