Ball State University
Purdue
Volleyball Suffers 3-1 Setback At No. 13 Purdue
September 11, 2011 | Women's Volleyball
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - - The Ball State women's volleyball team handed No. 13 Purdue its first home set loss of the season, but it was not enough to carry home a match victory as the Boilermakers rallied to win the next three frames for a 3-1 (23-25, 25-17, 25-17, 25-9) victory in front of a sold-out crowd in the championship match of the 2011 Purdue Active Ankle Challenge at Holloway Gymnasium.
With the loss, the Cardinals fall to 9-1 on the season, while the 13th-ranked Boilermakers improve to 9-0.
For their efforts in the two-day tournament, Ball State senior middle blockers Kelsey Brandl (Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North H.S./Cincinnati) and Jennifer Boyd (Evans City, Pa./Seneca Valley H.S.) were named to the all-tournament team.
In Saturday's championship match, Brandl once again led the Ball State attack with a team-high 10 kills, while collecting two blocks and an ace. She finished the two-day tournament with 39 kills, a .419 hitting mark and nine service aces.
Boyd added seven kills in the finale, along with junior transfer outside hitter Kara Bates (Bradley, Ill./Bradley Bourbonnais Community/Maryland) and sophomore outside hitter Kylee Baker (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield North H.S.).
In the backcourt, sophomore libero Catie Fredrich (Menomonee Falls, Wis./Menomonee Falls H.S.) led all players with 19 digs, while Bates added 12.
Purdue's Ariel Turner led all players with 16 kills, while Catherine Rebarchak added 10. Carly Cramer added a team-high 15 digs, while Tiffany Fisher produced a match-high nine total blocks.
Overall, Purdue held a .283 to .095 hitting advantage in the contest, helped by 19.0-4.0 lead in team blocks. The Boilermakers also held a 60-57 edge in digs and a 7-5 advantage in aces.
Behind a pair of dump kills from senior setter Brittany McGinnis (Fraser, Mich./Fraser H.S.), the Cardinals jumped out to an 8-6 edge early in the opening set. A pair of Boyd blasts surrounding an ace from McGinnis upped the advantage to 11-7, while a kill from sophomore outside hitter Whitney Heeres (Flushing, Mich./Flushing Senior H.S.) forced Purdue's first timeout at 12-7. The Boilermakers responded with the next five points, tying the score at 12.
With the score knotted at 14, Brandl came to life, pounding four kills over the next six rallies to give BSU an 18-16 lead. A pair of Purdue hitting errors helped moved the score to 21-18, leading to the Boilermakers second timeout of the frame.
Ball State looked poised to close out the set at 24-20 after a kill from Boyd, but the hosts rallied back with the next three points to push the score to 24-23. However, Heeres came through at the end, posting a rocket shoot of the Purdue block to end the set at 25-23.
The Boilermakers jumped out strong in the second set, posting six of the first eight points to force an early Ball State timeout. The Cardinals responded with kills from Boyd and Brandl, and remained within two at the 9-7 mark. However, a four-point run from the Boilermakers extended the lead to six, at 13-7, and led to BSU's second timeout.
Purdue pushed their advantage to nine points, at 19-10, only to see BSU score the next three points and eventually draw within five at 21-16. The Cardinals could not complete the comeback, however, dropping the frame 25-17.
The hosts started the third set very similar to the second, building an early 6-2 edge. Ball State drew within two, at 7-5, after a service ace from Bates. Purdue rallied back with the next four points and eventually pulled ahead by eight at 14-6.
The Cardinals would not go down without a fight, capitalizing on a pair of kills from Baker and a pair of Purdue hitting errors to help them pull within two at 14-12. Unfortunately for BSU, Purdue answered with a 9-3 run, before closing out the frame at 25-17.
Purdue carried the momentum into the fourth frame, opening the set with an 8-1 run and never looking back, winning 25-9.
The Ball State women's volleyball returns to action Friday, when it opens play in the 2011 Spartan Invitational with a 7 p.m. match versus the host Michigan State Spartans.
