Ball State University
2-2
IPFW
3-1
Women's Volleyball Drops First I-69 Battle At IPFW
August 29, 2012 | Women's Volleyball
FORT WAYNE, Ind. - - Despite three players with double-digit kills, the Ball State women's volleyball team fell to 2-2 on the year with a 3-1 (25-15, 29-27, 18-25, 25-21) setback to IPFW (3-1) Tuesday evening at the Gates Sports Center.
"It was a great atmosphere for our team to compete in tonight," said Ball State head coach Steve Shondell. "You have to give IPFW a lot of credit for the way they played. They are a very experienced ball club and played at a phenomenally high level. Our team hung in there and played tough, and I am really proud of the way we battled in the final three sets. I thought we grew a lot as a team tonight and we just have to keep getting better as the season moves along."
In the loss, senior Kara Bates (Bradley, Ill./Bradley Bourbonnais Community/Maryland) led the Ball State offense with 19 kills, one shy of her career-high of 20. Bates also collected seven kills and a block assists in the contest, while hitting .265 (19-6-49).
Also collecting double-digit kills for the Cardinals were junior opposite Lauren Grant (Eagan, Minn./Eastview/Cincinnati) and junior outside hitter Kylee Baker (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield North) with 11 and 10, respectively.
In the backcourt, junior libero Catie Fredrich (Menomonee Falls, Wis./Menomonee Falls) led Ball State with 16 digs, while freshman defensive specialist Taylor Richardson (Selma, Ind./Wapahani) added 12 over the final two sets, including eight in the fourth frame.
Junior setter Jacqui Seidel (St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles East) guided the Ball State offense to a .234 (58-22-154) hitting mark over the course of the match, while earning her fourth consecutive assist/dig double-double with 48 assists and 14 digs. She also logged three kills and a block assist.
IPFW's Emily Spencer led all players with 21 kills, while three other Mastodons also finished the night in double figures. Muncie Central product Tessa McGill led all players with 24 digs.
As a team, IPFW connected for a .304 (63-15-158) rate of success for the match, including a .517 (17-2-29) effort in the opening frame. The Mastodons also held a 10.5-4 advantage in team blocks, while BSU held the edge in digs at 69-63.
The teams played to a 5-5 stalemate in the opening set before a three-point run gave IPFW the momentum and an 8-5 edge. The Mastodons would control play from there, eventually winning the set 25-15 on a Spencer ace.
IPFW continued to control play early in the second frame, with the hosts scoring four of the first five points. With BSU trailing 12-8, two Mastodon errors and kills from redshirt freshman frontcourt specialist Hayley Benson (Hilliard, Ohio/Hilliard Bradley) and junior middle hitter Mindy Marx (Grand Haven, Mich./Grand Haven) evened the score at 12.
From there, the teams battled to a 23-23 stalemate, before another IPFW attack error gave BSU its first set point of the night. Unfortunately, a Jessie Manwearing kill kept the Mastodons alive. Ball State would have two more serves to win the set, thanks to kills from Bates, but the hosts answered both times before scoring four of the final five points to win the set 29-27 on a BSU attack error.
With Ball State leading 9-7 in the third set, three straight kills from Bates gave the Cardinals a five-point lead. The Mastodons were able to draw within one point, at 14-13, but three consecutive IPFW miscues pushed the BSU advantage back to four at 17-13.
The hosts followed with a second surge, pulling within one point again at 17-16, only to have three more errors and kills from Bates and Marx put the set out of reach at 22-16. Two more Bates kills gave Ball State set-point at 24-18, while an IPFW attack error helped the Cardinals secure the set 25-18.
Both teams came out strong in the fourth, as they played to an 8-8 deadlock. Unfortunately, four consecutive Cardinals' errors and a IPFW block gave the hosts team a 13-8 edge. Ball State would draw within two points on three occasions, including the 21-19 mark, only to have the Mastodons go on to win the set 25-21 and the match 3-1.
The Ball State women's volleyball team now heads the opposite direction on I-69 this weekend, when it travels south to IUPUI for the two-day IUPUI Jaguars Hampton Inn Invitational. BSU opens the tournament Friday versus Georgia State (4:30 p.m.) and will battle North Texas (10 a.m.) and IUPUI (7 p.m.) Saturday.
