Ball State University
Miami (Ohio)
Volleyball Drops Tough 3-0 Battle At Miami
October 25, 2014 | Women's Volleyball
OXFORD, Ohio - - The Ball State women's volleyball team opened the second half of the Mid-American Conference season with a 3-0 (25-23, 25-21, 32-30) loss at Miami's Millett Hall Friday night.
Despite the setback, redshirt junior middle blocker Hayley Benson (Hilliard, Ohio/Hilliard Bradley) continued her solid play by blasting a match-high 15 kills and hitting for a .483 (15-1-29) attack percentage. The two-time defending MAC West Division Offensive Player of the Week, Benson has smashed 67 kills over the last five matches compared to just two attacking errors.
Overall, the Cardinals (12-10 / 6-3 MAC) finished the match with a .241 (46-18-116) attack percentage, with redshirt freshman outside attacker Sabrina Mangapora (Canfield, Ohio/Canfield) joining Benson in double-figures with 10 kills. The RedHawks (14-8 / 7-3 MAC) finished the match with a .255 (45-17-110) rate of success and were led by Paige Hill's 12 kills.
“Despite some very good performances tonight from a number of our players, we did not have enough good performances to defeat an excellent Miami team on their home court,” Ball State head coach Steve Shondell said. “Life on the road is never easy, and our team learned tonight how important it is to come out of the gate mentally ready to go. We continue to play well at times, but have not been consistent enough to beat the top teams in the MAC yet. We are looking forward to that day.”
In the opening set, Miami turned a 17-16 lead into a 22-16 advantage thanks to a five-point run. The RedHawks reached set point, at 24-19, only to see the Cardinals answer with the next four points to battle within one at 24-23. Unfortunately, Miami's Jenny Ingle stopped the Ball State run with one of her eight kills in the contest.
Ball State held an 18-16 lead late in the second set, only to see the hosts go on a four-point run to pull ahead 20-18. The Cardinals rallied for the next three points, thanks in part to a kill from redshirt junior opposite Amanda Raker (Indianapolis, Ind./Perry Meridian/Butler) and a service ace from redshirt junior defensive specialist Alex Fuelling (Decatur, Ind./Bellmont/Morehead State). However, Miami responded with the next four markers to end the frame at 25-21.
The Cardinals looked poised to extend the match, leading 17-10 midway through the third set. Unfortunately, Miami battled back and tied the frame at 23-23. A kill from Benson would give Ball State a chance to end the set, but a costly service error allowed the RedHawks to tie the score at 24. From there, the teams battled to a 30-30 stalemate before a kill from Miami's Annie Reiswig and an Olivia Rusek service ace ended the set at 32-30 and the match at 3-0.
Junior libero Kati Vasalakis (Yorktown, Ind./Yorktown) led the Ball State backcourt with 12 digs, while the defense as a whole out-blocked Miami 9.0 to 4.0. Benson led all players with six block assists and finished the contest with 18.0 points, 5.5 points more than the next closest player.
Miami's Maeve McDonald led all players with 16 digs, helping the hosts hold a 46 to 42 edge in digs for the match.
The Ball State women's volleyball team returns to action Saturday, when it travels to Bowling Green for a 7 p.m. first serve.
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State women's volleyball, follow @BallStateSports, @BallStateWVB and @SteveShondell on Twitter.
- BallStateSports.com -
