Ball State University
13-10, 7-3MAC
Bowling Green
5-17, 2-8MAC
Shondell Earns 100th Win As Volleyball Sweeps BGSU
October 26, 2014 | Women's Volleyball
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - - The Ball State women's volleyball team rebounded from a tough Friday loss with a dominating offensive effort in a 3-0 (25-19, 25-15, 25-19) sweep of Bowling Green Saturday night at the Stroh Center.
The win marks the program's 100th victory under head coach Steve Shondell, who has amassed a 100-48 (.676) record over his five-year collegiate coaching tenure. A 2007 inductee into the American Volleyball Coaches Association Hall of Fame for his efforts in 34 seasons as the head girls varsity coach at the Burris Laboratory School, Shondell is just the third coach in program history to amass 100 career wins.
“After a rough outing last night, our team responded by playing its best match of the year in defeating a young and talented Bowling Green squad,” said Shondell. “We fought harder tonight than we have all season, and every player who stepped on the court played well. It was simply a great team effort, and one we need to build upon as we head down the home stretch of the MAC season.”
Overall, the Cardinals (13-10 / 7-3 Mid-American Conference) tied a season-high with a .358 (52-14-106) attack percentage in the victory, marking the second consecutive Saturday Ball State has rebounded from a Friday loss to hit .358 in a three-set sweep.
On defense, Ball State limited the Falcons (5-17 / 2-8 MAC) to a .183 (33-14-104) attack percentage while holding a 50 to 36 edge in digs and a 7.5 to 4.0 advantage in team blocks.
With the score of the opening set tied at seven, a pair of BGSU errors sparked a six-point Cardinals run, giving the guests a 13-7 lead. The Falcons were able to draw within two late, at 21-19, before a block and kill from Ball State junior setter Jenna Spadafora (Fort Wayne, Ind./Carrol) helped the Cardinals rattle off the next four points and win the frame 25-19.
The score of the second set was tied at 4-4 before the Cardinals took control with a 15-5 run. Redshirt junior middle blocker Hayley Benson (Hilliard, Ohio/Hilliard Bradley), who smashed three kills during the run, ended the set at 25-15 with her sixth kill of the frame.
The teams battled to a 12-12 stalemate in the third set before a kill from redshirt junior outside hitter Alex Fuelling (Decatur, Ind./Bellmont/Morehead State) sparked a 7-1 Ball State run, giving the guests a 19-13 advantage. The Cardinals went on to win the set 25-19 on a block from Benson and Fuelling, and take the match 3-0.
Redshirt freshman outside attacker Sabrina Mangapora (Canfield, Ohio/Canfield) led all players with 12 kills and added a .478 (12-1-23) attack percentage. Fuelling and redshirt junior middle attacker Kelly Hopkins (Kokomo, Ind./Kokomo) each blasted 10 kills, while Benson recorded nine markers to go along with a match-best six total blocks.
Fuelling tied for match-high honors with 12 digs, to collect her third kill/dig double-double of the season. Spadafora also finished the night with her fifth double-double of the year, dishing out 40 assists and tying Fuelling for match-high honors with 12 digs.
Paige O'Connor led Bowling Green with eight kills, while Madeline Garda collected a team-high 10 digs.
Ball State returns to Worthen Arena next weekend when it hosts Northern Illinois (Friday) and Western Michigan (Saturday). Both matches start at 7 p.m. and will be televised live by Ball State Sports Link and the Ball State Sports Network, respectively.
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State women's volleyball, follow @BallStateSports, @BallStateWVB and @SteveShondell on Twitter.
- BallStateSports.com -
