Ball State University Athletics
WVB Hosts Toledo Thursday, Buffalo Saturday
October 28, 2015 | Women's Volleyball
Match 25
Ball State (11-13 / 5-5 MAC) hosts Toledo (4-19 / 1-9 MAC)
Thursday, Oct. 29 (7 p.m.)
Muncie, Ind. (Worthen Arena)
ESPN3 | SL Digital Audio | Live Stats
Match 26
Ball State (11-13 / 5-5 MAC) hosts Buffalo (5-17 / 4-6 MAC)
Saturday, Oct. 31 (7 p.m.)
Muncie, Ind. (Worthen Arena)
SL Digital Audio | Live Stats
►THE WEEK AHEAD: The Ball State women's volleyball team closes out its current four-match home stand this week, starting with a Thursday match versus its Mid-American Conference travel partner Toledo ... Saturday, the Cardinals face its final MAC East Division opponent in Buffalo ... Both matches are set for 7 p.m. first serves, with Thursday's also being broadcast live by ESPN3.
►THANK YOU FOR THE SUPPORT: Thanks to the generous support of its fans, the Ball State women's volleyball team raised $1,535.00 for the Side-Out Foundation in its annual “Dig Pink” match versus Miami last Friday ... The team's goal for the event was $1,000 in donations, giving it a 154% level of funding.
►WITH SIX TO GO: With six matches remaining in the 2015 MAC regular season, the Cardinals enter the week with a 5-5 league record and currently hold the No. 7 seed in the MAC Tournament if the season ended today ... Ohio leads the league at 9-1, followed by Kent State and Northern Illinois at 8-2 ... Miami (7-3) enters the week at No. 4, followed by Western Michigan (6-4), Central Michigan (5-5), Ball State and Buffalo (4-6) ... By virtue of its loss to Buffalo last week, Eastern Michigan (4-6) is the first team out of the tournament, followed by Akron (2-8), Toledo (1-9) and Bowling Green (1-9) ... The top eight seeds advance to the 2015 MAC Tournament which will be hosted by Ohio Nov. 19-22.
►BATTLING THE BEST: The Cardinals enter the week with a 2-2 record versus the league's top four teams, including home court sweeps of Northern Illinois (Oct. 2) and Miami (Oct. 23) ... Ball State suffered five-set road losses in back-to-back matches versus Ohio (Oct. 16) and Kent State (Oct. 17) ... In the four matches, the Cardinals have had a very balanced offense overall, with nine different players averaging at least 1.22 kills per set ... Senior outside attacker Alex Fuelling has the best average at 2.44 kills per set, while senior setter Jenna Spadafora is averaging 1.25 kills per set and hitting a team-best .362 ... On defense, senior libero Kati Vasalakis has a team-best 4.12 digs-per-set average, while senior middle Kelly Hopkins averages 0.81 blocks per set.
►BIG WEEKEND FOR KITCHEL: Redshirt junior outside attacker Mackenzie Kitchel was named the MAC West Division Offensive Player of the Week after averaging 4.00 kills and hitting .413 (24-5-46) in Ball State's two wins last weekend ... A first-time career MAC Player of the Week honoree, Kitchel dominated opposing defenses by smashing a match-high 12 kills against both Miami (Oct. 23) and Bowling Green (Oct. 24) ... She also finished the match versus the Falcons with a career-high .588 (12-2-17) attack percentage ... Kitchel's .413 attack percentage for the weekend is the best two-match average of her entire career, while she collected back-to-back double-digit kill totals for just the fourth time in a Cardinals uniform.
►NO PLACE LIKE HOME: Ball State enters the week with a 7-1 record in home matches this season, including a 3-1 mark in league play ... Ball State is out-hitting its opponents by a .229 to .169 margin in home matches, including its two best attack percentages of the season in sweeps of Northern Illinois (Oct. 2) and Bowling Green (Oct. 24), with marks of .370 and .360, respectively ... Kelly Hopkins leads the Cardinals in home matches with a 2.56 kills-per-set average, while Kati Vasalakis is averaging a team-best 4.38 digs per set.
►MORE NEWS FROM THE HOME FRONT: In addition to the big advantage in attack percentage in home matches, the Cardinals are out-digging opponents 16.06 to 13.72 in Worthen Arena ... Ball State also holds a 14.00 to 11.03 advantage in kills per set, and a 2.23 to 1.75 edge in blocks per set.
►FROM THE NEST: With a 7-1 record in home matches so far this season, Ball State enters Thursday's match versus Toledo with a 239-70 (.773) all-time record in Worthen Arena ... The Cardinals are 3-1 in league play at home this season, improving to 175-41 (.810) versus MAC teams in Worthen Arena.
►ACE OF SPADES OR JACK OF ALL TRADES?: In addition to being one of the league's top setters, ranking fifth in the MAC in league-only matches with a 9.37 assists-per-set average, Jenna Spadafora enters the week ranked third among MAC players in league action with a .331 attack percentage ... On the year, Spadafora has accumulated 125 kills which is the third-highest kill total for a six rotation setter (who has played exclusively at the setter position) in the country based on players listed as setters in the current NCAA statistical rankings ... Only Sarah Bell of Southern Miss. and Aubrey Marsellis of Austin Peay have more at 129 and 126, respectively.
►TRIPLING UP: In the Oct. 3 match versus Western Michigan, Jenna Spadafora registered 10 kills, 13 digs and 41 assists for her first career triple double … Prior to the contest, the closest Spadafora had been to a triple double was one kill shy, earning nine kills, 13 digs and 42 assists in a 3-2 loss to Missouri State (Sept. 12, 2014) ... She also fell one kill shy of a triple double in the Oct. 17 match at Kent State, registering nine kills, 13 digs and 44 assists … Spadafora's triple double marks Ball State's first triple double since Oct. 19, 2002, when then-setter Stacie Baldwin (2001-04) produced 10 kills, 14 digs and 70 assists in a 3-2 victory over Eastern Michigan in Worthen Arena.
►GOING THE DISTANCE: Ball State enters the week with a 5-3 record in five-set matches this season, including a 2-2 mark in league play … Ball State opened its 2015 MAC season with five-set victories at Toledo (Sept. 24) and at Akron (Sept. 26), marking the first time in program history the Cardinals started conference play with back-to-back five set victories … Ball State is 24-15 in five-set matches in the Steve Shondell era, including a 15-9 mark in MAC regular season play.
►IN THE FIFTH SET: The Ball State offense is playing its best in the pressure-packed fifth frame this season, connecting for a .317 (68-17-161) attack percentage … In addition, the defense is limiting opposing teams to a .221 (60-24-163) rate of success in the fifth set, including a .167 (32-14-108) mark in its five victories … Kelly Hopkins and Alex Fuelling lead the Ball State offense in the fifth frame with 12 kills each, while hitting .417 (12-2-24) and .308 (12-4-26), respectively … Ball State also holds a 72 to 60 advantage in digs and an 11 to 7 lead in team blocks over its opponents in the fifth set.
►IN THE FIRST FOUR SETS: Outside the fifth set, Ball State's second-best attack percentage comes in the third game, where the Cardinals are hitting for a .183 (309-141-916) rate of success ... The team is hitting .173 (313-164-860) in the opening set, .167 (303-158-870) in the second stanza and .172 (182-90-535) in the fourth frame this season.
►HITTING THEIR MARK: The Cardinals connected for a season-high .370 (51-14-100) attack percentage in the Oct. 2 victory over MAC West Division preseason favorite Northern Illinois … The effort ranks as the fifth-best total in a match in the Steve Shondell era, and is the team's best attack percentage since earning a .376 (43-9-93) rate of success against Illinois-Chicago (Sept. 14, 2013) … Ball State's .360 (44-13-86) effort versus Bowling Green last Saturday (Oct. 24) is the ninth-best mark under Shondell.
1. .419 (55-11-105) vs. The Citadel (Aug. 31, 2013)
2. .390 (39-9-77) at Kent State (Oct. 15, 2011)
3. .384 (50-12-99) vs. Murray State (Sept. 3, 2011)
4. .376 (43-9-93) vs. Illinois-Chicago (Sept. 14, 2013)
5.. .370 (51-14-100) vs. Northern Illinois (Oct. 2, 2015)
6. .367 (54-10-120) at Miami (Oct. 22, 2010)
7. .3659 (42-12-82) vs. Western Carolina (Sept. 9, 2011)
8. .3656 (45-11-93) vs. Northern Illinois (Oct. 30, 2010)
9.. 360 (44-13-86) vs. Bowling Green (Oct. 24, 2015)
►DIGGING UP THE ALL-TIME LIST: With her 24 digs last weekend, Kati Vasalakis climbed from 11th to ninth on Ball State's all-time career digs list at 1,132 … Vasalakis needs 73 more digs to pass Megan Hammons (1998-2001) career total of 1,204 for eighth on Ball State's career chart.
►SERIES VS. TOLEDO: Ball State opened the 2015 MAC season with a 3-2 (13-25, 18-25, 26-24, 25-11, 15-10) come-from-behind victory at Toledo (Sept. 24) to improve to 62-7 all-time versus the Rockets ... The Cardinals have won the last three meetings, including sweeping the 2014 season series by scores of 3-1 (25-12, 20-25, 25-17, 25-20) in Worthen Arena (Oct. 9) and 3-0 (25-17, 25-18, 25-15) at Savage Arena (Nov. 13) ... Toledo swept the 2013 regular season series, marking just the second time in the 69-match series Toledo won back-to-back matches, with the only other coming in 1983 ... Ball State strung together a 42-match winning streak over the Rockets from Nov. 13, 1987 - Oct. 2, 2008 ... Overall, 13 of the last 28 matches have gone five sets, with Ball State holding an 11-2 edge ... Thursday's match will mark just the second meeting on Oct. 29, with Ball State earning a 3-1 (11-15, 15-5, 15-8, 15-7) victory in the only other match played on the date in 1983 ... The Cardinals hold a 29-3 advantage in matches played in Muncie, including a 21-2 record in Worthen Arena ... Head coach Steve Shondell is 9-3 all-time versus Toledo.
►SERIES VS. BUFFALO: Ball State holds an 18-1 lead in the all-time series versus Buffalo, including four straight wins ... Last season, the Cardinals topped the Bulls by a score of 3-1 (25-23, 17-25, 25-23, 25-22) in Buffalo Oct. 11 ... Buffalo's lone win in the series came by a score of 3-2 (28-26, 20-25, 25-19, 19-25, 15-13) on Oct. 9, 2010 in Buffalo ... The Cardinals have never lost to the Bulls in Muncie, holding an 11-0 advantage in matches on its home court, with all 11 being played in Worthen Arena ... Head coach Steve Shondell is 4-1 all-time versus Buffalo.
QUICK HITS
● The Ball State women's volleyball team enters Thursday's match with an 854-553-2 (.607) all-time record ... The Cardinals boast a 115-64 (.642) mark under sixth-year head coach Steve Shondell, including a 61-29 (.678) ledger in MAC play.
● Ball State enters Thursday's match with a 346-175 (.664) all-time record in MAC matches ... Western Michigan is first on the list with a 360-161 (.691) all-time league mark, while Toledo is 11th at 154-367 (.296) and Buffalo is 12th at 53-239 (.182).
● Ball State is 4-1 in matches broadcast by ESPN3 this season, including sweeps of Northern Illinois (Oct. 2) and Miami (Oct. 23), two of the league's top four teams ... All four of the Cardinals wins have come at home, with Joel Godett (play-by-play) and four-year letterwinner (2007-10) and one-year student assistant coach (2011) Alyssa Rio (analyst) calling the action ... Ball State's lone loss came at Central Michigan (Oct. 9).
● Meg Starling tallied a career-high tying seven kills in the first set at No. 22 Purdue (Sept. 18) ... The effort ties as the highest single-set kill total by a Ball State player in 2015, with Alex Fuelling and Bailey Baumer both scoring seven kills in the third set versus Albany (Aug. 28) ... Fuelling also had seven kills in set one versus FAU (Sept. 4) and set four at Kent State (Oct. 17).
● Senior setter Jenna Spadafora enters Thursday's match ranked ninth in program history with 2,588 career assists ... She needs 62 to pass both Jacqui Seidel's (2010-13) and Janell Lorenz's (1984-87) career total of 2,649 for seventh on Ball State's all-time list.
● Ball State finished last Friday's match versus Miami with six service aces, compared to four service errors, marking the first time this season the Cardinals have served up more aces than errors in a match … The team continued the trend Saturday, with six more aces, compared to two service errors, against Bowling Green.
● Last weekend was Ball State's best offensive weekend of the season, as the Cardinals hit .206 versus Miami and .360 versus Bowling Green for a combined .272 attack percentage ... The team's previous best for a weekend was .232 at the Ball State Active Ankle Challenge (Aug. 28-29), when the Cardinals hit .224 versus Albany, .227 versus Belmont and .241 versus New Mexico … The team's previous best two-match effort was .245, thanks to a .166 mark in a five-set win at Akron (Sept. 26) and a season-high .370 percentage versus Northern Illinois (Oct. 2).
● Ball State head coach Steve Shondell is in his fourth season as a voting member of the AVCA Division I Coaches Top-25 Poll.
SHONDELL QUOTABLES
● ON LAST WEEKEND: “It was a weekend we really needed. It's been tough the last couple weeks, playing pretty solid volleyball on the road and not coming back with any wins. It felt good to be back home, where we have had a lot of success this year. It's fun playing in front of our crowds, as they bring so much energy into Worthen Arena. Our team loves playing in front of the Ball State fans.”
● THIS WEEK'S OPPONENTS: “Toledo did everything but beat us the last time out. I am sure they remember that, and will be hungry and ready to go Thursday. Buffalo has been one of the most physical teams in the league for the last couple years, and this year is no different. They are very talented, and we hope we can out ball control them like we have in the past.”
